1850 - Concerning
Multiplying Reels,
and their Manufacture
"On the contrary, the birth of an A. No. 1 multiplier
is as important as the making of a first quality gold watch. The brass
which should be cast, must be pure metal, new and entirely free from sand
holes; the case, box or spool, handle wheel and all flat parts, should be
hammered to their utmost tension without cracking and if thoroughly
hammered will ring like a bell. The pillars and screws should be drawn
from the best wire, without annealing as hard as possible; so that they
shall file almost like steel' draw tempered and polished after the same
method as finest watch work. The teeth of the wheel and pinions should be
of large size and capable of resisting almost any amount of pressure. They
should be truly cut, polished and finished with the most acute
correctness. The cutting depends much on the machine used. None but
skillful mechanics can make and put together such a reel and only the most
scientific angler should use one.
 |
| Snyder Reel from
the 1820s. |
Reels such as described are made with stops that push and
pull much like an organ, tightly and evenly fitted so that no room is
allowed for the least bit of moisture, and are far superior to the old
English side moving stop, which leaves space for the collection of
everything which injures a perfect running reel. They are also made with a
drag. As proof of their perfect strength, capacity and durability. I will
cite for "Dinks: and his "Anti-Multiplier friends: There there
is now in possession of four professional bass and salmon fishing friends
four reels made in 1837. Two of the fishers are men of leisure and have
angled on fresh or salt water, three of six days every week. Mr. P., the
owner of one, on an excursion to the Denny's River in Maine, 1841, took a
salmon that weighed 17½ pounds; the fish on the first run taking out two
hundred and fifty feet of line. He was beautifully managed and taken
without the least bit of difficulty."
The Spirit of the Times, June 15, 1850.
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