Mitchell 498 PRO Tournament reel - interesting features

[Membedeep]

Hello again! And sorry for my english not that perfect...

The Mitchell 498 PRO Tournament reel is the best spinning reel in my collection and probably one of the best fishing reels out there. Why?

Because it has only quality parts. If a normal 498 has the main gear made out of alloy, the PRO version uses a solid junk of bronze. The small gear is also in bronze.

Also, the shallow tournament spool has two bronze bushings. The main shaft of the PRO has a tip made out of bronze, where the spool fits, but the 498 has it made out of plastic. In both cases, the shaft is 6 mm in diameter, which is one of the thickest ever made (some Van Staals have it 7 mm thick).

The 498 is a salt water reel with a rubber gasket on the inside. Also it has two bearings: a ball and a roller one, both rolling on bronze bushings. On the outside, the PRO has a rosewood handle that can be locked in place for casting and a small engraved fish on the left side and a tiny place in which the professional angler could engrave his name.

The reel was made around 1989 in France, but it has no serial number. It weights 30,3 ounces (860 grams). Nobody knows how many were made, but I'm sure we are talking about a small number.

Right now there is one on Ebay pretty cheap selling from France: http://www.ebay.com/itm/beau-moulinet-de-peche-ancien-mitchell-498-PRO-/151984597884?hash=item2362fceb7c:g:9oIAAOSwx-9WwetR

[foakes]

Good Morning, Membedeep --

Being a repair guy for both conventional and spinning reels -- I have enjoyed your commentary on the reels in your collection.  You obviously know quality and scarcity.

The year 1989 is historical for Mitchell, and marks a point in history where many manufacturers were considering selling out, merging, moving production to Asia -- and all options were on the table.

It was survival -- nothing less.  And we all make decisions before we are forced to eat the dog.

Mitchell recognized a strong market for surf gear early on.  They had the solid old 302/402, D.A.M. had the 270/275 Super, Penn had the 700/704/706, Luxor had their surf models, and there were more.

Along comes Daiwa from Japan -- changing the landscape dramatically with inexpensive and good quality reels for surf fishing.  Plus Daiwa, due to the Japanese way of approaching a business model -- was not looking at just the next year profits -- this was an investment for them that had a 2 year, 5 year, 10 year, 25 year, and 100 year set of goals and signposts of attainment along the way.  They were, and are, smart, observant, patient, and good business people.  Their success based on a combination of price and quality -- forced the other more traditional makers to rethink everything about their business. 

Plus, the Daiwa reels were more attractive, sleeker, more engineering developments like skirted spools, more colorful -- easier to market to a new generation of users.

But before these traditional makers turned to the Asian manufacturing model -- they had a certain sense of loyalty to the engineers and employees that had carried them through the good and hard times.  So they allowed their engineers to kind of design and produce a last reel before moving production out of their country.

The 498 Pro was this reel for Mitchell -- an engineers reel, a good reel, a collector reel.

Again, I appreciate your posts.  And if I can ever help with some basic Mitchell parts -- just let me know -- I have quite a few.

Best Regards,

Fred

[thorhammer]

I have a load of 300, 301, 302, 303, 304, 306,307,308,400,402,406,408,486, 488...(not as many as Fred, maybe no one does)....that motor is nice, I hadn't known about it and now will certainly hunt one.

Nice post!

john

[Membedeep]

Thank you both! That reel from Ebay is really rare and seems to be cheap so far... I would honestly buy it, but I have no Ebay account. So if someone is a Mitchell fan, don't hesitate!

Thanks Fred, even if we are half a world apart, I will tell you if I need something.

Ps: I will post some more photos here tomorrow, maybe more people find them interesting.

[Membedeep]

Here are the insides of a 498 made around 1980 - 1984.

And some more photos of the PRO version.

[cbar45]

Thanks for sharing the photos Membedeep.

My late 70's Garcia-imported 498 also has bronze gears, roller bearing, and handle lock--but it lacks the bronze bushings beneath the spool.

Your line roller also appears to be slightly different.

Tough reels for sure, mine is mounted on a Fenwick 1328 Atlantic Stik and will more than hold its own fished alongside reels of today..

[Membedeep]

Nice custom one! Maybe you can post some more detailed pictures of this beauty sometime! 

[Bryan Young]

Nice beautiful reel Membedeep . 

Likewise Chad, beautiful.

Looks like some tough solid reels that will last a lifetime of fishing fun.

[cbar45]

Thanks Bryan and Membedeep.

I'll see what I can do to post some photos, it will be interesting to compare the two.

Chad

[cbar45]

[Alto Mare]

Great looking reel. Very interesting that they utilized the side plate to help with the gear/shaft...unless it's just grease.
That spinner is built like a tank.

Sal

[cbar45]

Great looking reel. Very interesting that they utilized the side plate to help with the gear/shaft...unless it's just grease.
That spinner is built like a tank.

Sal

It's just grease..

Chad

[Alto Mare]

Great looking reel. Very interesting that they utilized the side plate to help with the gear/shaft...unless it's just grease.
That spinner is built like a tank.

Sal

It's just grease..
Chad 

...still a tank

[Ron Jones]

Thank you for this, one day I will put together a 499. I wanted this spool but didn't know it's capacity, looks like it holds enough line for shore casting.
Ron

[cbar45]

Sal-
It's a tank in the rough, you need to come out to HI and work your magic on it..

Ron-
The original specs called for over 400 yds of .45 mm (20 lb.) line. I wouldn't doubt it as the spool is quite deep and just over 3" in diameter. I usually fish the reel spooled with 30 or 40 lb. mono dunking bait.

Membedeep-
Your last photo of the 498 Pro appears to show a bronze bushing/drag plate mounted in a graphite spool. Fishing this setup, do you notice any improvement in the drag, (smoothness, start-up, etc), compared to that of the standard 498?

Chad