#144870 - 08/20/08 02:40 AM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: ]
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Addict
Registered: 01/04/06
Posts: 586
Loc: 20mi east of San Diego
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sockpuppet: I have caught a nice trout with my survival fishing kit. On the return from Nv. to Calif. I stoped at black rock creek and took a break from driving, just for the heck of it I got out my fishing kit and threw it in the creek with a grasshopper on the hook. The line drifted about 10 ft. when the trout hit it. By the way I returned the trout to the stream. Next time I may need it.
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Some people try to turn back their odometers. Not me, I want people to know "why" I look this way I've traveled a long way and some of the roads weren't paved
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#144889 - 08/20/08 07:00 AM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: ]
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Enthusiast
Registered: 01/08/04
Posts: 351
Loc: Centre Hall Pa
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I've been working on a series of card kits. These are based on credit card blanks. The whole series are for a wallet based pocket kit. Since credit card companies send out blank cards to the point of at least one or two a week. They use to be real plastic. Now days they send cardboard facsimiles. But I have a couple of stacks saved up. Here is my writeup of fishing and sewing kits.
Wallet Fishing and Sewing Kit Rich “Raspy” Shawver
Fishing and sewing kits are made the same way. The only real differences are the components used.
First you need to notch the upper third to half. Maybe a bit more depending upon the amount of space needed for the metallic components. These notches are to hold the thread or the fishing line wound around the card.
You can cut out the notches in several ways or shapes. They could be sliced or scraped out with a knife. Be nibbled out with nail clippers or side cutters. Or they could be sanded out with sand paper or a file. Any way that happens to be convenient. Finally they could be melted into plastic credit cards. This can be done with a hot soldering iron or with any piece of metal heater in a flame.
The notches can be simple V shaped, rounded, squared or rectangular. The size and shape would depend upon personal choice plus the type and amount of line to be wound around the card. For mine I used my soldering iron and are rounded semi-circles because it was convenient. Regardless of size or shape you want the notches to be as smooth as possible. This is so the line doesn’t snag or is nicked, which would weaken it, on any sharp edges.
The number of notches would depend on the different weights of fishing line or the number of colored thread desired. Of course each notch is pared with a mate on the opposite end of the card.
The fishing card carries 5 sets of hooks. Though if you would cant them a bit more you could probably make it 6 maybe 7. But that would be really crowding things. The Idea came from Ron Hood. In his video he strings several hooks between two strips of masking tape. The idea is to lay the hooks spaced along the bottom half or so of the card. Then you cover them with tape to hold them in place. The choice would be masking, scotch or packing tape. This hold can be improved by heating the card and then vacuform it around the hooks. Even if you do this you would still want to cover them with tape.
As to the sizes of hooks chosen is a balancing act. The old saw is that you can catch big fish with big hooks but only small hooks will do for small fish. Yet you can still catch larger fish with small hook, to a point that is. Also since you are catching for food rather than some artificial size limit or trophy fish. A handful of fingerlings will feed you as well as a single big fish. The choices I have made are a compromise giving a choice of sizes and more hooks being available.
The set or assortment selected relies on the fact that if you use all the same style or model of hooks the progressively smaller ones can be nested inside the largest one picked. Using short rather than long shanked hooks will allow more hooks. The hooks can be lined up the length of the card. But since hooks are generally taller than they are wide if you rotate them so that the shank is more vertical. More can be fitted on the card. The sizes I have picked for my card are 6, 8, 10 and 12. With 5 sets on the card this gives me 20 different hooks. Plus I have variable sizes to fit the fish available.
I also include one ocean sized hook just small enough to fit on the card. This goes around the perimeter of the card. This hook is to act as a gaff hook.
For weight you could glue and/or tape a line of split shots along the card but that would be a bit bulky to fit in a card slot. I suppose you could field improvise by tying small rocks to the line. But I have found an interesting solution. I discovered a product that looks exactly like a book of paper matches. Inside of matches inside the pasteboard cover are two sheets on lead cut like paper the matches. To use you tear off a strip and twist it around the line. The two sheets will fit nicely and are taped on the back of the card. Because there would not be much of an access problem these extend up under the line wraps.
For expedient field floats small pieces of stick can be tied to the line. For carry along floats there are small plastic zip seal bags. I’ve seen them as small parts bags as small as 1 x 1 and up in various fractions of an inch both ways. To use you melt a small hole above the seal. The best way to do this is with a small nail or pin heated in a flame. Sure you could simply poke a hole in the rim but melting it makes the hole much stronger so less tear out. To use you inflate and seal the bag and tie the line through the hole. These are slipped under the wraps of the line.
You finally wrap the line or different sized lines around the card in the notches. The number and size of the notches determine the number of different sizes of lines or the amount the notch can hold. I use spider line because it is one of the strongest lines for its size. The stronger the line the less likely it is to break during use. Remember this is not for sport but for food. A broken line means the loss of a hook and maybe a missed meal.
The sewing card is made in much the same way. Except you use needles instead of hooks. The thread is wound as the fishing line. Instead of different weights you can use different colors of thread. Although matching color is not as important for field expedient repairs. Heavier thread is generally better than weaker thread.
Since you will not be engaged in fine needlework small sewing needles are not really needed. Generally you want larger needles with the largest eye available. This is so you can extend your sewing thread with other forms of cordage. These would be like dental floss, cordage teased from other cordage like the inner strands of 550 cord or field acquired fibers.
A couple of specially needles I have included in my kit are mattress or upholstery needles. These are curved needles used for sewing along edges and around corners. Then there is the needle from the stitch awl. This is like a heavy duty sewing machine needle. You could use a sewing machine needle instead. Another possibility is to include a leather stitching needle. I didn’t
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When in danger or in doubt run in circles scream and shout RAH
And always remember TANSTAAFL
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#144908 - 08/20/08 12:30 PM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: Raspy]
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Newbie
Registered: 06/29/08
Posts: 26
Loc: Melton, Victoria, Australia
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<P> This is my smallest fishing kit. <P> 12lb and 6 lb line on plastic card, about 20 meters of each; a few bits of powerbait and a small tackle box. <P> <P> 4 sizes of hooks, sinkers and slit shot, small pieces of foam amd a floater, two wet flies, one spinner bait, asst swivels. This is the smallest kit I would carry; it is best suited to freshwater creeks and dams. But it would catch fish in most types of water if needed.
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#144918 - 08/20/08 01:26 PM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: morto]
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Old Hand
Registered: 03/24/06
Posts: 900
Loc: NW NJ
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'Round these parts, the ponds are fully of sunnies that you can catch with a few yards of line, a small hook and piece of plastic/fabric/tinfoil/insect/worm for bait.
One time they just weren't biting and I kept thinking "What could they be eating today? What are they waiting for? What would I eat if I was a fish? There shure are a lot of japanese beetles on the weeds near the edge of the water. What... Oh, duh!"
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- Tom S.
"Never trust and engineer who doesn't carry a pocketknife."
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#144933 - 08/20/08 02:23 PM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: CityBoyGoneCountry]
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Member
Registered: 12/22/07
Posts: 172
Loc: Appalachian mountains
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We used to go to the Boundary Waters when I was a kid, and there were spots where we could drop a bare hook in the water and catch a bluegill. It kept us boys out of trouble while my step-dad fly-fished from the back of the boat. The fish were so thick around the small islands that it seemed like you would step on them when you went wading.
I'm not a huge fish fan, but bluegill are tasty buggers.
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#144941 - 08/20/08 04:08 PM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: ironraven]
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Journeyman
Registered: 05/28/06
Posts: 58
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Well, Burma was more than just a flood, and is a long term kit. For a larger stock, yes, having more tackle and line makes sense, but a gill net is your best bet. For a small kit, the biggest purpose of a fishing kit... *looks around* C'mere... *motions firefly closer* Don't tell anyone, but *whispers* in a PSK, the biggest role of a fishing kit is to keep you out of trouble and near a clear spot where air search can find you in the first three days. For that role, little hooks and 8 pound mono line is fine. Besides, you are more likely to get <3 pound fish. You KNOW those are in any healthy pond or stream. I stick a tiny fishing module in small kits, along with about 30' of 12# braided specta, which is similar in thickness to 8# mono and doesn't have the memory. That's enough to get out a few set poles, or rig a trotline with assistance of a sapling or a bit of paracord. To give you some scale, that prototype is with a 2x2" ziplock. I failed to comprehend from the above quote, that you had bigger kits. You only mentioned you included "tiny fishing module" in small kits. I agreed with most of your statements. I disagreed with your statement on the role of fishing kit in PSK. in a PSK, the biggest role of a fishing kit is to keep you out of trouble and near a clear spot where air search can find you in the first three days I would like to echo bigreddog's statement. I agree that if you carry one it should be up to the task.
Edited by firefly99 (08/20/08 04:23 PM)
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#144950 - 08/20/08 04:36 PM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: ]
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Journeyman
Registered: 05/28/06
Posts: 58
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Who are some of you guys kidding? At the best of times, even on a fishing trip when I take all my fishing tackle, hip waders, a 1000 dollar rod and a bloody dip net I can still go without getting a bite for a long time. I had many similar experiences (minus 1000 dollar rod) of returning home emtpy handed. Anyone who thinks they are going to land enough fish to live on with a couple of plain hooks and a few meters of line stuffed into a pill jar is smoking crack.(Good luck).. Well said. IMHO, if you are going to take any fishing gear then you might as well take something of quality. I pack a bunch of hooks in a small tackle bag about the size of a deck of cards. I include dry and wet flies, small spinners, a few NATO speed hooks, a large gaff hook, fake worms for bait, and at least 150 m of spiderline(20 lb). I don't always take it, but when I do feel the need, especially on longer trips I know it is adequate to do more than discourage me if I need it.
Funny thing is, you will have a far better chance of using the hooks and line to catch squirrels or birds than you will with fish most of the time. Bait some hooks with berries, bread or any other stuff and tie them to trees using wire rather than fishing line and around here a crow, magpie or gull will probably try to swallow your hand before you can even set the trap. I agreed. But in this context, the fishing kits must be practical & useable, so as to enhance your survival chances. Whether you can land any fish is another issue.
Edited by firefly99 (08/20/08 04:44 PM)
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#145036 - 08/21/08 12:19 AM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: firefly99]
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Member
Registered: 11/04/05
Posts: 125
Loc: Mid-Atlantic
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My smallest fishing kit is in a .410 shell. Hooks, split shot, leaders, swivels, line and rubber worms. There is a bright pink foam earplug that closes the shell and keeps the stuff inside from falling out which gets used as a bobber.
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Knowing where you're going is NOT the same as knowing how to get there.
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#145038 - 08/21/08 12:27 AM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: Farmer]
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Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 11/09/06
Posts: 2851
Loc: La-USA
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That's a rather ingenuious idea. I'll try that out. Thanks!
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QMC, USCG (Ret) The best luck is what you make yourself!
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#145049 - 08/21/08 01:24 AM
Re: Fishing line & hooks in survival kits
[Re: firefly99]
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Addict
Registered: 03/01/04
Posts: 478
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fishhooks weigh nothing, cost next to nothing, and are hard to improvise a good version in the field.
Why not?
Monofilament doubles as thread.
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