Category Archives: Thomas Turner blog

Please release me, let me go. The ‘lure’ of tackle retrievers.

No it’s not a chart hit by Engleburt Humperdink, but the extraordinary lengths anglers will go retrieve a favourite snagged lure or bait. For the last two centuries, anglers and inventors have been devising gadgets that will release lures with various levels of success, generally from nil heading downwards. Stuck in a tree, a bush, an […]

Bakelite, Snap-em and Pixie’s

To what do I refer? Well, I’ll tell ye! This week in some tackle we bought was a stunning Modernite Pixie Bakelite reel by the Modern Arms Company lurking in the bottom of the bag. Now, Bakelite reels are a little shunned by collectors including the famous Allcock Aerialite which is NOT Bakelite but Phenolic […]

Hardy Super Silex reel 1929-53

As a prime example just arrived in stock, I thought it worth a few minutes to look at the Hardy Super Silex reel. A firm favourite with the steelheader’s of Canada as well as salmon anglers worldwide. The benefit of the Super Silex drag system is the finesse with which the drag can be adjusted and […]

Ephemera, its all in the bottom of the bag.

Many collectors of vintage tackle collect, reels, rods, lures and some accessories or ephemera. I have never specialised in ephemera but over the years I’ve always kept interesting bits ‘n’ bobs to display in my ‘wall cabinet of plenty‘. This cabinet is generally the one that attracts the most attention from collectors and anglers when visiting the […]

The Saltssar Sea Fishing Reel

By John Stephenson The Saltssar Sea Fishing Reel is the reel that started me on my collecting journey 35 years ago. It was given to me by an elderly chap as a thank you for my efforts re-building his old cane rod. Thinking both items were worth a fortune, I gave them both the respect they deserved. […]

The Allcock Stanley Threadline spinning reel

The Allcock Stanley Threadline spinning reel, the Morris Minor of spinning reels by a true Brit. By John Stephenson. Small in stature, big in ideas, Walter Stanley was a force to be reckoned with in fishing tackle design. Around the turn of the century many new patent inventions hit the fishing reel market, c. 1900 […]

The Hardy Barton Dry Fly Fishing Reel – a rare reel for the collector

We thought we would share this lovely Hardy Barton Dry Fly Reel with you which is a rare little reel, especially when in original condition like this one we have in stock at the moment (apologies if it has already sold by the time you read this!) It is one of only 109 reels made […]

Hardy St George Fly Fishing Reels – Quintessentially English

Hardy St George Fly Reels – notes for the collector and enthusiast  Our Thomas Turner vintage tackle expert and valuer, John Stephenson, shares his thoughts with you on what he calls a “quintessentially English” fly reel… Hardy St George fly reels are one of the best loved of all Hardy vintage reels alongside the Perfect […]