ergonomics and old targets

Started by oc1, September 08, 2018, 08:16:09 PM

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Bryan Young

:D I talk with every part I send out and each reel I repair so that they perform at the top of their game. :D

oc1

#31
Quote from: Swami805 on September 13, 2018, 04:28:10 PM
Some pictures of your set up would be great. Did you make it yourself?
I've shown this boat here before and it gets more embarrassing each time.  Now there's filamentous algae growing in the cockpit.







About 22 feet long and about 17 inches wide in the middle.  It weighed about 50 to 55 pounds when new but now it is about 65 pounds with all the fishing stuff and repairs.  It was built just a few miles from here and intended for recreational paddling and the races.  I think it is about 35 to 40 years old now.  Canoe racing is a big deal here and the sport has evolved a lot since then.  New boats are about the same dimensions but made of carbon fiber with extreme measures to squeeze out as much resin as possible.  The new ones weight just over 30 pounds, can be carried with one hand and are much, much faster.

At least once or twice a year a wave will sneak up on me and capsize the boat.  So, the rigging is designed with that inevitability.  When everything is battened down like it should be a capsize is just a minor inconvenience.  The cockpit design is easy to flip back over.  But, if stuff is not secured it's going to the bottom..

A lot of the lines and mess is for the drogue, or drift anchor, or sea anchor, or whatever you want to call it.  The drogue is essential because the trade winds are relentless here.  Without a drogue the wind will blow you past a prime fish hang-out before you have time to make a few casts.  I tried the manufactured drogues but they are all either too small, or too bulky.  I finally stitched one up by hand from thin rip-stop sail material and some strap.  The mouth is about twenty four inches and, when furled, it's about one-third the bulk of factory ones that size.



The drogue is on a very short tow line so it does not get caught on the rudder.  The long yellow strap is a trip line to dump the water and haul it in backward.  It can be deployed or retrieved with one hand while you hold the rod or paddle in the other hand.

The drogue is secured like this to get it out of the way quickly...



or like this when I'm through for the day.



My wife and two kids have all raced canoes for about fifteen years and we are boat-poor.  I think there are four OC1's, two V1's which are like an OC1 but without a rudder, a couple of surf skis which are like an OC1 but without an outrigger, a couple of  three-man canoes, some roto-molded stuff and a bunch of project boats.  I used to fish from a normal skiff and paddled a canoe for exercise and health.  Paddling for the sake of health got boring fast so I started fishing from the canoe.  It is usually a 20 to 50 minute work-out to get where I want to fish and then I just drift and meander my way back home.

Thank you all for your comments.
-steve

Swami805

Thanks Steve, I have a 2 man kayak we use in Big Sur and have taken gas in the shore pound a few times, it's not fun. The drift sock is a good idea,have to try that. We usually tie off to some kelp.
Do what you can with that you have where you are

Smols

Steve,

A lot of guys fish from kayaks made for fishing, and where I fish, many guys fish from skipjacks and Parkers with the latest and greatest in state of the art gear by avet, shimano etc. But you may be the only guy on the planet fishing from a 40 year old outrigger canoe with custom, vintage rods and reels designed specifically for your application. From the custom drogue to the modified bait casters and rods, your ingenuity is evident.

Do you launch from the beach, or from a boat launch? I assume from your posts that you are fishing open ocean, paddling out and drifting back to the beach with the current/trade winds.

Smols

oc1

I launch from the beach by our house and have a little cart to haul the boat up.
-steve

Rivverrat

Quote from: Smols on September 16, 2018, 03:52:12 PM
Steve,

. But you may be the only guy on the planet fishing from a 40 year old outrigger canoe with custom, vintage rods and reels designed specifically for your application. From the custom drogue to the modified bait casters and rods, your ingenuity is evident.


Smols

Isn't that great !! ... Jeff

steelfish

another good thread from Steve that I missed (dang work)

compadre, you never stop to amazing me, love the canoe, with the most population of sharks living in this part of Baja Kayak or canoe fishing is not my thing

The Baja Guy

TRS

Steve,
An awesome rod build, your constantly expanding my thoughts on what is possable, makes me kinda wish I had never left Hawaii.

If you decide you need more blanks check out vintage Herters, many were auctually produced by st Croix and a few by Phillipson, often they were sold as kit rods.
Another affordable source would be fly rods with tip breaks, Phillipson produced rods for Leonard, Orvis, Abercrombie& Fitch and many other companies. 
They call it fishing, not catching

Sonnett

WOW! You have opened up a whole new area for me when it comes to customizing reels. For the record, the Target was introduced in 1946 and discontinued after 1951. I have fished with several Langleys including the Target. I owned four Targets at one time but as most of my fishing is topwater Bass in shallow natural lakes in Michigan, there are a lot of what I call "impulse strikes" where the lure hits the water and there is an instant blowup. I always found that I had trouble re-engaging the handle with a fish on the other end. This may be my own shortcoming. I seldom use a Langley anymore but I have found them to be great when it comes to teaching a youngster to cast with older baitcasting tackle. This is mainly due to the light spool and easily adjusted and effective anti-backlash feature on the Streamlight and the Lurecast. I would mention in my many conversations with older tournament casters they often mention that the Langley's were a favored reel with one major fault. The bearings wore out quickly. 

oc1

#39
Hi Bill.  I have never had much in the way of bearing problems and I abuse them in the worst possible way.  The reel is drenched in saltwater at every use, left sitting on the boat and is not even washed unless it is rained on.  I do squirt a very light oil onto the gears and bearings with almost every use.  The light oil has a lot of solvent that washes out the sludge so they never have to be opened for cleaning.  It as close to maintenance-free as I have ever come.

Being almost all aluminum construction there are problems with aluminum corrosion, but it is not nearly as bad I would have anticipated.  Aluminum and I do not usually get along very well.  The weak links seem to be where aluminum comes into contact with stainless steel.  It may be because of the dissimilar metal galvanic corrosion thing.  This includes the stainless shaft running through the green aluminum handle knobs and the aluminum rivet attaching the aluminum cross bars to the stainless reel foot.

In hundreds of (maybe approaching a thousand) short outings, I have only had two serious breakdowns.  With a fish on, the reel will suddenly break off the foot and I'm left holding a reel in one hand and a rod in the other.  Reattaching the foot with 4-40 stainless nuts and bolts is fairly easy, but I lost both fish because of it.


I don't get impulse strikes but sometimes the slit sleeve on the freespool mechanism needs some adjustment.  You can gently pry the slit sleeve open or mash it closed to adjust the amount of tension.

-steve

Sonnett

WOW! Now that's what I call corrosion.  In general, I am not a fan of aluminum reels either. They do tend to be noisy. Your story of the reel popping off the foot reminds me of a friend who was fishing with a Bronson Coronet 25N and had the reel pop off the foot while playing a large bass. A mad scramble ensued around the boat trying to catch up to the runaway, bouncing reel - LOL. I use the pre-1951 25 N's as the are german silver and put together well and can be very quiet compared to the aluminum-framed Coronets.

Normslanding

Wow, this is cool stuff. I have been away from the site for some time, and this popped up.
Since 1962 I have owned Targets. I own 8 at this time. I also own 30 some Streamlites, and Lurecasts.
The rods used with them are mostly flyrod blanks. My favorite is a Fenwick that I got out of the seconds bin at Bartons, it cost $2.00. I use a couple of Silaflex rods for freshwater. Most of my Silaflex rods are saltwater,
PT60's, 70's, and 90's. Anyway back to Targets, mostly I fish 4 lb. line with a Target. I have found that the very old Streamlites cast just as well as Targets. The one which have a flat handle nut, not the later versions with a Acorn nut. The flat nut reels (like Targets) have the main gear and shaft as one piece. They also have handle knobs that are aluminum, not plastic. After removing the level wind from these reels they cast like a dream. These reels are wider than a Target and are heavier. This makes them balance longer rods better.
Sure great to see these posts, you just never know what you will find here.
    Hi Alan if you see this.

oc1

#42
Quote from: Normslanding on June 18, 2022, 01:41:27 AMWow, this is cool stuff. I have been away from the site for some time, and this popped up.
Since 1962 I have owned Targets. I own 8 at this time. I also own 30 some Streamlites, and Lurecasts.
The rods used with them are mostly flyrod blanks. My favorite is a Fenwick that I got out of the seconds bin at Bartons, it cost $2.00. I use a couple of Silaflex rods for freshwater. Most of my Silaflex rods are saltwater,
PT60's, 70's, and 90's. Anyway back to Targets, mostly I fish 4 lb. line with a Target. I have found that the very old Streamlites cast just as well as Targets. The one which have a flat handle nut, not the later versions with a Acorn nut. The flat nut reels (like Targets) have the main gear and shaft as one piece. They also have handle knobs that are aluminum, not plastic. After removing the level wind from these reels they cast like a dream. These reels are wider than a Target and are heavier. This makes them balance longer rods better.
Sure great to see these posts, you just never know what you will find here.
    Hi Alan if you see this.

Yeah, but Bill, the Target has freespool.  I have a bunch of them too and fish them  in saltwater with 20# braid.  I've quit with the glass fly rods though.  At my age, I shouldn't have to use something that heavy.  My current favorite is a Lamiglas blank HS1352L 11'3" 2PC 4-8lb 1/8-3/8oz.  They call it a centerpin blank but I don't know what distinguishes centerpin or mooching rods.  I just know it casts really well with the Target and a 3/8 ounce jig.

Sonnett

I have found the Target unsuitable for me as far as fishing goes. I am almost exclusively top water bass fishing with vintage equipment. I get a lot of "impulse strikes" the same instant the plug hits the water at which point I find myself fumbling to get the handle in to reengage the reel. The past three years I have fished almost exclusively with the Coxe 25N and the Langley Plugcast.

handi2

I will post some pictures of some old bait castors I have. The all silver colored ones with the Scrimshaw lettering
OCD Reel Service & Repair
Gulf Breeze, FL