Question? What Company Has Sold More Reels Than Every Other Firm -- Combined?
https://youtu.be/llWRpQREIGM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcOeQQuAwq8
Enjoy!
Best,
Fred
Thanks for posting! Interesting information.
Good stuff Fred! Thanks for the info.
.............Lou
I still have all my old Zebco's.
From the 22 to the 606. ;)
Oh great Fred...now I want to hot-rod a 33...Sal, can you double-dog this thing? I wonder if Dawn has any carbontex washers for a 33? I bet with the Boss' handles I could crank in a real hawg...
Good read/watch--thanks Fred. I admire Zebco & I even like some of their reels.
There are a couple of other stories about the 1st spincast reel. George Herter, sporting goods entrepreneur supreme for a big chunk of the middle of the 20th Century, claims a Swiss outfit had spincasts of a sort in the 1920s. The place where I read this didn't offer any specifics or pics, so barring further research, take it for what it's worth. The second story has more detail; the Denison-Johnson Company supposedly had a spincast reel designed & ready to show; Mr. Hull, or someone else from Zebco, got an early peek at it over in Mankato, MN, and Zebco had their version ready to sell about the same time as Johnson. So, maybe Johnson was 1st. By the middle of the '50s, Zebco had the Model 33 and Johnson the Century 100, two historical reels and by many votes, two of the best spincasts ever. At that point, who was 1st probably was irrelevant.
Of course, Zebco is still in business and cranking out all kinds of reels; their marketing was second-to-none, and as their rep said in the one video, their mission was to bring the outdoors to people and they succeeded very spectacularly. Johnson has changed hands several times after coming up with some fine reels in the '60s-'80s time frame; the true successor to the original Johnson Co. now limits itself to MinnKota trolling motors, Old Town canoes, and other non-tackle items, while Johnson Fishing, part of the omnipresent Pure Fishing conglomerate (along with Penn, Shakespeare, Pflueger, Berkley and some other great names in tackle history) markets lures & perhaps some other tackle items, but as far as I know, no reels in the US.
Frank
There is something instinctual and inherent about fishing. But the spincast reel in general and Zebco in particular probably resulted in a lot more people following their instincts and sticking with fishing. Whether that is a good thing or an unfortunate thing could be debated.... but probably never resolved.
-steve
Grew up poor but not poor enough to own a Zebco.
Very interesting ! I, and most others in my part of the world, have fished a ton of Zebco reels....and I still HAVE a ton of them....simple to use, and repair, easy to afford, and, for the most part, very adequate at handling most of the tasks it's asked to do.
Zebco 33 --my very first reel back in the '50s, and my first step up from a cane pole.
Quote from: oc1 on December 08, 2017, 07:49:24 AM
There is something instinctual and inherent about fishing. But the spincast reel in general and Zebco in particular probably resulted in a lot more people following their instincts and sticking with fishing. Whether that is a good thing or an unfortunate thing could be debated.... but probably never resolved.
-steve
First rod/reel I owned was a plastic bodied Zebco spincaster molded right onto a plastic handled 4' rod with 3 guides. I's 5yrs. old and took to it like nothin else I've ever tried. Somethin about huntin those critters down there that I couldn't see... Compared to other rigs the family had, it was extreamly dependable.
Gfish
Quote from: PacRat on December 08, 2017, 02:51:13 AM
Oh great Fred...now I want to hot-rod a 33...Sal, can you double-dog this thing? I wonder if Dawn has any carbontex washers for a 33? I bet with the Boss' handles I could crank in a real hawg...
Hmmm...
Gfish
Caught many of fish on a Zebco 33
My dad always use 33 for trout and he still has 3 of the 808's in the boat
Most reels? Who'd a thunk. Dominick
Quote from: whalebreath on December 10, 2017, 05:10:54 AM
Grew up poor but not poor enough to own a Zebco.
Tru Dat! ;)
Quote from: Benni3 on December 11, 2017, 01:55:42 AM
My dad always use 33 for trout and he still has 3 of the 808's in the boat
The older US made 33s are still thought of pretty highly, and the 800 series are considered better than decent bigger spincast reels.
Frank