Line winders and driers for the collector

Apart from the usefulness of these gadgets line winders or line driers have huge following worldwide. 

Display or function, there were some really beautiful designs and a few proper insane models brought to the angler over the years.

Most makers retailed or made these winders sometimes at the request of a notable angler.

I’ve compiled a couple of sheets of various examples from simple to simply mad!

Hardy of course from the 1890s sold a variety of well-executed models. The Practical model with its red mahogany base is a stunning display piece especially when fitted with a reel and the silk line wound around the polished alloy frame. The 1911 brass steel winder is a work of art, as is the wooden Ward windmill style and the famous Bethune, which came in two sizes.

Farlow brought out their Line-Winder, a table fitting model in 1886. In 1893 major Traherne designed and Farlow retailed The Line Drying Machine, which looked more like a clothes drier. Later the famous Sextile appeared first in brass in a wooden box and later in steel in a card box. Then the Wilson-Weatherall (I bought his tackle from his son some years back, nice chap) came to the table, see what I did there, which mirrored the Hardy Practical in many ways.

Malloch of Perth designed a heavy wire-spoke drier which could be folded to travel as did The Helical Casting Company of Redditch with their wooden arm model with alloy fittings.

Westley Richards sold a rarely seen folding drier in 1911 and in the Allcock’s 1911 catalogue they sold the Wadhams Collapsible Dryer. 

Army & Navy London advertised the New Folding Line Drier in 1915, with the HRH flat nickel and brass drier with large holes appearing in the Fishing Gazette in 1905.

Probably one of the most complicated of all is Mr Alexander Tillie’s Improved Line-Drying Winder of 1918, shown on the bottom right of the above image. It could handle up to 8 reels and lines at once and was probably destined to fail immediately. Certainly, I’ve not seen one but would love to.

And finally, courtesy of our tackle friend Tom in Germany we traded in this yummy wooden line drier with its two Nottingham reels still in place.

It’s probably an artisan handmade piece, but I think as a centerpiece for any tackle display it’s great.

It’s in stock at the time of writing, I don’t mind if it doesn’t sell for a while either because I just love looking at it! Click here to have a look at it.

If you have any wacky winders (could be the name of a new club?) then drop me a line and let’s talk tackle.