Hi,
I picked up an older Penn #67, on E bay, and it was a "package deal", so, I ALSO got this one...it's marked " No.155 250yds. Surf Caster", on the foot There is a "medallion", of sorts, but there's no name, just a "bulls eye" of concentric circles. I figure it's a *trade reel* from ....maybe, Pflueger (judging from the "square shank on the drive spindle) , but, that's just a wild guess, on my part. Except for chrome loss (looks like it was a REAL thin coating , to begin with !), it's in quite good shape, with very minimal scratching on the bakelite. The spool is bakelite, too, and is drilled.
It must have been apart, once in it's life, as scratched inside the end plates are "initials"...."R" on the head plate, and "M" on the tail....I'm not sure WHAT that's about !.....anyway, if it looks familiar to anyone, I'd appreciate a shout back ! Thanks !!
What does the writing say on the bottom of the foot?
The marks inside may have been put there during assembly. A lot of old reels have them.
-steve
I'll try for some better pix today.
I hadn't thought about "assembly marks" ?! I suppose, it could be, some kind of "inspector's mark", as well. My pictures nen't very high quality, I'm afraid...I wish I could blame the camera...but, it's mostly my shaky , old hands !
If it WAS an "inspector", he must have been on coffee break when they drilled the acorn nut for the oiler...it's WAY off center, LOL ! The way the "clutch lever" works is pretty neat....a "forked" leaf spring holds the pinion gear, and the lever, when applied, depresses the spring, which pulls the pinion away from the spool. I would imagine that, with only two attachment points, the bridge would fold up, pretty quickly, with something big, on the line !
the bridge and jack are the similar in design to the old mitchell's from france. i doubt that it is a mitchell, though.
Do you suppose it could be a "Japanese Knock-off" ? That would explain the "cheap" plating....I would think, if made as an "inexpensive" trade reel, by a bigger manufacturer, the parts would be just pulled off their line....so "quality" would be the same. They, in effect, just would leave their name "off" one of their reels, but this one, even though the bakelite seems fine, has very "shoddy" metal parts....the star is very "rough," and crudely " punched out", with lots of burrs. And, as I said, the plating seems VERY thin. That said, all the metal parts ARE brass, and one would think, it it was a "cheap" reel....and constructed from the get-go to BE a cheap reel...they would have used steel ?!
Well, whatever it's name, or country of manufacture......I cleaned it up a bit, lubed everything, and after assembly, I spooled up some vintage line, and, tomorrow....it's down to the river with it ! All the functions seem very smooth, and it has a nice amount of free spool, so a Shannon twin spin should cast very well !! Thanks again, guys !
I think it is a Horrocks and Ibbotson.
Thanks for your input ! I'll have to do some research on their reels....I've heard the name, but that's a s far as my knowledge goes. As I have said, the "hardware" (screws) are NOT metric...and that nags at me against it being an "import". And, by the way....I "tested it " a bit this morning.....no smallmouth, but, it wasn't the reels fault ! It casts amazingly well !
Here is a link to a similar H&I. I hope I'm not violating any eBay rules by showing this.
George
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Horrocks-Ibbotson-conventional-saltwater-reel-Made-in-Utica-NY-Nice-/272638589163?hash=item3f7a86b8eb:g:-mkAAOSw-CpYATTQ
naw, this is fine! ;D
Very clever George. That sure looks like it. The people over at ORCA did not know either.
-steve
I see a lot of similarities ! If I could just get that fella to crack it open, so I could see inside ::)!
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I see a lot of similarities ! If I could just get that fella to crack it open, so I could see inside Roll Eyes!
Posted on: September 08, 2017, 10:20:36 AM
Posted by: oc1
Great find! I have seen many HI's, their quality is usually low; but, better than this reel. I believe you are correct. The similarities are too coincidental.