Thoughts on anchoring

[steveks]

I love to fish off my pontoon, but the problem I have fishing the strip pits in South East Ks is thier depth and wind drift. Sitting here this morning and a thought poped into my head. Why not use a cheap closed face spincast reel with heavy line and a large bank sinker like snaggers use. Maybe put some screws into the sides of the sinker to let it hold better, zip tie the reels to the pontoon frame, line through the ring on the end of the pontoon. One on the front one on the back all line out of the way. Guess I have a new project to start on should be simple to set up, now to see if it works.

[Uncle Jesse]

Steve a couple of ideas came to mind. The first was a campers' clothesline reel. I have used one for several years, but I do not anchor a lot; the other was a chalk line box without the chalk and maybe replace the cotton line with a nylons line. This the same reel I use. I am going to assume you are familiar with a chalk line.
laundry reel.jpg

[steveks]

Very familar with a chalk line. I was thinking along the lines of something like a Zebco 202 or similar. Wont need to hold much line. I am guessing about 90' of 30 pound is all I would need. With the reel zip tied to the frame it would be a one hand operation, push button to drop and just reel it up when ready to move.

[Uncle Jesse]

Will a 202 hold 90 ft. of 30 lb.? That's going to be stiff on a little push button like that, the good news it shouldn't cost much to find out. I like the clothes line and chalk line for the pure simplicity, 1 moving part each.

[Chuck S]

I like the way you folks are thinking and my past experience as a Cave Diver led me to this. http://cgi.ebay.com/Diving-reel-150-...item230e96c43a I'm going to keep an eye on this and others and next time I can get one without breaking the bank, I'll hvea my new anchor reel!

[steveks]

Chuck that looks like a great idea. I did see a mini bait casting reel at Basspro this weekend that might just work for what I need it for. I also thought about using a new braid line to get the strength I will need in a small dia line. Right now just thoughts, but it will be tested in mid March. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shop...10567/-1758778

[Uncle Jesse]

I stopped into a local consignment shop last week. They had a couple of saltwater level wind reels for sales. They were under $10 each. A big ole Penn level wind is practically a winch and would probably serve you well. Here's a deal on ebay that may be just what you need.

http://cgi.ebay.com/PENN-Senator-4-0...item4cf5590126

[hungNtree]

Steve,

Becareful of the zip ties. I tried to use them on my anchor line. I had a pulley that i wanted the line to run through, and I zip tied the pulley. One tug on the anchor line and the zip tie broke. I've been told since then that there are good and there are cheap zip ties. I reworked my line and haven't tried them since, so I dont' know. But i'd be leary or using a zip tie to hold my reel on. Someone else may know more and be able to tell you more about them.

hope that helps,
hNt

[bonefishwhisperer]

I would not use zip ties either ...just this week I had one fail myself on something while fishing...it was military grade zip tie and I had put full faith in it...it broke in 5 minutes and my entire day was compromised because I wasnt prepare for it...good luck on the project...I like the evolution of the solution and waiting to see the final decision

[hungNtree]

i was just thinking, I bought a retractable dog leash for this same project, but couldn't figure out a good way to mount it. I don't think it would be strong enough to pull in the anchor without help, but it would store the rope.

just a thought,
hNt

PS i'm at work right now, and should probably be thinking about something else. lol