Hardy Perfect
The fly reel from Alnwick with ball bearings – a classic of English fly fishing.
The brothers William and John James Hardy in Alnwick, Northumberland, made fishing rods and reels of high quality. The Perfect, launched in 1891, had ball bearings so that the spool ran freely.
The reel was made in many sizes and versions for a century. Hardy became a royal warrant holder, and the Perfect is counted among the finest fly reels ever made.
Materials: Brass, later aluminium, steel
Manufacture: Made by Hardy Brothers in Alnwick from 1891.
The round, perforated side plate.
The crank with its turned handle.
The foot that fixes to the rod.