Abbey & Imbrie Bamboo Fly Fishing Rod

Question
what would be the fair market value for a Abbey & imbrie model Grand fly pole in fair condition.

Thanks,

Cody  

Answer
Cody,

Abbey & Imbrie is a name that takes tackle collectors all the way back to shortly after the Civil War. In  1875 L. H. Abbey and C. F. Imbrie merged with the Andrew Clerk & Company, to become Abbey & Imbrie. Andrew Clerk had been in the fishing tackle business since 1820, stayed on for a while and then retired. The A & I  famous crossed fishhook Trademark was granted in 1877, and early products usually show this trademark. The gold fish that hung over their door for forty years was a very famous landmark for anglers in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Abbey & Imbrie probably didn't manufacture anything. However, they contracted with some of the better manufacturers to have a full line of fishing products available for customers at their retail store in New York City, and through their mail order catalogs. The reels of Julius vom Hofe, A.F. Meisselbach and probably many other makers were stamped with their name. Lures were manufactured for A&I by Heddon, as well as several others. They had their first rods built by Hiram Leonard, but later rods were manufactured by several different makers. All of this high quality tackle was wholesaled to dealers throughout the east, as well as retailed directly to fishermen.

Abbey & Imbrie was purchased by Horrock's-Ibbotson in the 1930s



Your model is not in my books:
Antique & Collectible  Fishing Rods: Identification & Value Guide Homel, Dan. 1997 (2nd edition 2000) add about 30% for age of book.
Bamboo Rod Restoration Handbook by Michael Sinclair
Classic & Antique Fly-Fishing Tackle: A Guide for Collectors & Anglers by A.J. Campbell
Fishing Tackle: A Collector's Guide  Hardcover, 1991 Graham Turner

Homel gives the average value for several  Abbey & Imbrie rods as $43.33, 131.67, and 234.44 for poor, good, excellent condition respectively.

Good Luck
Mac

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