Herb Butler, Spokane, Washington
Herb
Butler loved to fish. He grew up tying flies for spending money before he
was thirteen. At that age he went to work repairing reels and wrapping rods.
By 21 he was working as a tool and die maker and going to law school at
night. He managed to squeeze some fly fishing into that busy schedule
whenever he had a spare moment.
Butler went to work as a design engineer for several major lighting
companies and was able to travel throughout the United States, and his fly
rod accompanied him on his journeys. After several years of working for
other companies he started his own lighting manufacturing firm, and then had
a bit more time for his major interest in life - fishing.
In the (late 1960s???) Butler sold his company and set off on a journey that
took him to the United Kingdom, most of Europe, Africa, Australia, and South
America - fishing all the way. A variety of fresh and salt water species
succumbed to Herb’s offerings, from Lapland rainbow trout to Nile Perch. The
largest fish taken was a 212 pound Striped Marlin. All were caught on his
fly rod.(1)
The Herb Butler “Fish” fly reel has several unusual features. Most
noticeable is the unbalanced crank set at the six o’clock position. The
crank is located in this position because the reel is geared to a two to one
retrieve. This handle also
contains
a drag assembly and click mechanism. Also unique to a fly reel of the period
is that the reel was also intended to be used for trolling. It was common
for fly reels of the late 1800s and early 1900s to be used in this fashion,
but most 20th century reels were quite specialized.
The “Fish” reel housing is made from aluminum, and has nylon gearing. The
crank side, or head plate is solid, with the foot, pillars, and tailplate
ring permanently attached. The plate is 3¾ inches in diameter, and the spool
is 1 inch wide. The headplate is brightly polished and gives the reel a very
handsome look. You could have your name, or a personalized message, engraved
on the faceplate for no cost. This polished headplate apparently was not
appealing to all fishermen for the reel has also been found in a subtle
blued finish.
The “Fish” reel crank, however, can hardly be called
stylish.
It is strictly utilitarian. The crank knob is aluminum and cone shaped. The
reel would have had a more attractive appearance with a shaped knob made of
plastic, or anodized aluminum.
The interior of the reel is quite simple, with the gears being the only
moving parts, The drive gear is located on a stud cast into the inside of
the faceplate. There is an extra stud cast for conversion to left hand use.
The reel was not capable of conversion from right to left hand use, however,
without changes in the handle assembly. An angler who preferred to reel with
his left hand had to purchase a left hand retrieve reel from Butler for
$5.00 additional cost.
The reel was sold with two spools, which were available in aluminum or nylon
during different periods of production. The anodized black spool in the
polished bright frame was quite attractive.
As mentioned previously, the heart of the reel was the crank. Under the cone
shaped crank nut is a coil spring and two washers. One washer is made of
thin neoprene, and is flat. The other is serrated on one side and made of
metal.
There
are matching serrations milled into the crank handle. The drag is adjustable
to any of four different types of drag settings, from very light to heavy,
by placement of the washers. Complete instructions for these settings came
in the reel brochure. Tightening the nut against the spring refined the
adjustment within each washer setting.
A smaller cone shaped button is located alongside the crank nut. This one
controls the click and anti-reverse. This button is attached to a spring
laden pin that rides in a milled out portion of the face plate. When the
crank is turned for the retrieve, the pin provides a slow click .. click,
similar to that of the Pflueger Medalist, which was the aim of Butler
according to his brochures. When reeled backward, the pin comes against the
stops and provides an anti-reverse. This function can be deactivated by
lifting the click button and giving it a quarter turn.
Herb Butler’s “Fish” reel came with one extra spool, and additional spools
were available for $2.00 each. The spool would hold 50 yards of backing
behind any fly line. The brochure stated that the reel would hold 100 yards
of 18 pound test lead core line, and/or 300 yards of braided Dacron line, if
you intended to use the reel for trolling.
An undated brochure lists the reel at $25.00 including shipping direct from
the factory. A dealer price sheet dated January 3, 1979 states that “our
planned retail price for the coming year is $30.00 for the Right Hand reel
and $35.00 for the Left Hand version.” The reel was available to dealers for
$20.00 with an order of ten reels; $15 each in quantities of 50; or $12.50
each if you ordered 100 reels.
Butler also offered his concept to other manufacturers, stating
“other manufacturers may incorporate this designs and engineering advances
in their product for a very nominal royalty. The royalty for copying the
design and/or engineering is 2%. The royalty paid to Herb Butler Engineering
will be used to improve fishing in those various parts of the country where
the reels are sold”.
Apparently this offer was not accepted by any other manufacturers, for we
are unaware of any other reels of similar design.
Two brochures list different addresses for Herb Butler Engineering. One
shows the address to be W. 821½ Riverside Avenue, and the other lists S.
2112 Manito Blvd. Both addresses were in Spokane, Washington. The former
address was a shop where the reels were manufactured, and the later address
was his residence at the time. The Herb Butler “Fish” reel was only
manufactured for a few years, and no references to the reel are found in the
1980s.
Herb Butler believed in his reel. Each one carried a printed
guarantee -
I guarantee the “Fish” Fly Reel for as long as I live. If you are not
satisfied regardless of reason - return the reel and I will refund your
money in full. Yours for good fishing, Herb Butler.
The guarantee no longer applies, for Herb Butler died on ?????????
