The William Demmer Prototype Reel

The William Demmer Prototype Reel

One of the most interesting prototype reels to come to market recently has to be this collection of items attributed to William Demmer of Detroit, Michigan ca. 1939-1941. Discovered by Keith Zessin, they are remarkable in that they are technologically advanced, precision engineered, and, apparently, never put into production.

There is clearly a fascinating history behind these reels, but only the surface story is known. In Keith's words: "This group of reels was made by William Demmer of Detroit, Michigan. They are the only examples that are known and date from 1939 to 1941. When the War started he could no longer obtain aluminum."




Yet another fishing tackle venture postponed, and from the looks of things killed, by the Second World War.

Keith noted that Demmer was the owner of a tool and die shop in Detroit, which could have been the Demmer Auto Company, a firm known to exist in the 1950s. Zessin further wrote that Demmer "made parts for General Motors."

The first thing one thinks when viewing these reels is their remarkable resemblance to the very popular Hurd Supercaster reel. There may be a reason for this; Zessin observed that "Hurd Lock & Key also sold parts to GM so they more than likely knew each other."

The reel itself is a precision engineered "sleeve" which covers both the rod handle and reel, making them one continuous piece. It appears there are four prototypes, although only one appears complete (pictured with cork siding). The external pieces of the reel include the end plate drag and the handle on the front plate. All in all a simple and seemingly quite effective design.

It seems possible that the William Demmer responsible for these reels is the same William Demmer who headed the Demmer Automotive Group, which today lists the Jack Demmer Ford dealership as one of its holdings. An email to Jack Demmer Ford was not returned.

All else that is currently known of this is that William Demmer "also made some Deco style lighters that had printed cardboard boxes and candlesticks that he planned to sell commercially," according to Zessin.


What a fabulous group of reels and, I'm sure, a remarkable story behind them. I have high hopes we may someday learn more about the Demmer prototype reel.

Many thanks to Keith Zessin for sharing photos and information!

-- Dr. Todd

An Australian Prototype Reel, by Wayne Real

This week my Australian mate Wayne Real has kindly contributed a nifty article on a home-made Australian fishing reel. It clearly shows that ingenuity is not unique to just the Western Hemisphere! The native Australian Alvey reels have had quite a reputation for many years. This is a great article and we can all thank Wayne for his contribution! You can check out his exhaustive web site on all things ABU and Ambassadeur by Clicking Here.

An Australian Prototype Reel, by Wayne Real


This fine one off sidecast reel was handcrafted in the Ipswich Railway Workshops (Queensland Australia) over 50 years ago.

The chrome plated rolled brass back suggests early 50's.  But you can never be 100% certain. 

The strong Y on the back of the reel is unique. I've actually seen the same Y pattern on a timber back reel, most likely from the 1930's era, so I'm not certain where they were getting that pattern from.


Essentially the reel was crafted to emulate the famous Alvey Sidecast reels made in Brisbane, Queensland but at almost nil cost to the guys making them.

The guys weren't cheeky enough to place the Alvey name on the reel!

I believe initially the motivation may have been to create a reel just as good as Alvey, using one's collective group initiative, skills and resources.

Clearly they were a group of different people with different skills and were able to collect scrap materials.



The story goes that the reels took several weeks to complete and as people swapped in and out and experiences evolved, the reels became progressively better.

I am reliably informed that as these similar but stronger reels starting appearing on the black market, they were soon put out of business.

It is up for speculation whether this clamp down came from Alvey themselves or the internal QGR checks but the several dozens that were made, all usually a little different, were soon to become quite collectable.



The  stages of production were involved from sourcing timber and turning spool and handles, as well as cutting rolling pressing stainless steel plate and rod, copper shims, spring steel wire for tensioners etc. etc. Certainly a complicated process!

The wife of the old gentleman who owned it (maybe created even it?) amusingly remarked that the only item/material  not able to be sourced or created in the QGR workshops was the monofilament of the day!

For a student of piscatorial history such as yourself and your readers, I guess this recollection will be of great interest and shows something of the Aussie streak of ingenuity which I fear is fast disappearing in our sleek glossy hi-tech world we live in today.

If any reader has a similar rare  ABU item of interest to me, I could be convinced to do a trade mate. I never sell any reel but do swap for like value objects that I am looking for.

Tight lines,

Wayne Real

Thanks Wayne! A neat piece and a really cool history behind it.

-- Dr. Todd