Fishing with vintage tackle

[Swami805]

Pounding high balls with granny, classic.

[sharkman]

Here a testament to vintage gear. One minute your fishing for mangrove snapper with your trusty penn 714 and boom 36 inch snook is on the other end.

[basto]

I fish freshwater only. One reel that I use is 20 years old. The other 20 + reels in my arsenal run from 33 to 50 years old. Quite honestly, IMO, that group of reels, all ABU, Zebco or ABU/Garcia Cardinal fulcrum brake models are more reliable than just about any spinning reel purchased new these days. Also, IMHO, some of the best quality reels ever made, regardless of type, were made between the mid '60s and mid '80s. Starting about 1980 I think overall quality started to decline. I love the looks I get when other fishermen see the reels I'm using. The stares and comments are priceless! 

Hi Tommy
I totally get you on the older ABU cardinals. In the eighties I bought a cardinal 54 and 55. Somehow I let a prominent fishing writer convince me that rear drag spinners were not the best way to go. So I sold them and have come to regret it.
I recently picked up a cardinal 5 in pristine condition for cheap. Was surprised to see a made in Japan sticker on the reel foot and this little reel is made of the right stuff and operates perfectly. Very happy!!
cheers
Basto

 

[Midway Tommy]

I fish freshwater only. One reel that I use is 20 years old. The other 20 + reels in my arsenal run from 33 to 50 years old. Quite honestly, IMO, that group of reels, all ABU, Zebco or ABU/Garcia Cardinal fulcrum brake models are more reliable than just about any spinning reel purchased new these days. Also, IMHO, some of the best quality reels ever made, regardless of type, were made between the mid '60s and mid '80s. Starting about 1980 I think overall quality started to decline. I love the looks I get when other fishermen see the reels I'm using. The stares and comments are priceless! 

Hi Tommy
I totally get you on the older ABU cardinals. In the eighties I bought a cardinal 54 and 55. Somehow I let a prominent fishing writer convince me that rear drag spinners were not the best way to go. So I sold them and have come to regret it.
I recently picked up a cardinal 5 in pristine condition for cheap. Was surprised to see a made in Japan sticker on the reel foot and this little reel is made of the right stuff and operates perfectly. Very happy!!
cheers
Basto

 

From my experiences most rear drag reels work better and are easier to adjust during the catch than front drag reels, but the optimum setup is the fulcrum style rear drag. It seems they offer a much better opportunity for finite drag adjustment as a result of the leverage provided by the brake arm.

[basto]

Yes, I see that the dial on the 5 is in the same position under the housing as the older original cardinals, whereas the dial or adjustment knob on the 54 and 55  was at the very end of the housing.
Interesting to find that they returned to the original position on the Cardinal 5.
Basto

[Sonnett]

The terms "vintage" and "old" are relative terms, often being a function of the age of the person using them. I'm 76 and when I hear someone talking about something being "old" that is 20 years old, I shake my head and think my socks are probably older than that-LOL. Every year for the past 30 years or so we have had a tournament in Missouri in which all tackle must be pre-1940. Rods, reels, and lures. It is truly amazing how many nice bass are caught and released each year. The other fact is that after participating in the tournament, many find that the experience is so rewarding that they never go back to contemporary tackle. I do virtually all my fishing with "antique' tackle and enjoy every minute of it. There is a certain pleasure to be taken when an older baitcasting reel is mastered. When asked by others why anyone would want to do this, my standard answer is for the same reason folks hunt deer with a bow and arrow or squirrels with a flintlock. It is just more fun. Attend any antique tackle show and you will find many great reels, rods, and lures that are 50 or 75 years old that are less expensive than the new ones found on the market today.

[xjchad]

The terms "vintage" and "old" are relative terms, often being a function of the age of the person using them. I'm 76 and when I hear someone talking about something being "old" that is 20 years old, I shake my head and think my socks are probably older than that-LOL. Every year for the past 30 years or so we have had a tournament in Missouri in which all tackle must be pre-1940. Rods, reels, and lures. It is truly amazing how many nice bass are caught and released each year. The other fact is that after participating in the tournament, many find that the experience is so rewarding that they never go back to contemporary tackle. I do virtually all my fishing with "antique' tackle and enjoy every minute of it. There is a certain pleasure to be taken when an older baitcasting reel is mastered. When asked by others why anyone would want to do this, my standard answer is for the same reason folks hunt deer with a bow and arrow or squirrels with a flintlock. It is just more fun. Attend any antique tackle show and you will find many great reels, rods, and lures that are 50 or 75 years old that are less expensive than the new ones found on the market today.

Thank you for posting this! 
I'm not quite as old as you  but I do also love using older tackle, although I don't have any that old.
This tournament sounds like a blast!  I'd love to just be there to watch even!
That is a beauty of a bass! 
Would you mind share some more pictures and info on the gear you're using there?
Thanks!

[Sonnett]

Here are a few. Most of my fishing is nighttime Bass fishing with topwater, older plugs. I stopped taking pics a few years ago and simply measure them and let them go. All the fish in these pics were released. Rods are Bamboo, tubular steel, solid glass or tubular glass. All the baits are 60 years old or older. The jitterbug is the first model 1939 wood. The reels are Coxe 25N, Pfluegers: Supreme, Skilcast &  Summit and the Shakespeare Presidential Sportcast. Today I use the Coxe 25N almost exclusively and occasionally a Skilcast at night. Plugs are Wood Jitterbug, Clark's Water Scout, Shakespeare Mouse, CCBC Plunker and Injured Minnow.

[foakes]

Thanks for posting this, Bill --

Plus the great photos.

I too, use vintage gear but 20-30 years newer -- and mostly spinners for fresh water.

DAM Quick, Mitchell, Penn, & ABU/Zebco Cardinals -- paired with Fenwicks, Wright-McGill, WonderRods, or Garcia Conolons.

I do have around 200-300 baitcasters that are slated for lamps.  

And a bunch of older open face spinners from the 50's such as Zebcos, Langley's, OC's, and others -- that I should try out.

You have inspired me!

Best,

Fred

[oc1]

Beautiful Bill.  Coxe is known for quality, but I think he made the most handsome reels of all time; the 25N being a great example.
-steve

[Sonnett]

Beautiful Bill.  Coxe is known for quality, but I think he made the most handsome reels of all time; the 25N being a great example.
-steve

Steve they made many changes in that reel's short life, which was made even shorter with the interruption during WWII. JA Coxe never made any freshwater levelwind reels until moving to Bronson in 1938. He had many ideas that he thought would be an improvement over the reels of the day, but he did not count on the ineptitude of the average fisherman when it came to cleaning and lubrication-LOL. As time went on his reel became more like the average Pflueger or Shakespeare of the day. The other problem was metallurgy. He used german silver on applications on his pre-1951 reels in ways for which it was unsuited. Consequently, we see cracks as well as wear where hard metals move against softer metals. I have owned (don't tell my wife) about 70 of these reels and I repair them for others. We see the same problems over and over and the most common problem is a worn or mangled "pawl spring" (Coxe's term) which is the very fine wire clip that provides enough friction to make the reel re-engage when the crank is turned forward. I mention this as the part is very difficult to find but a great substitute can be fashioned from the spring found in most ballpoint pens. This problem was addressed in 1951 with the introduction of the aluminum-framed Coronet 25. That reel was expensive and knocked out of the competition, as so many others were by the Ambassadeur 5000.

[Alto Mare]

Vintage gear make the best pictures.
Thanks for sharing guys....beautiful!

Sal

[mo65]

  I tried to find a few pics of catches on vintage gear...it seems most of my vintage action is on video. The bottom photo is a catch on all vintage components. The rod, the reel, even the lure was a classic early Jitterbug!

[thorhammer]

How do we define vintage? Is it a number? I think I heard 20 years somewhere....well, I use a whole bunch of stuff I bought new in the late 90's, most of which still looks new- Spinfishers, a whole stand of Penn Graphite GS, Senators, Penn 9's, 209, 309, GTI,  and Abu's. While it may fit the definition of vintage in that regard, many such as Abu C3, Peers, Senators have had very little done in 25 other than cosmetic or minor changes, so is that really vintage? GS and GTI are very similar to current Penn graphite reels- the 535 Mag and Squall 15 look a whole lot alike... The Peers and Senators, to 99 percent of people not on AT, are the same (and are functionally) as they were  50 years ago, and my Gen 1 Internationals are still decking fish.


I still fish these on a weekly basis- my fav bass reel is a 1973 5500 Abu, the Calcutta's rarely come off the rack. The Peers and Mag 10's are used regularly and my friends haven't the foggiest that that the red ones are older than the black ones. I consider my 310/320 / 330's, and SSM's, my "new reels", lol.

I use a lot of regular old white bucktails on heads I pour....new, I guess, but 100 years old or more in design. And tho a newer make, there's a frog pattern Jitterbug- my fav as kid- that stays hanging in my shop on an Abu 5500 for the pond out back.

Plus a whole slew of 1960's Quicks and Mitchells...

[xjchad]

Very cool, thank you!