aaaah the 810 poetry in motion any body got one to part with

I had Mitchells 300s and 410s until I first tried a Shimano. Never used anything other than Shimanos for 20 years.I have to confess that the 300s ended up being given away.But they were..a bit rubbish weren't they ? Rubbish clutch, reluctant bail arms and sounded like coffee grinders.

It's tother way round lad.300 were LHW-- 301---RHW

Ah yes, the "clutch".

Best bet seemed to be to have it somewhat slacker than you'd prefer and to use the index finger as an auxiliary drag. Mine are still serviceable and almost presentable too, except for one that has lost rather a lot of paint through clattering about on the stones at Dam Flask after deep water perch in the sixties...

richard

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Who resides on the right bank of the Derbyshire Wye and is lulled to sleep each night by the mutterings of a weir, dreaming that "When the rivers and their inhabitants come first, we ALL win..."

I think nearly all coarse fishermen have used or owned a 300, mine is 25+ years old and ive also got a newer version which will not age that well, a truely great reel

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If in doubt, get the montys out

Intelligence is relative to your environment

I've used nothing but Mitchell 301's since about 1971. I've got 5 of them now, in various states of repair, including my original which was second hand when I bought it (from The Angler's Den, Globe Lane, Carlisle), but always at least 2 of them useable! Fortunately its such a popular reel that spares seem quite easy to obtain.

Just had my mitchell 440a repaired and serviced,had it since childhood will never be parted from it even tho it hasnt been used for years.
Ahhhhhh memories.

Taff

I have a pair of 300's that I bought new, that must have been over 25 ago but they are still perfect for piking.
I recently bought and completely restored a 308 for ultra light spinning, same reel just smaller.
If you need parts I found this guy REEL CARE - ANY MAKE OF FISHING REEL REPAIRED,NO V.A.T, CHARGED very helpful, incredibly knowledgeable and his parts are very sensibly priced.

I bought two 300's in the early 1960's when I was first offered a rod on the Rigmaden beat of the Lune and started serious salmon fishing. Great reels which lasted me until 2004 when I decided to sell them.

I always kept a few spare bail arm springs and some Singer sewing machine oil in my tackle box. They tended to squeak a bit when fishing in the rain, but the oil soon got them running smoothly again. I had them serviced regularly over the years by Reelcare in Southampton, kept them in cloth bag and a box and got more for them than I paid when I sold them on eBay.