..along with an early Christmas present
I'll be writing up the details of this reel and couple of other Smith and Wall reels acquired during the year and adding them to the Smith and Wall page on the web site.
Happy New Year eh?
|
..along with an early Christmas presentOn Christmas Eve the postman arrived with an eagerly awaited parcel all the way from the USA. Inside was a reel that had been the subject of much discussion between myself and a fellow member of The Classic Fly Rod Forum. He had purchased the reel a number of years ago, believing it to have been made by David Slater of Newark, famous for their Nottingham style reels and the celebrated SEJ Fly Fishers' Winch. It is a Hercules pattern reel, made of brass and alloy in the conventional pattern, and appeared indeed to be a Slater reel. The reel is marked for Lillywhite's of London, a sports outfitter still in business, and has the characteristic Slater two-screw locking winding plate. It is also assembled with nickel-silver screws, another Slater characteristic. The natural conclusion, therefore, being that it is indeed a Slater reel. The surprise came when my friend dismantled the reel... On the inside of the backplate, along with typical artisan marks is a stamping; "S&W". It seems that we were all wrong, and in fact it is an early example of the work of Smith & Wall. I had never seen a Hercules pattern reel from this manufacturer before, and there is scant reference in any literature, so it seemed natural for the reel to join WVFFM. Now that it is here, it is possible to make some other comparisons. Heaton also made reels in this pattern. On the left is the new reel, in the centre, Heaton and on the right Slater. The S&W reel has the two-screw lock typical of Slater BUT the drum arbor seen on Heaton-made Hercules reels.
I'll be writing up the details of this reel and couple of other Smith and Wall reels acquired during the year and adding them to the Smith and Wall page on the web site. Happy New Year eh?
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorIf you've had a look at the "About" page, you know what this is all for. Here you'll find progress reports on new items and other developments on the site. Archives
April 2023
Categories |