Sunday, April 13, 2014

A Russian fishing show on sponge -- yes sponge -- and hair baits (complete with vid shots of performance in an aquarium), also ideas on making a simple "roll yer own" rod

Sponge lures and similar items:



(After that one you may begin to pick up some Russian words! Red seems to be "krasny . . ." or something like that.)

This vid of a boat fishing session for European Bream and the like may also be interesting:


 
 In the second video, I am impressed by a design for a simple rod for panfishing, especially the swing-tips:



My thought is, on how something like this can be improvised, in a context where I am thinking on how people may struggle to support their families -- bearing in mind the hard times Russians have repeatedly had.

In that spirit, thoughts on swing/ quiver tips and legered feeders similar to those in the Russian video, from a French site




And, floats:




Taking this further (thinking of a longer, castable rod), we could look at the old Aetna Foulproof guide (often Monel, but Stainless will do -- or a safety pin in a real pinch . . . ) which is more or less like these from Mudhole outfitters:




Flattened "feet" are hard to make, but bend wire back in a narrow "U" and it will do. For a tip-top, bring out the two legs on the same side . . . might work for one-foot guides better than the U-bend idea. To attach, use thread to whip to the rod as is common in rod-building: under-wrap the first end to start then wrap and put a little U in as the end approaches and wrap over it at least 8 - 10 times, then pass the end through the loop and pull it out and clip close, coat with varnish. 

A quiver-tip rod extension can be spliced in at the tip, maybe with a fattish rubber sleeve to "break" when a heavy load -- a hooked fish -- is on the rod: stiff enough to hold for nibbles but straightening out after the rubber "breaks" when a fish is "on."

 BTW an advantage of the flexible foulproof is it imposes less of a dead spot on the rod blank. And no, ceramic inserts are not actually a necessity.

It would be easy to extend this to a bamboo or fibreglass or similar pole, giving a "roll yer own" rod. (A rubber hose can be force-fitted over the bottom end to make a handle, or one can do a cord wrap.) 

A simple centre-pin line holder reel can be improvised or bought, and with a turntable can be treated much like an Alvey for casting -- turn it to spin line off the side.  

For a drag, a leather tab can be used as a reel brake, easing the pressure on the proverbial burned thumb. (And yes, in my time I have had my thumb burned from braking a conventional reel in the surf. Hint: first an easy lob and reel-in to get the line wet, or even pour on a bit of fresh water . . . in the surf, salt water is not just corrosive but liable to have fine sand, an abrasive.)

Going whole-hog, you may find the idea of building something like the old calcutta bamboo-pole surf rods interesting, try here. You need the right -- stiff -- kind of canes for those old beasts, often 12+ foot long!

Guides for such a surf rod are often made from welding rods.

With care, such rods can last decades. 

Sparkers for tinkering . . . and for thinking about survival (or even camping or scouting) type situations. END