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 Grandhogair |
J.B. Crook fly rod (pics added) |
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Posts: 28 11/05/2007 23:11 |
Anything special here? Split bamboo. 3/2 each section 40 1/2 inches, intermediates, wrap pattern similar to Gnome's pic page 36, NS reelseat marked JB
Crook & Co. Makers, NY, entire rod wrapped in silk marked by decal Siliken, Pat'D Oct. 26, 1897, agate stripper and tip tops in a velvet covered wooden
form case, NS ferrules.
Last Edited By: Grandhogair 11/24/2007 10:22.
Edited 3 times.
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Whitefish Press |
#1 | |||
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Posts: 17 11/06/2007 09:19 Sic transit piscatoria Clark's |
That is a Silkien rod patented by Judge Kenyon. It is likely NOT manufactured by Crook, but made by Montague which purchased the rights to the Silkien rod and
manufactured them until around 1920. Any marked JB Crook tackle is uncommon, and certainly a marked Crook Silikien fly rod would be even more rare.
Mary Kefover Kelly has a chapter on the Siliken rod in her new book "Origins of American Angling." Sounds like a beauty. Any chance for photos? --Dr. Todd |
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cwfly |
#2 | |||
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Posts: 499 11/06/2007 09:55 |
Dr. Todd,
Is the Kelly book soon to be published? I am unable to locate it as a presently published book. Thanks, Charlie |
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Whitefish Press |
#3 | |||
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Posts: 19 11/06/2007 14:30 Sic transit piscatoria Clark's |
Charlie,
Coincidentally, the books just arrived. See the above post. Cheers, Dr. Todd |
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jasperwrap |
#4 | |||
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Posts: 102 11/06/2007 16:34 |
If you paid more than $6,000.00 for the rod, the chances of a Crook being involved in the manufacture or selling of the rod is highly likely!!!
Jasper |
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leatherneck |
#5 | |||
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Posts: 140 11/24/2007 13:48 |
The Origins of American Angling has no ISBN and is apparently privately published. Go to www.whitefishpress.com.
"The rule is perfect: in all matters of
opinion our adversaries are insane."
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jeffkn1 |
#6 | |||
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Posts: 1393 11/25/2007 10:19 |
Very high grade trade rod of Montague origin, produced during the 'Varney years' or very shortly thereafter. The only option it doesn't have is
8-strip construction. I have an unmarked Monty with the same features, though mine is an 8-stripper without the Silkien wrap. So far not many Crook
rods have shown up that didn't look to be either Chubb or Montague manufacture.
I have an ad from the 1850's in which Crook is seeking a partner for a trout farm, so it's possible that ol' Jabez was buried several decades before this rod was made. |
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Grandhogair |
#7 | |||
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Posts: 30 11/25/2007 15:21 |
Thanks for the info.
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whatsleft2 |
#8 | |||
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Posts: 625 11/25/2007 17:34 |
Why would Montague mark the rod JB Crook Makers.........?? Just trying to understand............????..
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bulldog1935 |
#9 | |||
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Posts: 4577 11/25/2007 21:56 Bulldog1935 |
just as this JW Young reel is marked MC Thornburn Maker
the actual maker marked it however the merchant wanted it. |
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South Creek |
#10 | |||
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Posts: 167 11/28/2007 16:57 |
GrandHA: Look up the Perfection Series Baitcaster rod in Gnome's book and you'll see this Seat in Baitcaster form. It also shows up on another Rod in
the Book. Gnome looked at my 10 footer, thats just like yours and ID'd the hardware as being by Varney, just like Jeff said above. That seat was used
extensively, by many makers. You just can't ID a rod maker by that seat. It like so many others was sold to whoever by ChubbVarneymonty. It can mess
wid-yo-mind....Jerry
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South Creek |
#11 | |||
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Posts: 168 11/28/2007 17:46 |
Whatsleft: The rod may have been made by Crook. He just may have bought available hardware from Chubb to put on his rod. Chubb/Monty had craftmen turning out
hardware, some of which may have never been installed on a Chubb blank. They were in business to sell product...Jerry
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Whitefish Press |
#12 | |||
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Posts: 22 11/29/2007 11:50 Sic transit piscatoria Clark's |
I don't think there is much chance this rod was made by Crook. By the time the Silkien was invented, Crook was basically a trade house selling fishing
tackle made by others (Montague reels marked J.B. Crook come up on eBay every so often). Since the Silkien process was a patented method, and Kenyon/Montague
made Silkien rods for other retailers/wholesalers, it is far more likely that this was made for Crook by Kenyon or Montague (likely the latter).
As for why companies had the word "Maker" put on products they did not make, the truth is that it was a common practice. Steve Vernon, author of Fishing Reel Patents, can certainly attest to the fact that a number of companies had the word "maker" put on their reels that demonstrably did NOT make any fishing tackle. Mary Kelly has a theory that I agree with; if a company asked a manufacturer to produce items to their specifications (even as simple as a trademark stamp) they felt they had the right to declare it "made to their specifications." It is a small obfuscated step to declare yourself "maker" in this case. In the case of Jabez Crook, who did make tackle for some time, after the father's death it would have been difficult to admit in public that they were no longer manufacturing items the public had come to expect they had made. It would have been tempting to have the word "maker" stamped on other people's products. -- Dr. Todd |
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whatsleft2 |
#13 | |||
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Posts: 628 11/30/2007 22:28 |
So how do you know if you have a rod made by Crook...?
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jeffkn1 |
JB Crook stuff | #14 | ||
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Posts: 1403 12/01/2007 15:01 |
From a collector friend of mine: "Always looking for anything JB Crook. My friend probably has the largest collection in the
world. Not much of his "real" stuff (pre '83) around but it is super quality. About 1883 he started branding stuff "& Co." and
farmed out the work. That's most of the stuff we find and it doesn't really count. He has a marked JB Crook & Co. double barrel shotgun - cool but
he didn't make it. Also has an 1880s catalog where he calls tackle made by everyone else "Slop rubbish." Did he ever tell you about the marked JB
Crook he has that's inscribed inside the face plate? It says "JB Crook made July 10 1810." This was from a well-known vom Hofe collector I know.
He's quite familiar with all the old Brooklyn area shops.
Apparently, after 1883, most of the Crook merchandise was what we refer to as trade goods, i.e. private-labeled. Crook was really small potatoes and interesting mostly because they're high on the scarce list. The rod in question is entirely made up of Montague parts. When you've seen enough Montague product, and you can ballpark the production era, then pinning the trade goods label on them isn't too difficult. And as I said earlier, the combination of manufacturing era combined with the fact that Crook died well before that was enough to convince me of its trade-rod origin. I can't say exactly which year the old man died but his son died in 1917 (I have a copy of the obit) at the age of 60, and the rod being discussed is made of 1920's components. Also, there's a strong chance that the Silkien patent post-dated Jabez Crook's death. |
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