Today in Fishing Line 1945, we continue our look back at what was available to the angler during the waning years of World War II. At this time, most all materials were being utilized for the war effort and that meant line was hard to come by due to the fact that line manufacturers were being tasked with creating parachute cord, rope, and other string products to help the boys overseas.
Also, at this time, nylon was a new material in the line industry, but it wasn’t in monofilament form. Nearly all lines were braided out of various materials, including the new nylon. Silk was considered the best but there were also lines made from linen and other materials. The other caveat about the lines of the time was because they were made mostly of organic materials, line had to be stripped off the reel each night and dried, either between a couple trees or on a line dryer.
As you will see, nearly all of the companies that are presented below talk about their production being dedicated to the war effort. And each company tells the angler to take care of their line until the end of the war, when they’d be able to go back into production.
So, let’s get on with the line companies of 1945.
Gladding
Gladding was one of the biggest line manufacturers of the day and the four ads they placed in the 1945 issues of Sports Afield showed their place in the industry. In all four ads, Gladding is touting their Invincible Black Silk braided line. They don’t give any idea what sizes hey offer but they stress that their Invincible product can hold up to fish anywhere from 2 to 4-times the breaking strength.
In their June ad they go into how long it takes to braid a 50-yard spool and that the line is inspected every inch as it’s being manufactured.
Another claim that Gladding pushes is they say their lines are easy casting and fit not just for the expert, but the novice angler too. I’d like to get some of this line just to see it and compare it with today’s braid.
I found it interesting that Gladding didn’t mention the war at all in any of their ads.
I also found that Gladding is still producing braided products and they’re the company that manufactures today’s rod sleeves.
Hall
Hall only featured one ad in the 1945 issues of Sports Afield and announced that the company was dedicated to the war. They state that their lines are being used in emergency kits, medical sutures, and parachute cord and that 99% of their products are going to the armed services.
The artwork displays two GIs fishing from the bank with what appears to be a Catalina sea plane flying in the distance. In the text, they assure anglers that as soon as the war is over, they’d be back to supporting the fishing industry as they had since 1840.
Newton
Newton placed the same ad in nearly every issue of Sports Afield I had for 1945. This is the first ad I noticed that mentioned nylon line, but again, this was braided. Mono wouldn’t come out until after WWII. It’s not much of an ad when it comes to talking about their product but they do list every line product they produce.
Pilot
Pilot was another line company that only placed one ad in the issues of 1945, but this ad was in nearly every issue. In this ad, Pilot states that although they’re 100% supporting the war, some of their vendors still have their lines on the shelf.
Their Pilot Imperial Lines were double water-proofed, to prevent rotting, and round in cross section. This made the line great for casting. They also apologized for not having a 1945 catalog.
Rain Beau
When I was scanning through the 1945 Sports Afield magazines for this series of articles, one of the ads that caught my attention first was a line ad by Rain Beau in the March issue. It seems that since all the boys were across one of the ponds fighting the Axis militaries, they had to resort to using scantily clad women for their ads. But, in the case of the March ad, the model wasn’t even scantily clad, wearing only knee-high boots and a creel.
Delving into all the issues, I found the theme to be consistent with Rain Beau. Five different ads with ladies practicing the art of angling. At least the May through August issues had them in bikinis or other attire of the day.
Rain Beau made sure that after you took your eyes away from the image, you read that they were in 100% war effort mode, providing string materials for the military. They also state that once they get back in the swing of making fishing line again, it’ll be better than ever before. Again, the war brought on a lot of new improvements in materials and production methods.
I believe this ad campaign was probably brought on since these magazines were being sent overseas to our fighting men and boys. An ad like this would help to take the fighting off the man’s mind while in a foxhole or stowed away in the bowels of a warship. In any event, I’m sure Rain Beau sold a lot of line once the war ended.
Sunset
Sunset line placed four ads in the magazines of this year and from the ads, you get the idea that they produced more saltwater line than freshwater line. Their ad from the May issue showed a behemoth of a swordfish, caught on 54-thread Cuttyhunk (linen), a line that most likely had a breaking strength of 100 pounds.
Moving on the the June ad shows a GI with a 300-pound Black Bass caught on 9-thread cuttyhunk line, which most likely tested out around 18-pound test. That’s a big fish for such light line. The ad also stated that until the end of the war, line would be in limited supplies.
The July ad features a both salt and freshwater anglers doing their thing, which leads me to believe Sunset did produce some lighter lines for use in freshwater. Same can be said from the August ad, which shows a young man holding up a nice bass he’d caught.
That ends it for the line ads I was able to find in the 1945 issues of Sports Afield. I hope you’ve had some fun looking back on this period and if you’re old enough, I hope it brought back some good memories. Next in line will be a look at the fly fishing gear of the day. Remember, fly fishing was a big part of bass fishing until the advent of contemporary tournament in 1967.
