Sometime soon I will bring my son on his first boat fishing trip. And I know how fast accidents happen when you are not paying attention, so I decided to make a rod leash that will secure that the rod at least don't sink to the bottom.
I dug up some paracord I had lying around to make the attachment loop on the rod.
I first gutted the paracord and made a spliced loop around the rod butt. Then the attachment loop was formed and seized with some whipping. The tag end was then secured with some ring bolt hitching. The end was pulled under the last hitches and secured.
(http://i1337.photobucket.com/albums/o677/Tottofagrin/rod%20leash/IMG_2882_zps9ab2ab39.jpg)
The leash was made from some other cord I had lying around. Maybe not the color I would choose if I had another but it will do. The cord is doubled up and a series of True Lover's Knots (interlocked half hitches) is tied along the cord. A clip is then tied to the ends with a Snake knot.
(http://i1337.photobucket.com/albums/o677/Tottofagrin/rod%20leash/IMG_2901_zps6efc2edb.jpg)
(http://i1337.photobucket.com/albums/o677/Tottofagrin/rod%20leash/IMG_2904_zps64f84bd9.jpg)
The end of the leash can now be put through your belt or easily secured to the railing.
First I was only thinking of my son when I made this, but I sometimes fish from a smaller boat with a low railing and when the swell is bad I will feel a bit more at ease with this to secure the rod when you have to grab on to something fast.
Thanks for watching!
/Karl
Nice work Karl. Those leashes are good to have for sure.
I am an avid Float Tuber..
I have lost some hard to replace gear while tubing!!
I devised a leash system that is very cheap and works great...
I keep them in the pockets of my tube and use them if/when needed...
First I get the coiled long extension phone cords. (.99cent store)
Cut them to size I need (1 ten footer will easily make 2 leashes).
I used plastic clips (thinking rust & Saltwater use)...
Loop and black Tape clips onto ends of cord.
For the rods I use 2 zip ties.
One on lower handle, the other one through that ~ this forms the loop to clip onto.
The other clip is clipped to a "D" ring on the Tube, belt, railing etc....
Very cheap, efficient, and can just as easily be taken off (the 2 zip ties on rod) without damage.
The cords I have - I have used for about 7 years now and they are still in very good shape & usable...
The plastic clips are in good shape after a lot of Salt & fresh water use...
.
Quote from: Nessie Hunter on May 01, 2013, 05:25:11 PM
I am an avid Float Tuber..
I have lost some hard to replace gear while tubing!!
I devised a leash system that is very cheap and works great...
I keep them in the pockets of my tube and use them if/when needed...
First I get the coiled long extension phone cords. (.99cent store)
Cut them to size I need (1 ten footer will easily make 2 leashes).
I used plastic clips (thinking rust & Saltwater use)...
Loop and black Tape clips onto ends of cord.
For the rods I use 2 zip ties.
One on lower handle, the other one through that ~ this forms the loop to clip onto.
The other clip is clipped to a "D" ring on the Tube, belt, railing etc....
Very cheap, efficient, and can just as easily be taken off (the 2 zip ties on rod) without damage.
The cords I have - I have used for about 7 years now and they are still in very good shape & usable...
The plastic clips are in good shape after a lot of Salt & fresh water use...
Sounds like an excellent setup!
I've actually looked for those long coiled extension cords but couldn't find any cheap here in Sweden, and as I have a rigging shop close by I had to make do with plain cord.
Nice work Mandelstam. You can also take a piece of wooden dowel and drill a hole through it. Stick a piece of heavy mono or weedeater line through the hole. Wrap the dowel with mono and drill a hole to stick the other end through. Drop it in boiling water for a few minutes and then put it in ice water. It makes a nice mono coil. The ends can be finished with hooks etc. and crimped on. Bob
Quote from: Cone on May 02, 2013, 04:49:23 PM
Nice work Mandelstam. You can also take a piece of wooden dowel and drill a hole through it. Stick a piece of heavy mono or weedeater line through the hole. Wrap the dowel with mono and drill a hole to stick the other end through. Drop it in boiling water for a few minutes and then put it in ice water. It makes a nice mono coil. The ends can be finished with hooks etc. and crimped on. Bob
Excellent idea! Thanks for the tip, Bob!
/K
Quote from: Cone on May 02, 2013, 04:49:23 PM
Nice work Mandelstam. You can also take a piece of wooden dowel and drill a hole through it. Stick a piece of heavy mono or weedeater line through the hole. Wrap the dowel with mono and drill a hole to stick the other end through. Drop it in boiling water for a few minutes and then put it in ice water. It makes a nice mono coil. The ends can be finished with hooks etc. and crimped on. Bob
You are full of surprises Bob, that's a valuable tip you just gave us. I gave it a shot to see if it would actally work and it does work like a charm.
(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g431/pescatore1/parsts%20an%20such/001-20.jpg) (http://s1101.photobucket.com/user/pescatore1/media/parsts%20an%20such/001-20.jpg.html)
All I need to do is to crimp alotch on both ends and be all set.
Two years ago a young fisherman dropped one of my Penn and couldn't get it back :(. These will come handy, I will be making a few. Thanks Bob.
Karl, yours are also very nice, but I just don't have the patience for those.
Thanks for sharing .
Sal
That's slick Bob.
Quote from: Alto Mare on May 02, 2013, 07:59:49 PM
Quote from: Cone on May 02, 2013, 04:49:23 PM
Nice work Mandelstam. You can also take a piece of wooden dowel and drill a hole through it. Stick a piece of heavy mono or weedeater line through the hole. Wrap the dowel with mono and drill a hole to stick the other end through. Drop it in boiling water for a few minutes and then put it in ice water. It makes a nice mono coil. The ends can be finished with hooks etc. and crimped on. Bob
You are full of surprises Bob, that's a valuable tip you just gave us. I gave it a shot to see if it would actally work and it does work like a charm.
(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g431/pescatore1/parsts%20an%20such/001-20.jpg) (http://s1101.photobucket.com/user/pescatore1/media/parsts%20an%20such/001-20.jpg.html)
All I need to do is to crimp alotch on both ends and be all set.
Two years ago a young fisherman dropped one of my Penn and couldn't get it back :(. These will come handy, I will be making a few. Thanks Bob.
Karl, yours are also very nice, but I just don't have the patience for those.
Thanks for sharing .
Sal
A fisherman without patience? :)
I know, keeping it simple is often the best thing, but sometimes you just want something to occupy your hands with. So you might do stuff a bit more complicated than they need to be... ;)
Karl, excellent cording work. Like an art form. I have Nooooo artistic talent, but I can boil water and drill out a dowel. These are all great ideas. Thanks for sharing guys.
Bob
Quote from: Mandelstam on May 02, 2013, 08:04:28 PM
[Sal
A fisherman without patience? :)
You're absolutely right Karl, a fisherman without patience is worthless ;).
I'm not doing yours simply because I don't have your talent.
Quote from: Alto Mare on May 02, 2013, 09:01:34 PM
Quote from: Mandelstam on May 02, 2013, 08:04:28 PM
[Sal
A fisherman without patience? :)
You're absolutely right Karl, a fisherman without patience is worthless ;).
I'm not doing yours simply because I don't have your talent.
Don't be modest, Sal, you could probably double dog a reel in your sleep. With your arms tied behind your back. ;)
But thank you all for the kind words anyway.
/Karl
Sal, I'm hurt you didn't believe me. ;) The old curly cell phone cords work good for leashes too. Bob
If you make an eye on one end, a piece of double sided Velcro works well for attaching to spinning reels, etc. I think even Lowe's and Home Depot carries it. Bob
I like the idea of the rod leashes...I was fishing a pond near me this am....two poles...one with bait and the other I was tossing soft baits...didn't like the idea of walking away from the pole so I tied a piece of 80 lb dacron from the pole to the sand spike....now after reading this I will definitely be making a couple...now I have a couple questions...realizing the drag to any reel (excluding Sal's Line of Tanks ;D) will be set to less than 30 lbs, and since I'm fishing 15 lb on my bait pole, the drag is let to 1/3 of the breaking strength or <5 lbs....
1) So how strong would you need the leash to be
2) What is the breaking strength of gutted paracord
3) What is the breaking strength of curly phone cord
4) Does boiling and cooling the mono weaken it considerably
5) What is the breaking strength of .080 edger line and can I boil and cool it also
There's a lot to be said abut the artistry of knot tying, rope handling, and old time seamanship to do this....I still remember my dad teaching me to splice manilla rope and all the splinters i got...then he showed me how to use a zippo lighter to burn the splinters off the rope to make it easier to handle..
Tarfu, I'll try to answer your questions but don't take the answers as gospel. ;)
1) It depends on what your using it for. It doesn't have to be too strong for a rollover in a kayak. If your fishing for big sharks that's another story. We used to tie them to a 5 gallon bucket buried in the sand. Bigger mono though tangles less.
2) 550 Para cord is supposed to be rated for 550lbs. It has 7 strands inside rated at 50lbs each. Gutted it should be around 200lbs.
3)IDK Its pretty strong. strong enough to recover your rods in a roll over.
4)I've never tested it but I've never had one break. I usually use .95 weed eater line or 400lb mono for mine.
5) IDK Lots of people use weed eater line instead of mono for chafing leaders when shark fishing here. You can boil and cool the line that looks like mono. I've never tried the line with the steel core.
Good luck, Bob
I just use my dogs leash. Clip on one end, a loop on the other.
Mandelstrom sorry for the post hijack...I really like your skills with the rope and knots...... Bob thanks for the insight my have to start my UL Laboratory and test a few....
Agree with Tarfu...
Karl, Awesome knot work, durable (mono is gonna degrade with UV. and it looks sweet!
Bob, Great tip and it would make a great poor man's leash, but hasn't heating weakened the mono?
Thanks for the tips and tricks!
Dom
Dom, heating may weaken it some. They sell similar mono coil lanyards in dive shops here. I can make them for less than half what they sell them for. I bet they do something similar to make their coils. ;D
UV will degrade nylon too. If you have a doubt make a new one. The coils help keep them out of the way.
Bob
Most materials will weaken with heat. Most plastics can be molded at a lower heat than that required to degrade them. A few minutes of boiling water shouldn't hurt mono. think about how many times you've scalded Tupperware clean at the dock / camp. If you are worried, use bigger mono. All of the leashes sound and look great.
Ron
A lot of land based sharkers utilize leashes for their gear.
Those larger pricey conventionals attached to high dollar Stand-Up rods, are too costly to let some big Bull take for tow.
You see all sorts of creative designs, I've a couple that are made from a small carabiner on crimped 100# mono attached to 2' stake of aluminum angle stock.
Stake it, clip carabiner to reel and relax. My problem is is that I don't normally tote them along to save weight when pulling a beach cart through sand. :-[