P.D.J Casting Reels were possibly designed by engineer Wilfred Jackson and were made by Preston and Dalby, Stanley Street West End in the mid 1920’s. The early reels were marketed as P&D Reels, it was later changed to PDJ. In 1927, George Ferguson made a claim against them for alleged infringement of his patent, but this was later dropped as they changed the design of the turn-table on the reel. Some of the reels have the number 8956 stamped on the end of the turntable release. As of yet there has been no corresponding patent application number found. One of the PDJ’s has a ratchet mechanism on the front of the spool exactly the same as the one patented by Len Kirton in 1938. Also the pushdown mechanism on the line guide of the Presto Reel made by Preston and Dalby.
Presto reels appeared to have also been made by Preston and Dalby as an ad appeared in the Telegraph 17 July 1931 *Have you seen the PDJ and Presto Casting Reels.* The line-guide and ratchet buttons on the Presto are identical to the P.D.J.