GB2200821A

GB2200821A - Casting aid for fishing rods

Info

Publication number: GB2200821A
Application number: GB08702990A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Geoffrey Dorrian Wilkinson
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1987-02-10
Filing date: 1987-02-10
Publication date: 1988-08-17
Also published as: GB8702990D0

Abstract

A device for use in casting of a weighted fishing line (7) comprises a capstan (26) which is secured by a screw (28) to a plate (24) which is pivotally mounted on a base plate (11). The base plate has a depressed region (18) in which a cam plate (21) is located, the cam plate being secured to the plate (24) and being engageable with a pin (23) projecting from the base plate (11) to limit pivoting of the cam plate and hence the plate (24) and capstan (26). The capstan (26) has a waisted portion (27) over which the fishing line (7) is led. In use, the end of the capstan is engaged by a user's thumb with the line engaged over the waisted portion (27) and the user makes a cast. The line is held by the capstan during the cast until the user releases his thumb from the capstan when the latter will pivot so that the line can slide off the capstan and unwind from the spool. <IMAGE>

Description

Title: CASTING AID FOR FISHING RODS.

This invention relates to improvements in fishing rods and is particularly concerned with a device for use in line casting.

When line casting using a fixed spool reel, problems occur if weights of more than about 90 grams (3 oz.) are used since it is difficult to control the direction and distance of a cast. When a cast is made from a fixed spool reel, the line wound on the reel is normally held tight against the rod by the user's thumb or finger. The base arm of the reel is released and the full weight of the weights, hooks and tackle on the fishing line is then borne by the holding digit. The rod is then swung back, cast and the line released.

It will be appreciated that, during line casting, the full weight of the cast is taken by the finger or thumb and with weights of 150 grams (5-6 oz.) and over, painful injury can occur by the line cutting into the thumb or finger even if a protective guard or glove is worn. Moreover, when using a fixed spool reel with such weights, distance and accuracy of casting can be unreliable and even dangerous in view of the poor directional control of the casts. With weights of over 230 grams (8 oz.) casting using a fixed spool reel is virtually impossible and totally impractical owing to the pressure of the line cutting into the thumb or fingers.

The distance and accuracy of line casts with heavy weights can be improved by the use of multiplier reels but such reels can be expensive and have problems which make them unpopular with many anglers. The present invention aims to provide a device for improving the distance and accuracy of line casting with the use of more popular and cheaper fixed spool reels. According to the invention, there is provided a device for use with a fishing reel on a rod to permit casting of a weighted fishing line wound on the reel, said device being adapted to be pivotally mounted at one end on a fishing rod adjacent to the reel, the fishing line being engaged by the device and the other end of the device, remote from the pivot, being engaged by a user's thumb during casting and then released during the cast whereupon the tension of the line is sufficient to cause the device to pivot to a position in which it is free of the line to permit said line to run off the reel.

Preferably, the device comprises a base plate which is adapted to be mounted on a fishing rod and a capstan pivotally mounted on the base plate. The capstan is desirably pivotally mounted at one end on the base plate, has a waisted portion intermediate its ends and a rounded shoulder between the waisted portion and the other end which is engageable by a user's thumb.

Means may be provided to limit the degree of pivoting of the capstan. Said means may comprise a cam plate which is engageable with a stop mounted on the base plate.

The invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a side elevation of one embodiment of a device according to the invention shown fitted to part of a fishing rod on which a fixed spool reel is also fitted; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device shown in Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is an underneath plan view of the device shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, the device comprises a base plate 11 which is adapted to be fitted to a fishing rod 1. One end region 12 of the base plate 11 is substantially planar or slightly arced for fitting over a ferrule 2 which is mounted on the rod 1. The ferrule 2, together with a like ferrule 3, serves to secure a fixed spool reel 4 to the fishing rod 1 in a conventional manner which will be clear to those skilled in the art. The end region 12 of the base plate 11 is secured to the ferrule 2 by a strip of PVC tape or the like 14.

Adjacent its other end, the base plate 11 is deformed to form a raised portion 13 and this portion of the base is likewise secured to the rod 1 by a strip of PVC tape or the like 15.

The base plate 11 is further provided, intermediate its ends, with a depressed region 18 having a bore through which a pivot pin 19 extends. A cam'plate 21 is mounted on one end of the pivot pin 19 within the depression 18, the cam plate having a land 22 the ends of which are engageable with a stop in the form of a pin 23 to limit the degree of pivoting of the pin 19.

The pin 23 is mounted on the base plate in the depression 18 and the height of the pin 23, the cam plate 21 and the pivot pin 19 is such that they are located wholly within the depression 18, as shown in Fig. 1, so that the base plate 11 can be secured to the rod 1 without interfering with the pivoting action of the pin 19 and cam plate 21.

On the side of the base plate remote from the cam plate 21, a plate 24 is secured to or formed integrally with the pivot pin 19, a washer 25 being interposed between the plate 24 and the base plate 11 to restrain the pivot pin 19 against axial movement.

The washer 25 is preferably made from a selflubricating material such as nylon. A capstan 26 having a waisted portion 27 intermediate its ends is secured to the plate 24 by means of a screw 28.

In use of the casting aid according to the invention, a fishing line 7 wound on the spool 5 of the fishing reel 4, which initially is in the position shown in the full line in Fig. 1, is led over the capstan 26 and the capstan is held in the position shown in Fig.

3 so that the fishing line 7 is engaged in the waisted portion 27 of the capstan. The capstan can be held in this position by the user by applying his thumb to the end of the capstan which is remote from the plate 24.

In this position, one end of the land 22 of the cam plate 21 is held against the pin 23 as indicated by the broken lines in Fig. 2. The line 7 is now in the position indicated by the broken line in Fig. 1.

The bale arm 6 of the reel is then released and the whole weight of the weighted fishing line is then taken by the capstan 26. The angle of the capstan 26 to the line at this stage is such that the line cannot be unwound from the reel. A cast is made in the normal way but instead of holding the line, the user merely holds the end of the capstan 26 and then releases it during the cast. However, since the line is held by the capstan instead of the user's thumb, a considerable mechanical advantage is obtained as a result of leverage.

When the capstan is released, the tension on the line causes it to pivot to the position shown in Fig. 1 and indicated as 26A in Fig. 2 and the rounded shoulder between thea waisted portion 27 and the end of the capstan 26 permits the line to slide off the capstan and then to unwind from the spool 5.

The device according to the invention thus enables casts to be made using heavy weights without any risk of injury to a user. Greater distance, power and accuracy of casts can be achieved with the device according to the invention and casts using heavy weights can be made safely.

By providing the cam plate 21 wit-h a land 22 having two end faces which are engageable with the pin 23, the device according to the invention is suitable for left-handed or right-handed operation.

The invention is not restricted to the above-described embodiment but modifications and variations may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, instead of being secured to the rod by a strip of PVC tape or the like, the base of a spring clip may be secured to the depression formed in the base plate, on the reverse side from the raised portion 13, by means of pop rivets or the like, the spring having a pair of arcuate arms and being made of resilient material so that the arms are adapted, in use, to engage a fishing rod to hold the base plate 11 against the rod in a secure manner.

Further security may be achieved by providing the ends of the clip arms remote from the base with bores and securing the said ends together by means of a bolt, screw or like connection.

Claims

1. A device for use with a fishing reel on a rod to permit casting of a weighted fishing line on the reel, said device being adapted to be pivotally mounted at one end on a fishing rod adjacent to the reel, the 5 fishing line being engaged by the device and the other end of the device, remote from the pivot, being engaged by a user's thumb during casting and then released during the cast whereupon the tension of the line is sufficient to cause the device to pivot to a position 10 in which it is free of the line to permit said line to run off the reel.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the device comprises a base plate which is adapted to be mounted on a fishing rod and a capstan pivotally mounted on the base plate.

3. A device according to claim 2, wherein the capstan is pivotally mounted at one end on the base plate, has a waisted portion intermediate its ends and a rounded shoulder between the waisted portion and the other end 5 which is engageable by a user's thumb.

4. A device according to claim 2 or claim 3, wherein said one end of the capstan is secured to a plate and wherein said plate is pivotally mounted on the base plate.

5. A device according to claim 4, wherein the capstan is secured to its mounting plate by means of a screw.

6. A device according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein means are provided to limit the degree of pivoting of the capstan.

7. A device according to claim 6, wherein the pivot limiting means comprise a cam plate which is engageble with a stop mounted on the base plate.

8. A device according to any one of claims 2 to 6, wherein the base plate is substantially planar with a depressed region intermediate its ends, the capstan being mounted on the base plate at said depressed region.

9. A device according to claim 7 and claim 8, wherein the cam plate and stop are located in the depressed region of the base plate.

10. A device for use with a fishing reel on a rod to permit casting of a weighted fishing line on the reel, said device being substantially as described herein with reference to the'drawings.