Jim Cowell, trained engineer of Balhannah, South Australia, was a member of the Game Fishing Club of South Australia and a well-known big game fisherman who designed his own reel. This reel was made by Kaesler’s at the Reliance Engineering works Ltd. in South Australia. They came in two models, Monel Metal throughout £33/10/- and Anodised Alloy and Monel £22/15/-. Included with both was a hand sewn leather case. In the pamphlet, it states ‘The product of many years’ experience in reel making, this model is named after Mr. G. R. Cowell with his permission, as he had used the reel with such success at Port Lincoln.’ Cowell set the world record, using a Cowell reel, for a white pointed shark in 1941 weighing 1919lb, 15 feet and 6 inches long. In 1950, the Governor of South Australia, Sir Willoughby Norrie, caught a shark weighing 2225 pounds was 15 feet and 7 inches and long using Jim Cowell’s rod and reel. Only 11 were manufactured.
