Old, Weird, Historical, and Unusual Spinning Reels --

[foakes]

Thanks, Tom!

Love the color, engineering, and your skills.

I have quite a few Records and Thommens just waiting in bins for lamps -- but have never seen one of these.

Best, Fred

[oc1]

Thank you Tommy.  So, there's a Swiss Record reel and a Swedish (ABU) Record reel.  Are they kin or is it just coincidence?
-steve

[Midway Tommy]

Thank you Tommy.  So, there's a Swiss Record reel and a Swedish (ABU) Record reel.  Are they kin or is it just coincidence?
-steve

The Swedish ABU Record spinning reel (ABU 500, 600 & 700) parts were made by the Swiss Record Reel Co. A.B. Urfabriken Co (Sweden) was founded in 1921. A.B means corporation and Urfabriken means watch factory. In 1926 A.B. Urfabriken Co introduced it's first "Record" Taximeter. WWII forced a decline in taximeter sales & production. Gote Borgstrom, the heir to A.B. Urfabriken Co, loved fishing and in 1941 introduced their first bait caster to the Swedish wholesalers. That is how "Record" became part of the ABU bait caster history.

In 1945, in Switzerland, Karl Seigrest filed for an open face spinning reel design patent and in 1946 the Swiss Record Reel Co introduced their rear drag Record spinning reel. At that time there was no connection between A.B. Urfabriken and the Swiss Record Reel Co.

Gote Borgstrom had very little interest in spinning reels and didn't want to invest in tooling and machinery to manufacture them. In 1949 Gote was contacted by the Swiss Record Reel Co to see if A.B. Urfabriken would be interested in selling the Swiss Record spinning reels in Sweden. A deal was made where A.B. Urfabriken (ABU) would buy the parts from Swiss Record and assemble them in the Swedish factory. The side plates referenced A.B. Urfabriken Sweden and that is where the "Swiss Record" connection, only in the open face spinning reels, occurred. It is also to be noted that at a couple of years later ABU contracted with Zangi of Italy to manufacture various models, the 222, 225, 888, 999 & 1000, and with Sportex of Germany, the 400 & 450, that also were sold as A.B. Urfabriken Record reels. All of those reels were sold exclusively in Scandinavia and were no longer available by the mid 1960s.

In 1955 ABU came out with their first solely designed and manufactured open face spinning reel, the 444. The 444 was distributed in the US by the Garcia Corporation, along with their bait casters, with an "ABU Garcia" side plate. No wonder there is a lot of confusion about the ABU & Garcia connection, right. 

In 1965 ABU introduced the now famous Cardinal line, first the 6/66 & 7/77. The 4/44 came out in 1968 and the 3/33 came out in 1974.   

[oc1]

You're a dang walking encyclopedia Tommy.  Thanks.
-steve

[happyhooker]

Great look at a seldom seen product & nice to have some idea of the history behind the companies too.

Frank

[Gfish]

Great look and write-up for a very unique reel from Switzerland, Tommy.
Thanks also, for the Abu/ Record history.
Don't seem plausible, but could the AB Urfabriken company be the first ones to farm out their manufacturing of fishing equipment?

[Midway Tommy]

Possibly, but there was an awful lot of maneuvering and importing going on in those years shortly after WWII. 

[Robert Janssen]

[... A.B means corporation and Urfabriken means watch factory...

Yeah...

Here is one of them. Normally it would bear the name Halda on the watch dial, but not all do. This one bears the hallmark of the maker HH on the inside lid, for Henning Hammarlund, founder of the company.

Here is a little project I've been working on, with a pocketwatch movement from IWC and a dial gifted to me by the curator of the ABU museum some years ago.

Recently edited for updated pics of the finished watch)

[foakes]

Thanks for sharing that, Robert!

What an honor to receive a gift such as that...

Best,

Fred

[Midway Tommy]

Thanks for sharing that, Robert!

What an honor to receive a gift such as that...

Best,

Fred

X2, Robert! What a cool gift and keepsake! 

[oc1]

Very nice.  Is that a piece of phenolic resin and fiberglass tube?  Like used to make a tobacco rod.
-steve

[Crow]

That IS pretty neat !

[philaroman]

VERY COOL!!!

when I was about 8, Dad taught me to dis&RE!-assemble pocket watches & men's wristwatches
(facial muscles weren't yet strong enough to hold Dad's no-hands loupes, so I never tried a little ladies' watch)

NO WAY, could I do that now, but I guess there's enough comfort zone left to not mind Baitrunners & such 

[Robert Janssen]

Yes, Steve. Linen phenolic, commonly referred to as Micarta. Turned from solid bar stock and polished. Very pleasing to the eye i like to think, and i wanted to make a very unique piece.
Just a few details left, like the hands and winding crown. It also has a glass back, so you can see the watch movement inside.

[mo65]

It also has a glass back, so you can see the watch movement inside.

   You always post such interesting items Robert...thanks for sharing.