Ode to George

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FWdB
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Ode to George

#1

Post by FWdB »

... or a pictoral tribute to the Hardy St. George, perfectly suitable for a Sunday, and in fact every other day of the week!
My latest aquisition, a 3 screw 3 3/8 inch specimen, has been the spark for this thread.

I own three quite special St. George reels. In fact, my first vintage Hardy reel was a 3 3/4 inch St. George. Ca. 1922, "large arbor", 3 screw latch, block leather case and factory engraved initial (my own). You can see it in the first picture. My second St. George isn't of the preferable 3 screw variety, and there's no original finish or patina left, but it makes up for that by being LHW. It's 3 inch, 1950s-60s, "spitfired" and it's my favorite fishing reel. It's on the second picture, mounted on a fabulous Lt. Col. Oborn 7ft rod. Last but not least is the already mentioned 3 3/8 inch example. Plenty of original finish left, ca. 1930s. It's on the third and last picture.

All three have a smoke grey agate line guard, a colour that is both beautiful and understated, something that could be said about the entire St. George reel range. For obvious reasons it comes second to the Perfect, but for me personally it is at least as nice and collectable a reel as its famous cousin.

I hope this thread will eventually grow into a gallery of wonderful Hardy St. George reels. I know there's lots of them around, they have been posted in various threads, spread around the forum. But I feel the St. George deserves its own dedicated thread, for me and others to visit and admire. So feel welcome to add to this, and keep 'em coming. Thanks!

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bow river
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Ode to George

#2

Post by bow river »

wilf
like you , i really think the st george for hardys is a great looking reel , better then the perfect , it always seems they just look better on bamboo with the holes in the spools , i started to collect a few myself over the winter , some forum members have pretty old and rare ones , i think shoeless joe has a sweet little one and bubba has a matched set that old , the hardy guy 'randy law has some very nice older st georges for reels and he just found a spool for his 3 inch one ,

i have a few 3 screw st georgers in 3 3/8 , some mint , some with the built up drum which i like better then the norm spool , the one i like the best that i have is a 3 3/8 with the double row of holes and also has the built up drum , the 3 inch 3 screw is just a bit small for the fishing i do so i have a couple but i just stoped hunting for them ,
my oldest is one that is around the 1917 to 1921 years , most of the finish is gone but a very nice reel with the correct agate and no cracks , i also picked up one with the rootbeer agate that is correct to match a perfect i have with the rootber agate , makes a nice set , same size , 3 3/8
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Come book a fishing trip with me on Canada's best trout river , the world famous Bow River , also other fine mountain rivers , I collect old Hardys , Dingleys, Youngs , also buy sell & trade

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janotcastermans
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Ode to George

#3

Post by janotcastermans »

This is a early Hardy Bros St. George Fly reel 3 3/4" diameter. It has a smooth brass foot correct length with no alterations. Having a 3 screw drum release catch and an ebonite handle. It has most of its original leaded finish. It had just a Agate replacement.

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Janot
Last edited by janotcastermans on 07/19/09 03:06, edited 1 time in total.

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afgantrout
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Ode to George

#4

Post by afgantrout »

Janot -
Lovely photos (as always!). Myself, I am George-less at the moment, but I do have a shot of a Hardy Bros.-marked fly box with a selection of wets very similar to yours. Wee wets and Loch patterns.
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pcg
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Ode to George

#5

Post by pcg »

Wilf, those smoke grey agate line guards rock! Far sweeter than the red agates, although I recognize that taste is inexplicable. :-)
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"Playing With Fire, The Life and Fly Rods of E.W. Edwards"
"D Is For Dingley, The Master Reelmaker" (co-author, Brian Taylor)

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ttrotter
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Ode to George

#6

Post by ttrotter »

Sunday morning eye candy, for sure!
Regards,
Tom

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janotcastermans
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Ode to George

#7

Post by janotcastermans »

Michael,very nice pictures.
I love it,thanks for sharing.

All the best to You

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quashnet
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Ode to George

#8

Post by quashnet »

3", 3-screw reels
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3-3/8", 3-screw reels
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They all go fishing...
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Please visit and bookmark the Paul H. Young Rod Database
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Other rod databases: Dickerson , Orvis , Powell

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Piglegs
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Ode to George

#9

Post by Piglegs »

3" Jimmy Smith made St George:
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Bubba
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Ode to George

#10

Post by Bubba »

A couple shots of the 3'' St George Richard was talking about

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Shoeless Joe
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Ode to George

#11

Post by Shoeless Joe »

FWdB wrote:... or a pictoral tribute to the Hardy St. George, perfectly suitable for a Sunday, and in fact every other day of the week!
The inspiration behind no small number of knock-offs, the origin of the species, the Hardy St. George, stands alone ...

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... long live this thread!
Sapere aude!

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FWdB
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Ode to George

#12

Post by FWdB »

Wonderful pictures of wonderful reels, thank you all for sharing these.
Just what I hoped would happen. To echo Shoeless Joe's words: long live this thread!

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janotcastermans
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Ode to George

#13

Post by janotcastermans »

Joe,thats a beauty You have there.

Janot

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LeeB
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Ode to George

#14

Post by LeeB »

A couple of my favorites: A Jimmy Smith with standard arbor spool (left), and a Denys Ward with a mid-arbor spool (right).
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bow river
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Ode to George

#15

Post by bow river »

shoeless joe
oh how i love the month of oct 2009 , it's a better picture of your reel , i can't wait till oct as i'm getting sick of going over to the wall and flipping the pages up to look at that reel of yours

that reel is what we call up here in canada '' a ball buster of a reel '' everything about it is sweet , the little adjuster with the nice rope edge marked into it , brake on it , and worn so much that you know it seen some action , and a nice dark grey agate , not milky grey or white like the new hardy reels , and the silk line on it just says it all , '' classic''
Come book a fishing trip with me on Canada's best trout river , the world famous Bow River , also other fine mountain rivers , I collect old Hardys , Dingleys, Youngs , also buy sell & trade

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bulldog1935
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Ode to George

#16

Post by bulldog1935 »

I'm going to have to toss up my repro, since I turned my 1917 into a boat for my daughter
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FWdB
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Ode to George

#17

Post by FWdB »

It's a St. George, so it's allowed. And as far as I'm concerned pictures of ex-reels are welcome too.
(especially that beautiful 1917 of yours!)

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bulldog1935
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Ode to George

#18

Post by bulldog1935 »

OK
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bobk
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Ode to George

#19

Post by bobk »

All have agate line guards. Two have JS's initials one has X the others have none. The front row Junior has a ribbed aluminum foot. The 2 behind him have smooth feet (brass on the the left and aluminum & white knob on the right). The three in the rear have ribbed brass feet. All are original an unaltered. The ones that are lined are fished.
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cdmoore
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Ode to George

#20

Post by cdmoore »

Seriously funny.

Chris
"Fly fishing is an art, but to become an artist, one must be a beginner." ~ E.C. Powell

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