scarbrough reels

[musky]

First ever fishing attempt was with an old greenheart rod and a scarboro reel - borrowed me dads gear. Was a bit heavy for me so i couldnt cast very far and nearly took me fingers off trying to slow it down on the side with the handles on! Needless to say caught nowt . I got a second hand rod with an intrepid seastreak reel for xmas not long after and that was me set.
Think the scarboro's are still popular with some old hands for boat fishing nowadays wouldnt bother with em off the shore tho and anybody wantin a seastreak must just want it for sentimental value.
The ABU atlantic 484 was the dogs bollocks back then but i couldnt afford one

[sam harris]

Back in the late "forties" early "fifties" I was vice chairman of the National Shore Casting Association. Every year casting competitions were held which always featured scarboro reels as well as the usual multipliers, Alveys, fixed spool etc. One year a competition was held on Beaconsfield, this is the field beside the Blue Reef on the sea front at Tynemouth. It is called Beaconsfield because many years ago there was a Dr. Barnados home on that site and the house was called Beaconsfield. One year there were a number of entries in the scarboro class, about a dozen I think. First place went to Ron Meikle (no longer with us) with a cast of 123 yards 9 inches, second was Byron Barawitzca (also gone) his cast measured 117 yards 11 inches, I came third with 109 yards 8 inches.
We didn't have nylon lines in those days, we used a string like line called cuttyhunk, it was brown in colour and when wet it retained the water so we had to use ten ounce sinkers to even get the reels to turn, and boy, if you caught your fingers on the handles when you were casting out, you said more than Oh! dear, problem was, in the winter your hands were so cold you didn't feel the pain for a few minutes, then when you did you really knew about it.
The scarboro reel was the thing for getting a fish in fast through kelp and over rocks, it could handle anything, I think I've still got one somewhere. Happy days.