Johnny99 Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 Hi I have a old Mitchell 489 reel with a broken bail. The main bail screw bolt has a snapped head and the torsion spring is out of shape and lost it’s spring. As parts are not available in Oz I am currently trying to locate a bolt that may fit and also see if I can get a local manufacturer to make me a new spring. Does anyone know of spares that may be available for this model in Oz ? (I’ve tried most outlets in Sydney but no luck) Also does anyone know how to do a DIY conversion to a bailess setup as used in the USA? I have seen online kits sold in the US for Penn reels but have not come across any here cheers Johhny99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaddyT Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 just did a quick search on FB and there seem to be a couple of pages there that specifically cater towards old Mitchell Reels- good luck, had an old 499 back in the day, also Fish On at Blacktown has an old reel collection , he may well be able to point you in the right direction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny99 Posted September 7, 2019 Author Share Posted September 7, 2019 Thanks PaddyT. Will check out. I see the 499 was I think a bailess model. How did you find using this setup? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noelm Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 The 499 Mitchel was a great reel in its day, very simple drag, but they used to chatter once they got a bit of wear, they brought out the 499pro to fix the problem, I used them almost exclusively for Snapper and did a lot of jigging with them too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaddyT Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 15 hours ago, Johnny99 said: Thanks PaddyT. Will check out. I see the 499 was I think a bailess model. How did you find using this setup? Tough, very heavy, pretty average drag- much better reels out their today, there is a knack to casting the bailarm less model- you need to stop the rotor rotating when you cast other wise it grabs the line on its way out and "whamo"" you get a short cast or crack the lure off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryder Posted September 9, 2019 Share Posted September 9, 2019 (edited) Hi Johnny, I've posted a link to this forum before, and one to Fishraider on theirs, they were very helpful. http://www.mitchellreelmuseum.com/forum/search.php?keywords=489+bail&terms=all&author=&sc=1&sf=all&sk=t&sd=d&sr=posts&st=0&ch=300&t=0&sid=6026d2c4804864cde8a4e8d30a3d1e3b&submit=Search The guy who did this lives in OZ you could email him Edited September 9, 2019 by Ryder Added photo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny99 Posted September 11, 2019 Author Share Posted September 11, 2019 Thanks Ryder I will check it out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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