Shakespeare Tru-Art Automatic reel

[JakesLeakyWaders]

I'm not sure what I want to do here. I have been progressively teaching my wife to fly fish. I bought her a longer faster action rod than the short fiberglass one she was using. The longer, lighter, faster rod has definately helped improved her casting. But another nuance to her style is that she casts right and then tries to reel right handed as well. She has an old eagle claw with a martin automatic that she seems to do well with, and that trumps the awkwardness of having to switch hands.

However last summer I stumbled across a gem of an antique reel, a 1960 Shakespeare Tru-Art Verticle Automatic Fly Reel 1827 model EA, unused, in the box with the instructions. It seemed as if it didnt work, but for $25 I had to have it, so I took it home and dissasembled it to take a look. The grease packed into the spring mechanism had dried and hardened like glue. Two squirts of WD-40 and it loosened up and was ticking like a clock. One feature I thought was cool was the way in which the retrieve trigger folds away. Old school mechanical bits are cool.

I have to wonder though, seeing these go for $30 all banged up on E-bay would an unused, unblemished example hold some sort of special value if kept unused. So I'm stuck and instead of lining it up I keep getting it out and sitting here staring at it.

Here are some pics of the reel with some neat advertising on the box included.

 

[redietz]

Just a guess, but I don't think you could get very much for it than you paid for it, after paying to sell it. The love for automatics just isn't there the way it is for cane and glass rods.

I could be wrong, though. You could always try listing it with a high reserve price.

 

[JakesLeakyWaders]

It's not going anywhere. I think it's just my admiration for the reel has caused a some hesitation to actually use it. I mean it is a 59 year old reel without any signs of being put on a rod.

I guess it would be like having a classic car that hasnt been driven and trying to decide if you want to make it your daily driver.

 

[troutbert]

Many reels can be switched so that you can use them either on the left or right side.

 

[Tack-L-Tyer]

Wow!! What a gem. American craftsmanship at its finest in the post WWII era. Can’t imagine what the production cost for that reel would be today. Be nice to find a mint Wonderod to put it on.

 

[Bamboozle]

Autos don't go for much, they are just not collectable.

I bought several absolutely pristine NIB 1837's from 1949 and a Perrine from the same era and paid around what you did HOWEVER...

I have been looking for an 1827 to use on an old Wonderod I own. I'd happily give you twice what you paid for it OR I trade you for a 1950's 5 rivet Medalist 1494 in very good condition with a metal drag washer which is set up for RHW.

PM me if you want to unload it.

 

[JakesLeakyWaders]

Troutbert, the thing is, she casts with her right hand and then switches to her left hand and then reels with her right hand.

I'm left handed, so I know about reels being right or left I have to change all of mine to left.

It's just the awkwardness of her having to switch hands that makes line management less fluid for her that I am trying to eliminate.

 

[redietz]

JakesLeakyWaders wrote:
..., she casts with her right hand and then switches to her left hand and then reels with her right hand.

So do I, and have done so for more than half a century. I don't find it awkward at all. (In fact, when I tried using LHR in the 80's, I found that to be awkward, because the switch between hands was so automatic that I lost a few good steelhead because the reel handle wasn't where I expected. I switched back.)

Lefty Kreh was a big proponent of reeling with your dominant hand.

It's a good habit to have, not one to be broken.

 

[JakesLeakyWaders]

That's very interesting, being left handed and growing up in a right handed world I think a lot of left handers are naturally ambidextrous. So I don't think I so much have a doninent hand. Certain tasks I actually do better with my right. I play guitar right handed but draw, write, swing a club, bat or rod with my left.

 

[redietz]

Actually, I'm kind of in the same boat. I'm a lefty as far as, say, writing, throwing a ball and eating.

Casting, playing stringed instruments and swinging a bat, though, I've always done right handed, because that's how I was taught.

I switched from left handed to right to shoot a gun, after learning I was right eyed. You may be the same way. (It's called "cross-dominant.")

 

[JakesLeakyWaders]

I switched from left handed to right to shoot a gun, after learning I was right eyed. You may be the same way. (It's called "cross-dominant.")

I was today years old when I learned I am cross dominant.

 

[troutbert]

JakesLeakyWaders wrote:
Troutbert, the thing is, she casts with her right hand and then switches to her left hand and then reels with her right hand.

I'm left handed, so I know about reels being right or left I have to change all of mine to left.

It's just the awkwardness of her having to switch hands that makes line management less fluid for her that I am trying to eliminate.

A very experienced, knowledgeable guy that has owned a fly shop for many decades told me that many of the older flyfishers casted right handed and reeled right handed.

That surprised me, because it doesn't feel right to me.

But if she prefers it that way, I think it's fine.

 

[Bamboozle]

troutbert wrote:

JakesLeakyWaders wrote:
Troutbert, the thing is, she casts with her right hand and then switches to her left hand and then reels with her right hand.

I'm left handed, so I know about reels being right or left I have to change all of mine to left.

It's just the awkwardness of her having to switch hands that makes line management less fluid for her that I am trying to eliminate.

A very experienced, knowledgeable guy that has owned a fly shop for many decades told me that many of the older flyfishers casted right handed and reeled right handed.

That surprised me, because it doesn't feel right to me.

But if she prefers it that way, I think it's fine.

That’s pretty common knowledge. It’s the reason why finding any VINTAGE fly reel, especially those with line guards in anything BUT right hand wind is so difficult. The same goes for baitcasting reels, even today most are RHW and most “righties” switch hands.

LHW Hardy St. Georges & Hardy Perfects other than relatively recent versions are scares as hen’s teeth and even vintage Hardy or Hardy clones without line guards have a spring orientation that favors RHW and is not reversible by flipping pawls.

Even the venerable Medalist wasn’t reversible until the 1950’s and even that is a compromise of sorts since the drag washer isn’t the same on both sides.

When I bought my first fishing reel a 1000 years ago (a Garcia 408 spinning reel that was the LHW version of their 308 ultralight reel) the salesman asked me was I right handed or left handed. When I said “right” he handed me a LHW reel I never looked back despite lusting for lots of vintage RHW reels.

The bottom line is you fish the way that is comfortable. Every reel I own including baitcasters & spinning reels are LHW however, a lot of my friends do the hand switching thing.

 

[afishinado]

I am right handed and use a LH retrieve reel for all my fly-fishing except for saltwater FFing. When I hook up to a big fish and get all the line back on the reel, I switch over my rod to my left hand and use a reel set up for RH retrieve for fighting big fish.

Since I am right hand dominant, my right hand can reel more efficiently. Not a big deal when fighting a trout or bass, but a tarpon, bonefish, a good sized redfish or striper as well as many other SW fish can reverse direction towards you and you better be able to pump up the rpm's to retrieve your line in to prevent slack. Plus, in the salt your backing is actually more than a reel filler and on a good day you have to reel in a lot of line efficiently to land fish.

 

[Bamboozle]

Lots of opinions on this, especially when catching "real" fish in the salt.

Left Kreh advocated using your strongest hand/arm to hold the rod while fighting large fish to avoid fatigue, yet many folks have the opinion that the strongest hand should crank.

I once had a lefty versus righty line winding "race" with a fly shop owning friend of mine to prove to him that I could wind line left handed just as fast as he could right handed.

Fortunately for me, one of the two things I can do with my left hand is wind line, holding a rod and feeling secure I wasn't going to lose it to a bruising fish ISN'T the other.

As a result, hand switching is another thing I defer to the more coordinated folks out there.

 

[afishinado]

Bamboozle wrote:
Lots of opinions on this, especially when catching "real" fish in the salt.

Left Kreh advocated using your strongest hand/arm to hold the rod while fighting large fish to avoid fatigue, yet many folks have the opinion that the strongest hand should crank.

I once had a lefty versus righty line winding "race" with a fly shop owning friend of mine to prove to him that I could wind line left handed just as fast as he could right handed.

Fortunately for me, one of the two things I can do with my left hand is wind line, holding a rod and feeling secure I wasn't going to lose it to a bruising fish ISN'T the other.

As a result, hand switching is another thing I defer to the more coordinated folks out there.

Like a lot of things, it's an individual preference. Many / most right-hands folks can crank more effectively with their dominant hand, but not all. As I said, I switch over my SW reels for that reason.

Many FFers started our or are mostly trout or maybe bass anglers. With larger fish you need all the help you can get to land one. Plus, given the length of the fight, many times you must switch your rod arm back and forth during the fight, especially when the fish is taking line, or it feels like your arm will fall off.

Many FW bait casters and big game saltwater anglers use right hand retrieve reels. You will see big game SW reels are mostly right hand retrieve reels for right handed anglers.

 

[Bamboozle]

Agreed however, I think if I was sitting in a fighting chair or had a fighting belt it might be a different story but in most cases if I was going to arm wrestle someone, I would use my strongest arm which isn't my left.

Many moons ago I was contemplating a Penn Jigmaster level wind to use with a boat rod for Bluefish & Blackfish.

The RHW only reel freaked me out so I called Penn to inquire if LHW was available. They said no BUT they would convert it to LHW for $13.00! I bought the reel, sent it to Penn and got back a rare bird LHW Jigmaster.

Every time I use it I have some mate tell me I have my reel on backwards...;-)

Never had an issue and I sure like having the rod in the my arm-wresting hand!

 

[afishinado]

Bamboozle wrote:
Agreed however, I think if I was sitting in a fighting chair or had a fighting belt it might be a different story but in most cases if I was going to arm wrestle someone, I would use my strongest arm which isn't my left.

Many moons ago I was contemplating a Penn Jigmaster level wind to use with a boat rod for Bluefish & Blackfish.

The RHW only reel freaked me out so I called Penn to inquire if LHW was available. They said no BUT they would convert it to LHW for $13.00! I bought the reel, sent it to Penn and got back a rare bird LHW Jigmaster.

Every time I use it I have some mate tell me I have my reel on backwards...;-)

Never had an issue and I sure like having the rod in the my arm-wresting hand!

^ :lol:

 

[shakey]

personally,i would just go ahead and use the reel.

however,if you are hesitant and want to keep it in unused condition,just pickup an automatic reel from the bay.

i like o-ren-o-matics.

 

[shakey]

http://www.troutlet.com/Pflueger-Automatic-Fly-Reel-P1306.aspx