Mitchell Reel Museum Discussion Group

Hi Wallace
That looks so close to the real thing that some the parts might even interchange, be interesting to compare the two to find out.

Kind regards Roy

Hi Roy,

It's maybe the best of the worse lookalikes ever made. Did you note the lack of shims? Though it looks very similar, mechanically it's FAR from a Mitchell!

Regards, Wallace

Hey Martin & Roy,

I think we all posted near the same time

The parts are definitely not made by Mitchell. I just looked at the gearing as well and they are not the same quality by far. Also noted considerable differences in appearance.

Best Regards, Wallace

Nice find Wallace! This confirms that the International No. 100 was for by Ocean City Mfg. Co. in Japan. Nice going! I've never taken my reel apart but would not be surprised of inferior quality even though some parts may interchange.

Last year I decided to start taking a serious look at all the Japanese Mitch clones, and have learned quite a bit as can be seen from some of my other posts (I just like collecting Japanese spinning reels from the 50s-60s). Thanks for posting the manual, Wallace, as it has become very useful in this study. I finally obtained a mint-in-box example of the 100 for study, but the manual was missing and the label on the box had fallen off before I acquired it. Apparently the label also tells of its manufacture for Ocean City. I've also determined that it was never listed in any of OC's main consumer catalogs. The conclusion as it currently stands was that it was listed in OC's trade catalogs to distributors and resellers, along with a host of custom-labeled trade reels OC made for all kinds of other companies. I can also report with certainty that most all the parts are completely interchangeable with not only the earliest Series 3 Mitchells after which the 100 was designed, but also with some later Mitchell versions. Made by Ueno Seiko, who copied the Mitchell so closely that it more accurately could be called a Mitchell 'counterfeit'. And before we sell the Japanese short here, I found the reel to be very close in engineering quality to the Mitchell--not equal, but surprisingly close. We must also give them credit for having made a couple of real improvements like the addition of a line clip (located next to the bail opening lever) and two lube ports for the axle channel without having to unscrew any plug in the rear. Come to think of it, perhaps Mitchell should have copied these features from Seiko! :) As always, thanks for the great info, Wallace et. al. BTW: yes, it does have shims.