In a society which long ago forgot how to fix most things, it is a great pleasure to use something old and mechanical. Last week the fishing reel that I have been using for the last ten years or so had a problem.
In trying to fix it, another part gave up the ghost. With the knowledge that it might be hard to get a couple of parts, I decided to at least look at the prices of new reels. I knew they would be expensive down here on the beach, but I also took the time to look at Gander Mountain in Roanoke. Surprisingly the prices were not very different from coast to mountain or more accurately from small coastal store to large national chain.
One hundred dollars seemed a lot for a fishing reel so I checked out our basement and came across the fishing reel which I had when I was eight or nine years old. I was quite the fisherman in my youth. My mother and I went on a fishing trip with our neighbors to the Santee Cooper area. I think we fished what is now called Lake Moultrie, but I am not sure. There were six of us on the trip. All but two of us have passed away.
My neighbor, Tom Fix, convinced my mom to buy me an Abu Garcia Ambassedeur 5000. He said something like if I was going to a serious place to fish, I needed a serious reel. My suspicion is that it was a big expense for my mom, but as moms do, she got it for my anyway.
Mr. Fix taught me how to use it and how to take care of it. I know that I fished with it into my teens. I would guess that it was sometime before 1958 or 1959 when I got the reel.
I brought it from Roanoke, Va. back to the Southern Outer Banks. Last night I put new line on it, greased it, and made sure that everything was working properly.
Today we are headed out to fish Bogue Inlet, I will likely spent most of my time using this reel. I actually prefer a level wind, free spooling bait casting reel to a spinning reel. I will have both with me since I usually cast my artificial lures with the spinning rods.
We will see how the old reel does today. I have high hopes for it. It makes me very happy to be able to use something old rather than to have to buy something new.
