ABU Ambassadeur 5000: I have an ABU Ambassadeur 5000 that my dad bought in around 1955 or 1960. It is serial number 351913. This reel was only used a few times and inside is like new.

JackM Loc: North East Florida

I have an ABU Ambassadeur 5000 that my dad bought in around 1955 or 1960. It is serial number 351913. This reel was only used a few times and inside is like new. The chrome finish has a little rust on it from sitting in my garage 700' from the ocean. I'm looking for a price. I looked on Ebay and they are all over the place. Any suggestions would be helpful.

flyguy Loc: Lake Onalaska, Sunfish Capitol of the World!

JackM wrote:

I have an ABU Ambassadeur 5000 that my dad bought in around 1955 or 1960. It is serial number 351913. This reel was only used a few times and inside is like new. The chrome finish has a little rust on it from sitting in my garage 700' from the ocean. I'm looking for a price. I looked on Ebay and they are all over the place. Any suggestions would be helpful.

Welcome to the Forum, Jack, so, why do you want a price on it? I hope you are not going to sell it.

JackM Loc: North East Florida

I don't know what I'm going to do with it. If I keep it I will need to train my thumb.

Ben Bragg Loc: Dayton Ohio

I have the same SN 558737 mint in original box with tools , oil, papers
And price tag on box.
You are right prices are all over the place. Condition is everything with collectors reels.
I did some investigating a couple years ago and saw one in comparable completeness valued at $100 -$120
Enjoy that reel.

Jeremy Loc: America

i have one from 1990s 5501 is my best and most durable reel I have had of my own.

Rutinbuck Loc: Haysville, Kansas

Train your thumb Jack, it’s not that hard plus YouTube is your friend!

Kingfishertexas Loc: Central Texas

I’d display case it with a pic

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

Clean it up and lubricate it, then take it out and catch a fish with it. That's what it was built for. The ones they build and sell today are not a lot different from that one. Take care of it and use it.

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

You have reminded me of an incident back in the early 60's. This was when we had just opened North Texas Marine. We had several showcases with reels and assorted fising gear. Among the reels on top row in this one showcase were several Ambassador 5000's.

We had some burglers break in one night and besides other things taken was several cheaper chrome plated reels. They did not take one of the Ambassadors which told us they had no true knowledge of fishing tackle! Just Sayin...RJS

mbrillhart1957 Loc: Southeast Wyoming

The Ambassador 5000 that you have is a very collectable reel. It is one of the first 5000's produced. Value is determined by condition, rarity, and if you have all the items it was sold with. Ben has all the goodies you need to really drive up the value. There have been a lot of 5000's produced so that has hurt the actual value of these reels.
The Ambassador 5000 is an iconic collectable reel. Not that rare. It did set the standard for todays bait casting reel.
On ebay don't look at what the asking price is. Go to "Advanced". There you can see what they are actually selling for.

MuskyHunter Loc: Torrington, CT

JackM wrote:

I have an ABU Ambassadeur 5000 that my dad bought in around 1955 or 1960. It is serial number 351913. This reel was only used a few times and inside is like new. The chrome finish has a little rust on it from sitting in my garage 700' from the ocean. I'm looking for a price. I looked on Ebay and they are all over the place. Any suggestions would be helpful.

Can you post a photo of the reel? This could be quite valuable depending on the amount of rust.

JackM Loc: North East Florida

These pictures make it look worst than it is. The red surfaces are fine just a little dirty. The chrome as I said has some rust.

Ben Bragg Loc: Dayton Ohio

That should clean up nice.
Very nice reel. Use it or put it on display ?? Don’t know.
It is perfectly usable with a little cleaning and lube.
I obviously have one on the display . I have a couple more I used a little but I think they will go on display as well.
But I have around 70 collector reels

It is a piece of reel history.

Dating is kinda difficult but can be done. Abu changed the way they serialize a couple of times.
There are collector clubs on line that can help.

JackM Loc: North East Florida

I think I'll clean it up and see it up I can get my thumb working right. I'll have to look in my stash of old rods to see what I can match it to. It will be saltwater so I need to keep it clean. Are there any secrets to daily clean up after fishing in salt?

Ben Bragg Loc: Dayton Ohio

Just freshwater rinse and dry. Keep it oiled.
These are really neat reels. Some of them are really collectible.