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Completed the resto on my 1950s Airex Apache reel today. Decided to hit the pond in the back yard for a test. 41 fish later and it was still going strong. Not bad for something 65 years old.
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Very nice vintage ultra light, and great pictures, thank you for sharing.
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Now that is a sweet set up. Vintage equipment is fun to investigate and learn from, and fish with!
That is awesome. Give us some history. Have you had it a long time, etc.?
Pictures must be reversed. The handle is on the wrong side.
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I just got the reel recently. Been getting into acquiring and restoring old reels and learning the history of the companies that made them. Quite interesting stuff. It all started when my wife got me an old Abu 5000 for my birthday. It's her fault!:biggrin
This reel was made by Airex. Airex was one of, if not the USA leader in spinning fishing equipment in late 40s and into the 50s. The company was at one time part of the Lionel (of toy train fame) company. They had some sort of agreement with a gentleman named Bache Brown, who is considered the father of spinning fishing the USA. Bache Brown imported some European spinning reels (Luxor, if I recall correctly) in the 30s and 40s. Airex had a wide range of spinning reels, rod, terminal tackle and lures by the mid-50s. The Apache was their entry level reel, selling for $9.55 in their 1955 catalog. Their most expensive reel in that catalog was the Larchmont and it sold for $25. Not cheap in 1955!
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I haven't learned what became of the Airex corporation. I don't think that it's still around or in the fishing business today. There is a book on the company available from Whitefish Press. There's also a book on Bache Brown.
A Collector's Guide to Bache Brown and Airex/Lionel Fishing Tackle
Bache Hamilton Brown: The Father of Spin Fishing in America
I have two other reels from Airex:
The Bache Brown Master Reel
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The Spinster (pre resto, haven't taken any shots since I've cleaned it up).
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These two are half-bail beauties that harken to the 40s and earlier. The Spinster first came out in 1949 but was made in various versions well into the 50s (even had full bail versions). Same for the Master Reel.
I have quite a few other old reels that I won't bore you with. My goal is to catch at least one fish with all of them. Most will be put up on the shelf for show and only used occasionally. The really clean ones will probably never get used. Some, like my trusty Mitchell 309 (1963/65) and Abu 5000C (1969) will see more action. Anyway, it's lots of fun messing with these pieces of history. I bet some could tell some great stories, if they could talk.
That's really cool....thanks for sharing
Awesome! They made some wonderful reels back then. And that was when $9.99 was worth something. :)
Good looking vintage reels
Really cool old reel. I can remember the older quick that my dad had.
very cool read :cheers2
I don’t know...looks perfect to me!Quote:
Originally Posted by Gomer Snerd
Bob
True, that was not a cheap reel. And their top of the line was a chunk of change in ‘55.Quote:
Originally Posted by Crestliner08
Bob
Tell us about the rod that you have paired it with, also.
Nice, thanks for sharing and the history lesson...
That is awesome, wish I had the stuff I had when I was a kid.
My dad has several of these. I don't think they're from the 50s, though. I think they're from the 60's.
https://i.ibb.co/C9hhK9c/image.jpg
Looks nice, thanks for sharing
The rod is an old fiberglass McGill Wright ultralight. Model number is unknown. It has been reconditioned and rewrapped. I'm looking for an Airex rod of the era to pair with these Airex reels. And a Garcia Conolon ultralight for the Mitchells. I've resisted going after vintage lures (although I have some) but who knows .... I do enjoy the lure history from "G" each Monday.
I’m thinking 60’s also. I have a couple.Quote:
Originally Posted by GoTennTitans
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Excellent post 1955!!
I enjoyed it immensely.
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Nice!! I had a bunch of old Garcia Mitchell spinning reels and gave them to a kids fishing club and they're still using them!! First fishing reel I ever bought on my own was a Johnson Century 100B just like Virgil Ward used!!! I now have 4 of them and one is a brushed copper from the early 60's and is the only one I've ever seen!! came on a fiberglass Wonder rod.
Not to get you in trouble but if you check here Fiberglass Flyrodders Index | Fiberglass Flyrodders they have a section on classic spinning and casting rods and yeah there's a for sale section!!
Looks to be the right side to me. BILLBOB changes handle sides on me when he shows up though.Quote:
Originally Posted by Gomer Snerd
So half bails isn't a new thing. Had a friend that made some years back to speed up casting and cranking, no bail to flip and no line twist. You have to have the anti-reverse off. Works well when casting to ward the bank and nesting crappie or gills.
"gene"
And some in the past (and maybe present) went with NO bail. You would manually remove the line from the line guide before the cast and place it back after the cast.
The term used today is “chopped” for cutting the bail off, or half of it. Doing that on most modern day spinning reels today in all likelihood will leave you with a reel with lots of wobble. Tried it on some older Sedona’s and Pfluegers years ago....had lots of wobble.....it messes up the balance of the reel. Probably works better on the super cheap reels that are not balanced well to begin with.
Regards
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Went with an early 50s rig tonight and snagged a few. The two Airex pieces were the Durod 6, a six-footer made of aluminum and the Vagabond reel. Lots of fun!
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Great photos and stories. I had some old solid fiberglass rods way back in the day as a kid. Couldn’t wait to get enough money to upgrade but fun to see them still in action.
Bob