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| The detailed inner-workings of a Bogdan Reel. |
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| $198.00 - $264.00 for a Bogdan was a deal - now fetching $2,000-8,000 per. |
I read last week that reel maker Stan Bogdan is retiring and closing his business in New Hampshire. While his name may not be well known to most people, in the world of Atlantic salmon fishing he is a giant. For those not familiar with his work the Bogdan salmon reel is considered by many to be the Cadillac of fishing reels. His new reels sell for a impressive price of around $2,000. That is if you can find one to buy. The waiting list is over three years. Now I’ve never seen a Bogdan reel, let alone fished with one, and my name wasn’t on the waiting list. But I wish it was. Would you catch more salmon with a $2,000 reel compared to a $100 one? Not likely. But, if you admire precision craftsmanship, and well made equipment, there is no denying that Stan Bogdan built great reels.
Apparently Stan Bogdan is now 92 and his son, who took over the business several years ago, is in his 60s. With no one interested in taking over the reel making business they are completing the last of their orders and closing up shop.
It has been quite a run.
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| Stanley Bogdan and his son produced about 100 reels per year in their New Hampshire shops. (Ruben Perez/Globe Staff/File 1982) |
Stan Bogdan was a young machinist when he made his first fishing reel back in 1940. Over the years his business grew and his reels were eagerly sought by entertainers and royalty. Baseball great Ted Williams fished with a Bogdan reel, as did Bing Crosby. Demand was always high as only 100 reels were produced by the shop every year. With a long waiting list it is no wonder that second hand Bogdan reels are highly sought after, and demand a high price. Higher, in fact, than a new one. When a new Bogdan salmon reel was selling for $2,000 a used one demanded $3,000 . A rare model could run up to $6,000. Apparently every part of their reels, with the exception of the springs, was made in their small machine shop. The main attraction of a Bogdan reel, besides its good looks, is the smooth drag which allows a salmon to take line without any starts or stops that can cause a fish to break the leader. The Bogdan drag system consists of two brake shoes which bear down on a disk. As the reel turns the shoes slow it down. The drag is adjustable so you can set it for the size of the fish you are after. At one time Stan Bogdan sold 15 models from small trout reels up to larger reels for salmon. While Stan Bogdan may be retiring his reels will continue to be fished on salmon rivers around the world for years to come. A fine tribute to a great craftsman. Tight Lines.
Don Maclean
UPDATE:
Stanley Bogdan, Maker of Much-Coveted Fly Reels, Is Dead at 92
NASHUA NH. - Stanley Bogdan, a maker of fly-fishing reels so coveted that anglers were willing to spend years on a waiting list to buy them at prices far surpassing the next best thing, died March 27 in Nashua. He was 92 and a lifetime Nashua resident.
His death was confirmed by his son, Stephen. (see update at bottom regarding the death of Stephen)
In fly fishing, in particular fly fishing for the mighty Atlantic salmon, owning a Bogdan reel signals high seriousness about the sport and, not infrequently, significant disposable income. Many expert anglers consider it the finest reel ever made, a synthesis of incomparable engineering and aesthetic elegance.
Yet few fly fishermen, unless they have spent time on the classic salmon rivers in places like Quebec and the Maritimes, get many chances to see a Bogdan, let alone dare to dream of owning one. In a sport that is already expensive, most are content to pair their fly rods with any number of fine reels that will provide many years of service for a few hundred dollars.
A new Bogdan, on the other hand, ranges in price from about $1,500 for the smallest trout reel to about $2,400 for the biggest salmon reel. Hand-tooled by Stanley and Stephen Bogdan in their shops in New Hampshire — originally in Nashua and then in New Ipswich — Bogdan reels could not be rushed. Only 100 or so have been produced a year, and it has not been unusual for buyers to wait three or four years for delivery.
“Almost from day one, there has been The Waiting List, a sort of secular purgatory on the way to achieving tackle bliss,’’ Graydon R. Hilyard wrote in his biography “Bogdan.’’ “How long must you dwell therein, who can tell? As the dreaded list has never actually been seen, your position on it can never be determined.’’
As a result of his work, Mr. Bogdan was frequently invited to spend time with some of the wealthiest people in the country, fishing for salmon on the privately controlled rivers of Canada.
“It’s an ego trip for me to go to Canada and fish with these guys,’’ he told the Globe in 1982. “But I have to go there to be recognized, and when I’m back here, I’m nothing, it’s back to the salt mines.
“I certainly wouldn’t be invited up there if I made clothespins.’’
Its salmon reels are what S.E. Bogdan Custom Built, the company’s official name, is best known for. What sets them apart and makes them so expensive is their innovative system for controlling “drag,’’ the adjustable resistance by which a properly handled reel tires and ultimately controls a powerful game fish.
Stanley Bogdan invented a braking system for his reels that allowed for drag of extraordinary smoothness and strength, greatly decreasing the chance that the fish of a lifetime would be able to strain and break an angler’s line. A Bogdan may not help you hook more fish, but it will help you land more of the fish you hook — and much more stylishly.
Stanley Edward Bogdan, one of four children of Polish immigrants, was born on Dec. 16, 1918, in Nashua. Like his father, a machinist, he had good mechanical aptitude, and after finishing high school he went to work at the Rollins Engine Company in Nashua, a manufacturer of steam engines. From an early age he had a deep interest in fishing, hunting, and the outdoors. His entry in his high school yearbook was prescient, noting that the young man “could work miracles with fishing tackle.’’
For years Mr. Bogdan made what reels he could on the side while working as a machinist and raising a family. His big break came in 1955, when he entered into a deal to provide reels to the original Abercrombie & Fitch, that era’s big retailer of high-end sporting goods. A few years later he struck a deal with Orvis, and gradually word spread that there was no fly-fishing reel quite like the one being made by the friendly, smiling, occasionally contrary Yankee in Nashua.
Mr. Bogdan’s wife, Phyllis, died in 1995. In addition to his son, Stephen, of New Ipswich, he leaves a daughter, Cheryl Doughty, of Palm Bay, Fla.
Stephen Bogdan, 61, started working with his father in 1973 and became the company’s sole owner in 1996.
Stanley Bogdan, a passionate and accomplished angler in his own right, was devoted to the Atlantic salmon and pursued it on the sport’s best rivers. “He was a very, very good salmon angler,’’ said Bill Taylor, president of the Atlantic Salmon Federation.
Last September, Stanley Bogdan, at 91, caught a 32-pound salmon on the Grand Cascapedia River in Quebec. “I believe that was his last fish,’’ Stephen Bogdan said.
From the Nashua Telegraph:
https://jj.nashuatelegraph.com/news/local-news/2011/04/03/local-fly-reel-legend-dies-at-age-of-92/
A great Article from "Spinoza Rods" here:
https://www.spinozarods.com/blogs/from-the-workbench/45862339-stan-bogdan-in-memoriam
Further Dismay as Stephen Bogdan passes away this year 2021:
Obituary
Stephen Robert Bogdan
Stephen was born in Nashua on April 29, 1949, and was the son of the late Phyllis (Mason) and Stanley Bogdan. He received his education in the Nashua School System. He proudly served his country, in Vietnam, until he was honorably discharged from the United States Army.
Stephen was instrumental in the success of Bogdan Reels and continued the legacy that he and his father created. In his free time, he was an avid fly fisherman. He and his wife, Sandy, could always be found fishing together in many locations, especially in Canada. He also loved to travel to his condo in Florida where he enjoyed taking walks on the beach. Stephen was also known amongst his friends as the BBQ King, hosting many parties at his home, his friends and family would rave about his grilled chicken. Above all, his most cherished time was spent with family and friends.
In addition to his wife, Sandy, he is survived by his sister, Cheryl Doughty and her husband Carl of Palm Bay, FL, his godsons, Derek Cabral and his wife Virginia of Lunenburg, MA, and Ryan Sevigny of Hudson NH; he is also survived by nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews, great-great nephews, and several close and dear friends. Stephen was predeceased by his niece Debra Doughty and his brother Stanley Bogdan Jr.
Relatives and friends are invited to Stephen’s visitation on THURSDAY, August 19th from 4 until 7 PM at ROCHETTE FUNERAL HOME AND CREMATION SERVICES, 21 Kinsley Street, Nashua. His Funeral will be held in the Funeral Home on FRIDAY, August 20th at 10:30 AM. His interment will follow in St. Stanislaus Cemetery, Nashua. Donations may be made in Stephen’s name to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Norris Cotton Cancer Center, D-H/Geisel Office of Development, One Medical Center Drive, HB 7070, Lebanon, NH 03756-0001.
