GB2195872A

GB2195872A - Pole fishing

Info

Publication number: GB2195872A
Application number: GB08722389A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Anthony Jonathan Lelliott
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1986-09-25
Filing date: 1987-09-23
Publication date: 1988-04-20
Also published as: GB8623022D0; GB8722389D0

Abstract

A pole tip roller has a housing or support structure 1, a roller 3, a guide bush 4 and a locating means 2 to facilitate attachment of the pole tip roller to the tip of a hollow fishing pole 6. The locating means 2, the roller 3 and the guide bush 4 are positioned relative to each other such that, when the pole tip roller is in use, an elastomeric shock absorber 5 emerging from the interior of a fishing pole 6 is turned through 90 DEG by the roller 3 and retained centrally thereon by the guide bush 4. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Pole fishing The present invention relates to improvements in pole fishing and more particularly it relates to a pole tip roller designed to mitigate a number of intractable problems which have hitherto bedevilled the sport of pole fishing.

Pole fishing involves the use of a fixed length of fishing line attached to a long pole.

The major problem encountered with this simple method of fishing is that of line breakage.

In order to securely hook the fish after the bait has been taken it is necessary to "strike" as soon as a "bite" is indicated. Such "striking" involves a sudden jerking of the fishing line and, since the line is of a fixed length and commonly is of relatively low tensile strength (lines of higher tensile strength being thicker and thus more apparent to wary fish), such action frequently results in line breakage and both fish and tackle are lost. This problem has conventionally been alleviated by the use of highly flexible pole tips and the incorporation of a length of elastomeric material between the fishing line and the fishing pole. Each of these methods effectively creates a shock absorber which reduces the initial longitudinal force exerted on the fishing line upon striking.

Internal elastomeric shock absorbers, anchored to a point within conventional hollow section fishing poles have substantial advantages when compared to elastomeric shock absorbers attached to the external surface of a fishing pole. External elastomeric shock absorbers, whilst being simple to replace, are not only untidy in appearance but more detrimentally are prone to tangling and, whether attached directly to the tip of the fishing pole or guided by rings along the length of the pole, may substantially change the inherent properties and "feel" of the fishing pole and line.

Unfortunately, several problems are also encountered with the use of an internal elastomeric shock absorber. The elastic material usually emerges from the tip section of the fishing pole at right angles to the axis of the pole and thus runs over the exposed edges of the tip. The tip edges are conventionally covered by a bush of metal or plastics material, for example PTFE, to reduce friction. However, in practice it is found that such an arrangement still produces considerable wear and tear on the elastic material, decreasing both its durability and its elasticity. In addition, the friction prevents an immediate and smooth feed of the elastic material as it extends, for example, when striking a fish.This uneven and jerky stretching can result in a snapped fishing line, missed bites and "bumped" fish, when an initially hooked fish is "bumped" off the hook by the snatches and jerks transmitted by the uneven extension of the elastomeric shock absorber. Although the use of internal elastomeric shock absorbers has been known for many years these problems have not hitherto been successfully overcome. I have now recognised that these disadvantages are all caused by the frictional effects occurring at the tip of the fishing pole.

Thus, according to the present invention there is provided guide means for attachment to the tip of a hollow fishing pole comprising a housing or support structure, a roller, a guide bush, and locating means for attachment of said housing or support structure to the tip of said fishing pole, whereby in use an elastomeric shock absorber emerging substantially axially from the interior of said fishing pole is turned over said roller and retained substantially centrally thereon by said guide bush. The guide bush may comprise a suitably positioned aperture within the support structure or the aperture may be defined by any suitably shaped material attached to the housing or support structure. Preferably the edges of the guide bush define a circular aperture and are rounded to reduce friction, when in use, between the guide bush and the elastomeric shock absorber.In particular the guide bush may comprise a perforated plug of any suitable material, such as metal or plastics material, in particular PTFE, held in position relative to the roller by the support structure.

The roller may be of any conventional type and material, such as a hollow or solid cylinder of metal or plastics material, and may have a simple cylindrical exterior surface or may be shaped to more readily retain the elastomeric material centrally thereon, for example with flanged edges. A roller of plastics material may be provided with a metal bushing for greater durability. The external surfaces of the roller which are intended to be contacted with the elastomeric shock absorber are preferably of a relatively non-slip material such that movement of the elastomeric material over the roller causes the roller to rotate rather than the elastomeric material to move relative to the roller surface. This prevents slippage and consequentiy minimises wear and tear on the elastic material.

The roller is substantially frictionlessly rotatable about an axis mutually perpendicular to the axes through the guide bush and through the fishing pole when the pole tip roller is in use. The roller may be retained within the support structure by means of rotatably interlocking parts such as, for example, lugs and indents, in the support structure and in the ends of the roller. Preferably the support structure retains a spindle of, for example, metal or plastics material, optionally coated with or surrounded by a sleeve of a material having a low friction coefficient, about which a hollow roller can freely rotate, thus providing two bearing interfaces (roller/sleeve and sleeve/spindle).

The support structure may be of any suitably rigid material and retains the roller, guide bush and locating means in position relative to each other. The locating means may be an integral part of the support structure or may be rigidly or rotatably attached thereto by any known means, for example, by soldering of metals, heat or solvent welding e.g. of plastics or by forced interlocking of correspondingly shaped components. An interlocking mechanism between a cylindrical locating means and the support structure may give rise to a joint which is rotatable about the axis of the locating means. This allows the support structure, roller and guide bush to rotate, in use, in the direction of the strike to maintain a straight line in the elastic between the roller, the fishing line and the hook, thus reducing friction between the elastic and the guide bush.

The locating means may comprise any suitable means for attaching the support structure, roller and guide bush to a pole tip, such as any conventional clamp or bung but preferably comprises a rigid hollow spigot or socket, which fits respectively internally or externally onto a pole tip and may be retained thereon by conventional means such as clamping, gluing or as a simple push-fit. Preferably the spigot or socket can rotate, relative to the pole tip, about the axis of the pole and is held in position by the elastomeric shock absorber which is maintained under slight tension between the pole and the guide bush, through the roller, by means of a stop, plug or bead which prevents the elastic contracting back through the guide bush to its unextended length.This arrangement can be easily assembled using the conventional doubleended connector or "stonfo" to connect the fishing line to the elastic shock absorber, ensuring that the elastic is slightly extended in order to retain the pole tip roller against the pole tip, and has the advantage that the device can then freely rotate through 360" about the axis of the fishing pole. Guide means having a variety of differently-sized locating means may be made available to accommodate a range of different fishing poles. The same guide means may locate externally of a thin pole or internally of a wider pole.

A further feature of the invention provides a process for manufacturing guide means as described herein which comprises cutting or stamping a housing template from a sheet of metal or metal alloy, folding and bending said template to form the housing or support structure and subsequently attaching a guide bush, roller and locating means thereto.

In a further feature of the invention there is provided use of a guide means as described herein to reduce friction between an elastic shock absorber and a pole tip and to maintain steady pressure between the fishing hook, line and the elastic.

In a still further feature of the invention there is provided a method of fishing which comprises attaching a guide means as described herein to a fishing pole so that friction between an elastic shock absorber and the pole tip is reduced and a steady pressure can be maintained between the fishing hook, line and elastic.

It will be understood that my item of fishing tackle allows the free flow of elastic throughout its extension, maintains a steady pressure between the fishing hook and the elastic, eliminates snatching and jerking of the line whilst playing fish, and significantly reduces wear and tear on the elastic. The invention thus overcomes several long-standing problems in the art, resulting in an improved level of efficiency and enjoyment for the sportsman.

Several embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the device of Fig. 1 showing the relative positions of the spigot or socket, roller and guide bush; Fig. 3 is a partially cross-sectional lower plan view of the device of Figs. 1 and 2; Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of the device of Figs. 1 to 3 illustrating the position, in use, of the elastic over the roller and through the bush; Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional side view of a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention; and Fig. 6 is a plan view of the template housing of the device of Fig. 5.

Referring to Figs. 1-4, the guide means shown comprises a housing or support structure 1 attached to or integrally formed with a hollow spigot or socket 2. The spigot or socket 2 and the housing or support structure 1 may be of any suitable rigid material but are preferably of metal, for example brass or a suitable metal alloy which may be moulded, cast or bent into the desired configurations.

The spigots or sockets 2 may be of differing internal and/or external diameters so that an appropriate size, dependant on the internal or external fitting of the guide means to the pole tip 6 and on the internal or external diameter of the pole tip concerned, may be selected and if necessary the pole can be trimmed back to produce a good push fit. If it is desired to allow the socket or spigot to rotate about or within the pole tip the internal surface of the socket or the external surface of the spigot may be coated with any suitable material known to have a low frictional coeffi cient, thus allowing free rotation about the axis of the pole.

Mounted within the housing or support structure 1 is a roller 3 and a guide bush 4.

The roller is positioned such that, in use, an elastic shock absorber 5 will run centrally through the fishing pole 6 onto the central surface of the roller 3. The guide bush 4 is positioned relative to the roller 3 such that when the elastic 5 is turned over the roller 3 through an angle of 90" to the axis of the tube 2 it will pass centrally through the guide bush 4. The roller 3 can freely rotate about a spindle 7 which is positioned within the support structure 1. The elastic 5 is normally retained under slight tension by a stop 8 and is therefore centrally positioned on the roller 3.

The stop 8 preferably comprises a conventional "stonfo" connector used to connect the elastic 5 to the fishing line 9. As the elastic 5 comes under tension when a fish is struck the roller 3 rotates to give a smooth feed of elastic and even when the pressure on the elastic comes from an angle other than 90" to the pole tip the guide bush 4 ensures that the elastic remains centrally positioned over the roller.

Fig. 5 shows a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention. The housing 10 is of metal or metal alloy, has rounded external contours to minimise entanglement with the fishing line, and is shaped to receive a rounded PTFE bush 11, a stainless steel pin 12 and a hollow tube 13. The housing 10 is preferably cut or stamped out of a metal or metal alloy sheet, for example, as shown in Fig. 6, folded along the lines X-X and then the end tabs 16 bent to form a tubular connector. The tube 13 may be manufactured separately and subsequently soldered or clipped into the housing connector.

The hollow stainless steel pin 12 may be located within the housing 10 through the holes 17 and fixed therein by simultaneously flanging over of its ends at the external surface of the housing. Preferably the stainless steel pin 12 is surrounded by a stainless steel sleeve 14 which further reduces the friction between the nylon roller 15 and the bearing and provides a second bearing surface to reduce the risk of jamming by particles of bait or other contamination.

It is apparent that the invention provides a solution to the problem encountered by pole fishermen of uneven and jerky stretching of internal elastic shock absorbers and, in addition, the device is simple to fit, does not noticeably alter the characteristics of the fishing pole or line and significantly reduces wear and tear on the elastic.

Claims

1. Guide means for attachment to the tip of a hollow fishing pole comprising a housing or support structure, a roller, a guide bush, and locating means for attachment of said housing or support structure to the tip of said fishing pole, whereby in use an elastomeric shock absorber emerging substantially axially from the interior of said fishing pole is turned over said roller and retained substantially centrally thereon by said guide bush.

2. Guide means as claimed in claim 1 wherein said locating means comprises a hollow spigot or socket adapted to locate internally or externally of said pole tip.

3. Guide means as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein said locating means, roller and guide bush are so arranged relative to each other that, when in use, an elastomeric shock absorber runs centrally over said roller, is turned through an angle of 90 , and passes centrally through said guide bush.

4. Guide means as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein said guide bush is a perforated PTFE plug defining a circular aperture.

5. Guide means as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein said roller is substantially freely rotatable about a spindle fixed within said housing or support structure.

6. Guide means as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein said locating means is freely rotatable about its axis relative to said housing or support structure.

7. Guide means substantially as described herein.

8. Guide means substantially as described herein with reference to any of Figs. 1 to 6.

9. A process for manufacturing guide means as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8 which comprises cutting or stamping a housing template from a sheet of metal or metal alloy, folding and bending said template to form the housing or support structure and subsequently attaching a guide bush, roller and locating means thereto.

10. Use of guide means as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8 to reduce friction between an elastic shock absorber and a pole tip and to maintain steady pressure between the fishing hook, line and the elastic.

11. A method of fishing which comprises attaching guide means as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8 to a fishing pole so that friction between an elastic shock absorber and the pole tip is reduced and a steady pressure can be maintained between the fishing hook, line and elastic.