Philippe Blime took over Mitchell in 1982. The climate created by an economic depression and the increasing competition from the Pacific Rim manufacturers prompted Mitchell to declare bankrupcy in 1981. But not forever as we will see!Įven the introduction of the French made "square bodied" reels of the 4400, 3300 and "Full Control" series in 1980 couldn’t change the destiny of events. By 1980 these twoīrands would become independent and go their separate ways. Perhaps the moment wasn’t right: the effects of the first oil crisis became distinct and were felt all over the globe.īy 1978, due to financial concerns, The Garcia Corporation would restructure the distribution of Mitchell but it was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1979. This deal became official on Jand was commemorated with the special issue of a 300DL-model (see here ). The Carpano&Pons family acquired 27% of the Garcia shares. In 1974, Garcia (see also here ) was a dominant force in the fishing tackle market and became a major stockholder of Mitchell. No wonder that already in 1971 the 20,000,000th reel was celebrated with a silver plated model of the legendary "300". ![]() Production reached an amazing number of 12,000 reels per day in 1970. (?) and a sterling silver commemorative medal. In 1966, the birth of the 10,000,000th reel was celebrated with the issuing of a gold plated model When Charles Pons died in 1965, Mitchell and the other divisions became independent companies. One of Mitchell’s most outstanding design reels, the "510" made its debut in 1969. Mitchell’s automatic fly reel "710", was born in 1967 and the first conventional fly reel "752" in 1971. The first "low budget" model, the "320", was marketed in 1965. The first conventional reel, the "600", was released in 1964. The first model with a skirted spool, the "316", was welcomed in 1963. This same year, on December 24, the 5,000,000th reel was produced. The first "luxury" model "300DL" dates from approximately 1961. The "308 Prince" -first ultra-light- model came in 1960 and his "speedy" brother "358" one-year later in 1961. The "Intermediate" model "306" joined the family in 1958. ![]() At the request of Garcia, Mitchell incorporated the shipping number that was assigned to different models, for ordering purposes, to be used as the model number for the respective reel. The "Rapid" changed into "Mitchell 350 5/1". The "Otomatic" was changed to "Otomatic 330" and later to "Mitchell 330". The first born "Mitchell" became "Mitchell 300", the "Salt Water" received number "302" engraved on its side-plate, and the "Cap" will be for ever known as the "304". In April 1957 a decision was reached to add a number to the name of each existing model. The "fast retrieve" version (ratio 5/1) of the "300" was baptised "Rapid" in 1956. It was also in 1955 that the 10.000th packing case of reels ready for export to the U.S. The family was steadily growing: the "Otomatic", first reel ever with fully automatic bail release, was born in 1955. It was known as the "Mitchell Cap", also called "Cap 54" which also represented the year Free-Trade status was granted in the US. The CAP-reel, already in existence for a number of years, made by Carpano & Pons, became part of the Mitchell family. The "Mitchell" and "Mitchell Salt Water" was fitted with a full bail and an optional manual pick up system. Things changed a lot in 1954 when the Hardy-patent for the full bail arm expired. ![]() The Salt Water model was originally designed with a half bail arm, similar to its smaller brother, the 300. ![]() The name "Salt Water" chosen for this heavy-duty model was rather obvious. This was followed by a lot a larger reel developed for sea angling. Léon Carpano and Charles Pons, astonished as they were by the success of their first models, soon decided to design and to market a left-hand version of this reel (approximately 1953). We hope you enjoyed the reading of the Mitchell prehistory and that you are curious to know what happened in the more recent past. Mitchell Reel Collectors International - History of Mitchell
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