PD Malloch Makers Perth

Antique 1900/1920 and very large side casting reel (ancestor of the fixed drum), PD Malloch, Makers, Perth. All bronze, diameter 12 cm, width 7.5 cm, horn crank handle, noisemaker pawl. The "side casting" system, invented and patented by the Scottish firm Malloch, used an ingenious process to tilt the spool at 90°, transforming it into a fixed spool for casting. Then all you had to do was tilt it back in the other direction to reel as with a normal revolving drum. A large thread-guide was used for both casting and retrieving, partly to avoid wigging. Early models, like the one shown here, were very heavy, all bronze and virtually indestructible, and were highly prized by Queen Victoria's lords and servicemen for capturing the enormous mahseers (giant Himalayan barbel) in India. A splendid copy that has retained most of its original patina. In a blue velvet case.