Surf fishing diy

[Gregorym38]

Any innovations surf fisherman have created or thought of that help out a lot while fishing in waders?

i specifically ask for something that will hold my rod up while i am in the water, like if i have to untangle the line from the top of my rod tip. It can be really easy to just put the butt of it down, submerging my reel. Any tips?

[bulldog1935]

It ain't the salt, it's the sand slurry, and the sand carried in the water in the NE surf is the finest and most pervasive on any shore.  This is what fully-sealed reels are for, and you of course pay dearly for those. 

I'd be making a trip back to the beach, 5-gal bucket, and a couple of pieces of 1x12" I carry in my bucket and use for a sand-free base on the beach, stands the lantern at night, and doubles as a fillet board. 

 

Can't think of a beach-spike rod holder that's made to hold your rod near horizontal - they're all aimed to keep your rod tip high - this is kind of the upscale norm from fabricators on etsy. 

But I guess it could function as a rod-butt prop while you walk to the other end of the rod. 

[casts_by_fly]

You're going to have to walk it back to the beach and put the rod butt down on the sand.  Like Bulldog said, its the sand that gets you.  I don't mind salt water too much with a decent reel, but sand will kill you quickly.

 

If you're on some big flat a half mile from shore then I can see the problem.  A two piece rod would help.  Lots of wading jackets have a sewn in loop by your right hip.  You stick the butt of the rod there.  They will have a velco catch near the left breast pocket to hold the rod upright so you're hands free.  With a two piece rod you could do that with the butt while you manipulate the tip.  

 

The best course of action though, is to figure out a different way.  if you're line is wrapped around the tip, just use the weight of your lure or sinker to unloop it.  If you're getting other tangles, fix the root cause of the problem in the first place.  In the surf I almost never have to rethread rod guides.

[Gregorym38]

4 hours ago, casts_by_fly said:

You're going to have to walk it back to the beach and put the rod butt down on the sand.  Like Bulldog said, its the sand that gets you.  I don't mind salt water too much with a decent reel, but sand will kill you quickly.

 

If you're on some big flat a half mile from shore then I can see the problem.  A two piece rod would help.  Lots of wading jackets have a sewn in loop by your right hip.  You stick the butt of the rod there.  They will have a velco catch near the left breast pocket to hold the rod upright so you're hands free.  With a two piece rod you could do that with the butt while you manipulate the tip.  

 

The best course of action though, is to figure out a different way.  if you're line is wrapped around the tip, just use the weight of your lure or sinker to unloop it.  If you're getting other tangles, fix the root cause of the problem in the first place.  In the surf I almost never have to rethread rod guides.

Yeah that was exactly my point, when you are out in the water. Im surprised its the sand as opposed to the water, i know they are both bad

[casts_by_fly]

4 hours ago, Gregorym38 said:

Yeah that was exactly my point, when you are out in the water. Im surprised its the sand as opposed to the water, i know they are both bad

the salt is bad over time. It takes a while for salt to corrode metal. Sand is immediate.  The fine sand that is suspended in the surf will get inside gears and any other semi tight tolerances. Since the sand is super hard and the plastics/metals relatively softer, the sand starts to make dents and scratches in all of the parts every time you turn the crank.

 

i killed a Sahara 4000 two summers ago in North Carolina. One too many times I set it down with the butt in the water but the reel above and got it washed over with a wave.  I would rinse it after every use, but that didn’t get all of the sand out. By the end of the trip it was hard to turn the handle. I took it apart when I got home and there was fine sand all through it. I cleaned and grease it all but it’s still rough. 

[bulldog1935]

On 12/13/2022 at 12:40 PM, Gregorym38 said:

Yeah that was exactly my point, when you are out in the water. Im surprised its the sand as opposed to the water, i know they are both bad

you're thinking about this all wrong. 

What gets left behind when the water leaves is the problem. 

You should never consciously dunk your reel in saltwater, but nothing is worse than the surf, because of the ultra-fine sand carried in the water. 

I hope this thing is on. 

[Gregorym38]

13 hours ago, bulldog1935 said:

you're thinking about this all wrong. 

What gets left behind when the water leaves is the problem. 

You should never consciously dunk your reel in saltwater, but nothing is worse than the surf, because of the ultra-fine sand carried in the water. 

I hope this thing is on. 

Gotcha, i will probably just buy cheap reels from now on so i can trash them

[padlin]

I buy sorta cheap rods and reels for salt, i still haven’t killed any. I rinse them at the end of the day.