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JW Young River Specialist centrepin

S

Steve Lewis

Senior Member
Did anyone ever get one of these or give it a tryout?

Lots of places seem to have been out of stock for ages (although they are still available from Youngs directly). I've been keeping an eye on used ones on eBay, but they seem to go for not-far-off full retail.

I don't think it's one I'll ever be able to afford, even used, but just interested in comparisons to similar pins (Avon Royal Supreme, whichever Okuma it was, etc).
 
Steve Lewis said:
interested in comparisons to similar pins (Avon Royal Supreme, whichever Okuma it was, etc).
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There's no Okuma that's similar to the Young's River Specialist. I suspect you may have the Trent in mind. However, the River Specialist has an adjustable tension ratchet whilst the Trent has a full blown drag system. The only thing they have in common is that some anglers might prefer to use them over standard centrepins in similar situations.
 
Chris Jones said:
There's no Okuma that's similar to the Young's River Specialist. I suspect you may have the Trent in mind. However, the River Specialist has an adjustable tension ratchet whilst the Trent has a full blown drag system. The only thing they have in common is that some anglers might prefer to use them over standard centrepins in similar situations.
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The Trent, that's the bunny. I didn't realise the two were that different (IIRC the Trent completely sold out before I was even aware of its existence).
 
Thanks Richard.

I'm not in the market for a Trent, just curious about the Youngs River Specialist and how it handles. My Avon Royal Supreme is my go-to pin for ledgering so I'm wondering how a new pin with a similar function compares, especially with Youngs rather variable QC these days.
 
I've had a few Royal supremes over the years. Bulletproof for ledgering, with the adjustable drag a massive bonus. Can't think of another
reel with similar.
A bit heavy for trotting and not the best tool for the job but I'd stick with it for ledgering as it's perfect for the job if a pin is suitable.
No drag but the TFG pins today are probably the best quality/value for money on the market presently. The Freefow has a very strong ratchet and would be first choice for me but difficult to find. Production stopped a couple of years ago. They were £60.
The Classic is lighter and better looking. Can't speak for the ratchet but it's a superb reel. Almost as good as the Freefow which has Abec 5 bearings.
Bearings though, are not really relevant for ledgering
 
Ah - I got the wrong end of the stick, Steve. My 'go to' at the moment is a Milltackle Barbel Catcher, which I love, firstly for the standard of engineering and secondly, for the variable ratchet. The River Specialist, I believe, also has one of the latter, though it also has bearing and I prefer a spindle. Heard great things about the Avon Royal Supreme, but yet to handle one.

Paul - how does the drag work on a 'pin? I own a few but have never come across one.
 
I bought one recently from an online tackle company, but it had to go back due to the spool being slightly out of alignment, which I wouldn't expect from youngs.
Nice looking reel, and the rachet is indeed very adjustable.
 
Ben Marr said:
I bought one recently from an online tackle company, but it had to go back due to the spool being slightly out of alignment, which I wouldn't expect from youngs.
Nice looking reel, and the rachet is indeed very adjustable.
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Ben - alas all-too common for (new) Youngs reels, for the last few years actually. I think I'm right in saying they're only designed in the UK now, but manufactured and put together thousands of miles away on a massive production line with several other brands I believe.
 
Steve Lewis said:
I think I'm right in saying they're only designed in the UK now, but manufactured and put together thousands of miles away on a massive production line with several other brands I believe.
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I'm pretty sure that is not true. I was certainly told (within the last couple of years), by a pretty good source, that all Youngs reels are made and assembled in the UK.

The ownership of the Youngs brand has changed fairly recently. However, I doubt that anything has changed regarding the manufacture and assembly of their centrepins.
 
Chris Jones said:
I'm pretty sure that is not true. I was certainly told (within the last couple of years), by a pretty good source, that all Youngs reels are made and assembled in the UK.

The ownership of the Youngs brand has changed fairly recently. However, I doubt that anything has changed regarding the manufacture and assembly of their centrepins.
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I stand corrected - I might be thinking about their rods (which they don't seem to have on their website any more).

But QC on the reels is definitely more iffy than it used to be, as confirmed by several peeps on here.
 
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Steve Lewis said:
I stand corrected - I might be thinking about their rods (which they don't seem to have on their website any more).

But QC on the reels is definitely more iffy than it used to be, as confirmed by several peeps on here.
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The Youngs brand was used on rods by the owner of the brand, but I doubt that anyone involved with the reels had anything to do with them.
The current Young's website is that of the current owner. It has never featured rods since it first appeared last year.

I couldn't comment on the QC. I've only ever bought two Young's reels. Both are the same and both are early serials. That reputedly means that they were assembled by a known individual. However, as I have no alternative Young's reels to compare, I've no idea whether they are good, bad, or indifferent.
 
Chris Jones said:
The Youngs brand was used on rods by the owner of the brand, but I doubt that anyone involved with the reels had anything to do with them.
The current Young's website is that of the current owner. It has never featured rods since it first appeared last year.
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I hadn't seen the website before today since they had a sale at some point in 2019 (clearance sale perhaps?), from which I scored a couple of rods for a fairly decent price (rods which I haven't actually used yet thanks to covid and other nonsense).

I have a few Youngs reels but, like you, they're all older ones. The newest one I've got is either the Bob James or the John Wilson Heritage, but even those are "old".


EDIT - I see on their website it says the reels are manufactured by Mill Tackle. Is that a fairly recent thing? I'm sure they didn't used to be.

We need a Youngs old-hander/expert to chime in...
 
Steve Lewis said:
EDIT - I see on their website it says the reels are manufactured by Mill Tackle. Is that a fairly recent thing? I'm sure they didn't used to be.

We need a Youngs old-hander/expert to chime in...
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Mill Tackle have been involved for a while. My understanding was that low serial numbers were made and assembled by MTC. Higher serials manufactured by MTC but assembled by Youngs. However, Mill Tackle started up in 2001. Prior to that, Garry Mills worked for Youngs directly. I don't know what the situation is under the new ownership. However, as the new ownership comprises a former Youngs employee, perhaps things aren't drastically different.
 
Richard Parsons said:
Paul - how does the drag work on a 'pin? I own a few but have never come across one
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Theres a lever on the backplate to adjust it in stages from off to full on. I imagine it's some sort of cam arrangement which applies a drag on the spool.
The pics in this ad show it all quite well.
www.ebay.co.uk

Grice & Young Avon Royal Supreme Centre Pin Fishing Reel | eBay

<p>Grice & youngs Avon Royal Supreme Centre Pin Fishing Reel. </p><br><p>This is a superb vintage reel, well looked after. Oiled and greased!</p><br><p>Condition is "Used". Dispatched with Royal Mail 1st Class.</p>
www.ebay.co.uk
 
RE the Avon Royal Supreme - it's not really up to the task of trotting (at least mine isn't!😄), and it certainly wouldn't win any aesthetic awards, but for ledgering/swimfeeder fishing in running water it doesn't have any other rival in the pin world that I've come across (hence me asking about the Youngs).
 
Ben Marr said:
It comes with a card that says if you have any problems, phone Gary on a mobile number provided, so I assume that's Gary Mills.
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Yeah, it would be. Anything with Gary's name attached is about as trustworthy as you can get when it comes to pins, so I'm beginning to wonder if I'm getting the QC confused with another manufacturer.
 
Steve Lewis said:
RE the Avon Royal Supreme - it's not really up to the task of trotting (at least mine isn't!😄), and it certainly wouldn't win any aesthetic awards, but for ledgering/swimfeeder fishing in running water it doesn't have any other rival in the pin world that I've come across (hence me asking about the Youngs).
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Grice & Young Sea Jecta mk 111 De-Luxe is even better,IMO the best Barbel ledgering reel bar none.
 
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