I just had to tell this story. I met a young chap called Roy, 88 years young who lives in Birmingham England. He called me to his home to look at and buy his fishing gear. His collection of mainly modern fly fishing rods had a hidden gem. The outstanding piece is this little 5’6” […]
Category Archives: Thomas Turner blog
13
Aug
Aug
Few of these come up these days: the Howban Reel, made by The Howban Fishing Tackle Company of 108c Alcester Road, Moseley Birmingham, England. It’s a 1950s creation looking rather odd and out-dated if you compare it to the established Mitchell 300 which had been about for nearly 20 years. It shows the effort to […]
09
Aug
Aug
Most of us at one time or another will use or have collected a creel or two. Some for use, some for decoration and others for both. Many creels are the simple woven reed affairs with wicker hinges and hasp, making the basket weaver’s job simple. Not so in the Victorian times! In the pursuit […]
06
Aug
Aug
Recently we published a blog relating to the Heaton’s Fishing Scene brass reels and made mention of some replicas which hit the market approx. 30 years ago. So in good public information style here’s the replica in detail. Note the stamp on the foot blade, J.B Moscrop of Manchester which is both wrong in terms of […]
04
Aug
Aug
This is a super modified brass fly reel with two very special features. The standard crank handle has been removed and replaced with pair of sun and planet external gears fitted with drive handle plate. What is really neat is that the small steel flat lever to the underside of the large gear gives a […]
02
Aug
Aug
Most fishing tackle collectors enjoy trinkets, gadgets and accessories to mix in with the display of the more serious items in their collections. This treen wooden trinket box is one such example. Treen boxes were a favourite with the travelling and wealthy Victorians. This box, measuring 4-1/4” x 3-1/4” x 2” has a comic angling […]
01
Aug
Aug
Well, the boys from the good ole USA are at it again with this beauty. Try as I may even after a few readings of the instructions, I’m flummoxed. It appears to be some sort of sliding float, depth set, tight line, yet adjustable float bob thing; glad I cleared that one up. As most […]
30
Jul
Jul
How refreshing when you take a call from a gadget collector who has decided to trade in some of his fly fishing accessories. The majority of the worldwide collecting market is made up of reel collectors, however the fly accessory market is massive. Here is just part of one of the collection we have taken […]
23
Jul
Jul
The importance of this Hardy Patent cannot be emphasised enough. This development was for what we now refer to as the full bail arm. It automatically picked up the line when the handle was turned. The Patent lasted until 1948 where an extension was granted covering the war years for a further 6 years. The […]
21
Jul
Jul
Fishing in the 1700 & 1800’s wasn’t just a case of grab the tackle and go. Lines were at a very early stage of development in this period and so when a brass winch landed on my desk this week filled with horsehair line, it reminded me of that issue. The early brass reels, often […]