Rolls Royce Centrepin Reels? True or False?

[Fredline]

Having been around reels in particular centrepin's for quite a few years now it never fails to amaze me how many reels are attributed to this great company. I find it incredible that they had any time to make any cars due to the centrepin reel manufacture that was supposed to happen on their premises. The question arises how do you recognise a RR reel without word of mouth provenance as I have never seen any with markings. Do they really exist or is this just an urban myth?

[Black Prince]

I used to work in a steel foundry with machine shops and a tool room they could make anything out of metal if the price was right and RR the best of the best I am sure the same mike

[Duckett]

I asked my brother and a friend about this. My brother is a time served miller & turner, my friend worked at a forge for many years. They both said lots of unofficial and off the book things used to get made by skilled craftsmen in such factories, especially after WW2 and on the night shift. They both said they'd be amazed if there weren't copies of legitimate centrepins out there made at places like RR.

[Nobby]

I think 'Rolls Royce' was the general name given to these often basic engineer-made reels by dealers. I imagine they wanted to involve the name of possibly the most famous car maker ever for sales purposes.

It's fairly common to see these reels with no checkwork involved, suggesting the engineer that made them would have been out of his sphere of knowledge at creating springs and gears. Occasionaly I've seen them where the checkwork existed but looked remarkably like the bits from, for instance, a J W Young reel.

I've often wondered if companies like Rolls Royce ever actually had a nightshift?

Certainly they did in the War, a shift system so punishing that the War Ministry was on the verge of stepping in in 1941:

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=4Sm ... ft&f=false

It seems they did have a night shift in 1921:

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Io2 ... ft&f=false

Closing that shift down created 1300 redundancies..........

Another reference to 12 hour shifts in 1941 at the Belper development foundry under " Early Work" :http://www.belper-research.com/places/Rolls-Royce.pdf


Further down, Page 13, they are opening a new factory to produce 'oil' engines, diesels in 1951....just when Ferguson are making a 'mini' tractor they went for an engine of over 12 litres........


I bet them lads at the Clan Foundry, Belper, could 'turn' their hands to anything......( little engineer's joke there.....)


If you're really lucky you might find one of these...a Rolls Royce Merlin centrepin:

https://picclick.co.uk/Rolls-Royce-Merl ... 31483.html


What was I saying about sellers.....???

[Harry H]

I think its a generic term that people use nowadays for any workshop made reels.

[Lea Dweller]

Hi John, I think that between them Nobby and Wal would probably give the best guidance, I know that Wal has had a number of quality "home made" reels in the past. Unless I am mistaken the "Rolls Royce Merlin" that Nobby referred to is an early Reynolds/Adcock example? Not sure about it though!

[LuckyLuca]

I'm sure you've seen this viewtopic.php?f=44&t=22895

The reason I suggested Rolls Royce was the location I picked it up from, right in the heart of the East Midlands. Further thought and I think many engineering companies saw lunch time specials being knocked up. We'd all like them to be RR but most probably aren't

[Paul D]

I think amongst engineers its quite common,I made my own reel whilst working nights.

[Beresford]

Richard Carter, maker of fabulous centre pins, worked for RR. I therefore consider his reels to be RR quality.

[John Harding]

Back in the late 1960s and early 70s the high point of my week was the Friday night trip to the Wyche Anglers club in Nantwich, a very large number of the members worked either in Royces (Rolls Royce car factory) or "The Works" (Railway Works), both only 4 of 5 miles away in Crewe. I can vouch that all sorts of tackle items were "developed" from these workshops, rod rests, bite indicators, bait trays etc' I was told if I ever needed a new strap for my basket don't buy one as next week there would be a Rolls Royce seat belt waiting for me.

I also fondly remember one of our little gang, Jack, who worked in a clothing factory in Crewe, he looked after the sowing machines and he supplied us with large spools of "Jack's line". It was a black sowing thread, I think it was some sort of nylon thread. Almost all of our fishing was on canals pre the pole fishing era and we caught plenty of fish using it.

Thinking back what great times.

Regards,
John.