My interest in ABU and Ambassadeur

My interest in ABU and the company's fishing reels began back in the 1980s. What started as collecting evolved over the years into extensive research, primarily focusing on the Ambassadeur 5000 and its development.

At its peak, the collection consisted of over 300 Ambassadeur 5000 reels. But for me, simply owning and displaying the reels has never been enough. I have disassembled and examined them to document differences in construction, materials, mechanics, and design. By comparing details, serial numbers, original boxes, spare parts, and vintage catalogue material, I have attempted to map how the reel changed from the earliest models onwards.

Over time, my interest has grown to include the history of AB Urfabriken and the fishing reels that preceded the Ambassadeur. This includes the Record reels and the early PEBECO models, which were manufactured in Svängsta. Vintage product brochures, manuals, advertisements, and catalogues are therefore vital pieces of the puzzle in my research.

A central part of my work is collecting, preserving, and making historical source material accessible. The archive contains Record and PEBECO material as well as an extensive collection of ABU catalogues and editions of Napp och Nytt from 1940 to 2022.

My goal is to create a knowledge base where collectors, anglers, and others interested in ABU can explore the company's history and follow the development from the early Record and PEBECO reels through to the classic Ambassadeur reel.

This is not just a collection of fishing reels. It is an attempt to document, understand, and preserve an important piece of Swedish industrial and angling history.