History
On the 30th of April 1951, Donald Andrew Charlton, resident engineer of New South Wales, presented a Patent Specification (151,801; Application No 2,289/51) to the Commonwealth Department of Patents. The patent entailed significant improvements in the geared fishing reels, used for general purpose fishing.

The Patent Specification outlined in detail the range of improvements implicating the mechanism by which the fishing line was wound on a drum that was fixed to an axle between front and back plate; and which controlled the direction and speed of the drum. The new patent included the provision for enabling the reel's free-spooling when casting out with a brake, thus controlling the speed of the drum at the end of the cast so that the line did not over-run on the drum when the cast strikes the water. An audible ratchet device is fitted to alert the user when the line is running out (this device can be made manually inoperative). It is known that in most forms of fishing reels, there is a large number of small parts which are integral to the function of the reel. Many of these parts through wear and tear, due to the stresses incurred in fishing operations, and due to environmental corrosive elements, become in time unserviceable.  Charlton devised a new reel, which performed the same functions but consisted of fewer components. His new reel was of a sturdy construction and less vulnerable to becoming inoperative as a result of wear.  Furthermore, the repairs and maintenance, Charlton purported,  would be reduced significantly by the provision of large bearing surfaces. Also, he emphasized in his patent declaration, that those elements which would be most subject to wear (e.g. washers or clutch), were of simple construction and readily replaceable.
 
The SEASCAPE reel does not appear in any of the fishing magazine advertisements or tackle catalogues until 1954. Its commercial availability may have been established earlier in the Newcastle area, where it was manufactured at Wallsend.  According to fishing historian Bob Dunn, the prototype would have been around for three years or more, as Charlton had applied for Patent Protection in 1951, and had received approval in 1953. The most interesting feature, as described above, was a simple free-spool mechanism. To operate it, the angler presses a spring-loaded button housed in the release bar, whilst simultaneously pulling the handle outwards to disengage the gears. At the completion of the cast the handle is pushed back to re-engage the gears.

Charlton’s Patent Specification was Published on 20th March 1952 and it was accepted on 10th June 1953.