An item of tackle which has stood the test of time

[markcw]

I got a daiwa 1657DM match reel when they first came out, it was similar to a mitchell match but had the advantage of a manual closing of the bail arm. The spools held around 100yards of 2 or 3lb line, it had good cranking power and was a good reel for rivers. I have landed low double figure carp using mine and an original harrison 13' GTI spliced tip rod with sliding reel fittings ( rods now sold) . The reel still gets used when I fish canals, I think the price at the time was around £40, I got this and and a daiwa canal wand more or less free when I bough a 12.5 metre shimano pole with one top kit for £400, this was around late 80's

 

[John Keane]

I got a daiwa 1657DM match reel when they first came out, it was similar to a mitchell match but had the advantage of a manual closing of the bail arm. The spools held around 100yards of 2 or 3lb line, it had good cranking power and was a good reel for rivers. I have landed low double figure carp using mine and an original harrison 13' GTI spliced tip rod with sliding reel fittings ( rods now sold) . The reel still gets used when I fish canals, I think the price at the time was around £40, I got this and and a daiwa canal wand more or less free when I bough a 12.5 metre shimano pole with one top kit for £400, this was around late 80's

I got the Harrison GTi 12ft splced tip, Mark. Be great if I ever get to use it!

 

[silvers]

I use gear (not just for fishing) until it either can’t do the job any more (ie. broken or degraded) or has been significantly improved upon.
So I still use my
AS1 box
Original sigma wand 1880
Harrier whisker Kevlar 11-13 feeder rod
Abu 501s
Mitchell matches
For exampl

It’s not nostalgia, it’s simply that they haven’t been improved on enough to make a difference for my purposes. I match fish at open level with some success, so they can’t be that bad.

On the Mitchell 440a. As I’ve written before, I have no use for a drag, they have brilliant line lay and my technique needs the single handed line release (auto bail). There is no alternative that is as durable with those requirement.
As to the bail arm rotating the wrong way ... there is an easy solution. Having written about it so many times on forums over the years I finally made a video at the weekend.

Just stick your right index finger on the spool lip when striking, then sweep it to the right (with the line) whilst you reel in to engage the bale arm. As the bale arm then turns - it picks the line off your index finger (coz the reel rotates in the "wrong" direction).
No Slack line, no bumping fish off with a snatch from the bale arm.

original tip courtesy of Rob Hewison ... c. 1989

 

[108831]

Few things I remember there. Golden marlin line that takes me back a bit. Used it myself for years. Had a brennan and hickman rod holdall as well. Orange and black if I remember correctly.
Things which have stood the test of time for me are the Abu 501,506.Bayer perlon line and kamasan b520 hooks.

The holdall is black,with red thread sewing it up,just a tube with velcro fastening at the top,umberella and bankstick pockets,mine probably preceded the one you mention,lol,I really like it,I can lay it in sloppy mud,then just rinse it off,no dry crud anywhere,simply the best ive ever owned,or seen...you can leave it out in the pouring rain,doesnt get wet(so doesn't weigh extra pounds),if they came back on the market I would buy one instantly and pay through the nose for it....

 

[108831]

Alex,I never cared about the reel rotor turning the wrong way,in fact I didn't even know it did until well after I stopped using them,they were my workhorse and did what I needed at the time,they aren't rubbish,in fact back then they were the boll0x,in fairness when fishing float and 2-4lb line for chub the drag has no place imo,as you need more power to get to grips quickly....

 

[silvers]

Yes Alan,
I wasn’t being defensive, just explaining why they work for me and are not a nostalgia trip.
I wouldn’t recommend them for anyone else as it happens, but they make diddly squatt difference to the 99% of the battle that is attracting and hitting the bites.

Utter familiarity with my tools is more important to me ... I’ve been reading too much of Big Kev and Ivan’s books recently!

I do use more modern reels for Leger and feeder fishing - A couple of daiwa TDM about ten years old. I don’t use the clutch on those as I’ve never encountered a situation whew really I needed it.
And the heaviest line I use To the hook is Bayer 4.4 (usually 3.2 or below - even for Severn Barbel)

 

[108831]

For me drag is best for barbel,carp,tench etc,especially on the lead,chub too on that,as soon as chub are float fished for in situations where near or far bank foliage is on hand,back wind and tightened drags prevail.

Centrepins are great for playing fish because of the backwind and lack of gearing,giving total cranking power,in a parrot cage however fixed spools win hands down because speed of retrieve keeps you in touch when they shoot from one snag to another....

 

[nottskev]

The holdall is black,with red thread sewing it up,just a tube with velcro fastening at the top,umberella and bankstick pockets,mine probably preceded the one you mention,lol,I really like it,I can lay it in sloppy mud,then just rinse it off,no dry crud anywhere,simply the best ive ever owned,or seen...you can leave it out in the pouring rain,doesnt get wet(so doesn't weigh extra pounds),if they came back on the market I would buy one instantly and pay through the nose for it....

So would I - my TriCast holdall takes days to dry out if it gets soaked. I had a Brennan and Hickman carryall of similar material. It cost about £1 from a second hand shop, and lasted me years before I gave it away and upgraded - to one not as good!

 

[nottskev]

I use gear (not just for fishing) until it either can’t do the job any more (ie. broken or degraded) or has been significantly improved upon. So I still use my

Original sigma wand 1880

Have you replaced the tips? I loved that rod, but even though I can make my gear last for ever, all three tips on mine were a bit shorter after a couple of years. I just couldn't avoid deadly wrap-arounds.
I also loved the 11' Sigma Canal rod, and had many years of use from that.

 

[rayner]

I don't understand comments regarding the gears of the Mitchell Match. They work well enough, take the side off the reel body and they are an engineering marvel. three cogs with a thin spindle to drive the spool plus a small plate that drives the spindle.
You can take the reel to pieces, clean it and give a coat of grease and it's back in working order in a few minutes.
I have Shimanos that I wouldn't attempt to even look at the gearing. I have cheap Okuma reels that are utter tripe at the side of a 440A.
I don't even know why I advocate the use of the 440A I haven't used one since my times on the Trent, it's the 90s since I last fished the Trent. My advocating of the 440A is perhaps driven by all the guff and baloney I'm reading here from folk who obviously don't like Mitchell reels.
I must admit, they are old hat, even though they still work just fine. Quality always shows.

 

[108831]

Sorry,but when ABU started selling reels in this country the poor quality of Mitchells gearing,the swedish reels had phosphor bronze gearing,far smoother and longer lasting quality,even they are not as good as smooth running daiwa and shimano reels of today,okuma reels should not be mentioned in the same breath...

 

[John Keane]

One really nice rod that I regret selling is the Richard Walker Avon 10ft Fibalite glass rod. I’d had some lovely sessions on the Severn around Shrewsbury catching chub to 5lb and barbel to 8lb on the Avon with 6lb line and a 4000 size Baitrunner. Took a bit longer to get them in but they weren’t going anywhere on that rod and zero danger of being broken. It would be lovely to get it out and admire it but as I no longer have a ticket for any barbel waters it would just be another white elephant.

 

[bracket]

Searching through my sidelined gear the other day, I came across this old friend I had completely forgotten about. A Shakespeare President 12/10ft quiver tip rod with a spliced tip. I bought it sometime in the 1970's (I think) when I use to match fish the River Welland 4 mile bar, every other weekend. Great little rod for bream, although I did replace the carbon tip with a softer glass one and later changed the winch fittings. It stood me in good stead back then. This is kit you keep for old time sake. Pete

 

[sam vimes]

My recollections of my formative angling years were seeing Mitchells being very commonplace. Many of the anglers I aspired to emulate used them. Amongst the specimen anglers, it was mostly Mitchell 300s and Abu Cardinals. The match and general coarse anglers tended to use Mitchell Match or Abu 50*s. Up until around the mid-eighties, I'd have given a kidney for a Mitchell. They were undoubtedly popular and arguably as good as reels got at the time.

However, by the time I could have actually afforded a Mitchell, most of the serious speci lads had moved on to Shimano Baitrunners and the match/coarse fraternity went towards Shimano and Daiwa. I no no longer had any aspirations to own a Mitchell, time had moved on. Not surprisingly, plenty stayed loyal to the Mitchells and Abus that they'd been using for a decade or two. Some are obviously still very loyal to them.

I recall having a Daiwa 1657DM in an attempt to get the finger dab bail arm that I coveted so much from the Mitchell Match. Unfortunately, I considered it to be a pretty poor reel that put me off Daiwa reels for many years. It never stopped me buying Daiwa rods though. Despite any imperfections it may have, I've not encountered a better finger dab mechanism than the one on the Mitchell Match. I can understand why some remain very faithful to them and those that want them for nostalgic reasons. I've even been tempted to fulfill my childhood yearnings. However, I've yet to succumb, and doubt I ever will now.

In the same era, I recall centrepins being a very tough sell. Only the odd ancient, as it seemed to teenage me, was ever seen using a centrepin. I also recall a local tackle shop having a decent stack of red boxed Allcock Aerials that he struggled to shift for buttons. Even when the shop ended up shut down, there were still several sat on an abandoned shelf. Funny how things go in that respect. He couldn't shift them for circa £30 as the shop struggled to survive and I certainly wouldn't have bought one. Now they'd be snapped up for decent money. I'd even consider one myself, for the right money.

 

[nottskev]

I don't understand comments regarding the gears of the Mitchell Match. They work well enough, take the side off the reel body and they are an engineering marvel. three cogs with a thin spindle to drive the spool plus a small plate that drives the spindle.
You can take the reel to pieces, clean it and give a coat of grease and it's back in working order in a few minutes.
I have Shimanos that I wouldn't attempt to even look at the gearing. I have cheap Okuma reels that are utter tripe at the side of a 440A.
I don't even know why I advocate the use of the 440A I haven't used one since my times on the Trent, it's the 90s since I last fished the Trent. My advocating of the 440A is perhaps driven by all the guff and baloney I'm reading here from folk who obviously don't like Mitchell reels.
I must admit, they are old hat, even though they still work just fine. Quality always shows.

You've nailed something there. Going from Mitchells to Shimanos was comparable to the general shift from stuff you could service and fix yourself, to "black box" stuff where you'd better not even take it apart as it may never go back together. A bit like British Motorbike: diy or get your mate to do it vs Honda: take it to the dealer. Gains and losses, as they say.

 

[Mark Wintle]

My reel history and why I came back to the Mitchell Match.

Way back when I was 16 I started to get some money from a decent Saturday/holiday job and could finally afford a decent reel to replace my Mitchell 320 (100% reliable but slow). The day before a match a neighbour lent me a Mitchell 300 and I duly won the match, my first senior win but the next day I went out and bought an ABU 505 which became my goto trotting reel for several years. Two years later I was working full time and had more money so bought a Mitchell 300 which became my legering/big fish reel for many years. By early 76 I'd bought a Mitchell Match and gradually developed my waggler skills. Over the following years I bought more Matches (the first two I owned were 440 Matches not the later 440A Matches and they were chucked, totally worn out 30 years ago), including a 840 Match which lasted 3 weeks before being returned, and through a vast amount of practice got the hang of these reels. I could strip them down quickly and often got them serviced properly which is why some of my reels that are 40 years old are truly wonderfully smooth running because they've been fettled with care. Yet there is no getting away from the fact that they do wear out but I've got enough now to not worry about that any more.

In the early 2000s I inherited some Shimano Stradic 1000 reels - I was already trying Shimanos for legering and welcomed their reliability and smoothness. They had shortcomings in the long reach to the spool, later rectified, but the line comes off the spool the opposite way to the Matches and that's not the way my brain/fingers are wired. I also never liked fishing with the Shimanos with the anti-reverse off as they spin out of control - Matches don't!

Then a couple of years ago I was trotting a very fast ford on the Avon with a Stradic 2500 and struggling to do what I wanted in terms of presentation when I got the line around the reel and cracked off, losing the float etc. so had to re-tackle which I did but with a Match; it felt so much better in terms of what I was trying to achieve in terms of presentation so since then I've largely gone back to the Mitchells. I seem to acquire Matches without trying; one friend has already given me a mint one, and yesterday offered me another free one that needs fettling. I also have bought several very cheaply plus a 840 that is wonderful on stillwater.

So to sum up: The Matches can be noisy through wear, can tangle and never feel as smooth as the almost maintenance-free Shimanos, and must be carefully maintained but are a joy to use for waggler, Avon float and stick float. For legering it's the Shimanos every time - 300s/410s, you can keep them.

 

[108831]

One really nice rod that I regret selling is the Richard Walker Avon 10ft Fibalite glass rod. I’d had some lovely sessions on the Severn around Shrewsbury catching chub to 5lb and barbel to 8lb on the Avon with 6lb line and a 4000 size Baitrunner. Took a bit longer to get them in but they weren’t going anywhere on that rod and zero danger of being broken. It would be lovely to get it out and admire it but as I no longer have a ticket for any barbel waters it would just be another white elephant.

I believe that is what I have,a Hardy Richard Walker Avon,my god the fish I had on it,they reckoned it was a 1lb t.c.,by Christ it had some grunt,I cast 3oz feeders right across the Trent at Sawley,big chub,carp,double figure barbel,it never faltered....

 

[barbelboi]

I can understand people hanging onto a Mitchell reel for nostalgic reasons but they just do not compare to modern reels.

Or even the Abu 55 which very quickly kicked 'em into touch and were grasped with delight by the specimen anglers of the time.............

 

[silvers]

Have you replaced the tips? I loved that rod, but even though I can make my gear last for ever, all three tips on mine were a bit shorter after a couple of years. I just couldn't avoid deadly wrap-arounds.
I also loved the 11' Sigma Canal rod, and had many years of use from that.

Only broken one ... but it’s a very specialist tool for me, only use it about once every three years!

 

[John Keane]

Just remembered that I’ve got an old model Shimano Sedona 3500 with Fightin’ Drag in the garage that I filled with some 4lb Maxima Chameleon to do a bit of waggler fishing for carp & F1s. The narrow spools are now out of favour but it’s a quality reel. I used to own a Sahara in S-Kippy’s favourite “cat puke” colour and that was a quality reel too.