GB2451637A - A Fishing Pole Bung - Google Patents

Abstract

A pole bung 5 for use with a hollow fishing pole 10 comprising a "hookable" part 2 capable of attachment to the butt section of a fishing pole 10c, a hollow flexible tube 1a, 1b, a gripping portion 3a and at least one positioning member 4a, 4b such that the gripping portion 3a and hooking component 2 are attached to an end section of the tube 1a and the position members 4a, b to another section 1b. The hookable part 2 may be two prongs 2a that are parallel to and spaced apart from the flexible tube 1a. The gripping portion 3a is conical in shape, configured to accommodate an elastic fishing line 12 and is patterned 3b to aid grip. The flexible tube 1b can have an external thread to engage a threaded portion on the conical shaped positioning members 4a, 4b. In use, an elastic fishing line 12 runs inside the flexible tube 1a, 1b and through the gripping portion 3a where it is secured 12b. The bung 5 is positioned inside a tapered fishing rod and held in position by a positioning member contacting the internal surface of the rod. When a fish is hooked, the use grips the gripping portion and retracts the bung axially and to the side such that the prongs engage the rod butt section. The elastic line can then be further shortened if necessary.

Description

1 2451637

AN ANGLING DEVICE

The present invention relates to fishing pole bungs, which S are used in combination with a fishing pole.

Pole bungs are used in angling mainly for providing a secure base for shock absorbing thread (elastic) which is used amongst other things, to help retrieve the fighting fish, usually larger fish which "run" or are powerful enough to break a fishing pole. The elastic therefore slows the fish down by applying an ever increasing pressure on the fish and protects the fishing pole (valuable/fragile) against rapid sharp shocks and also prolonged heavy pressure.

Generally these bungs are conical in shape and are in a fixed position located inside one of the tapered fishing pole sections. They are removed by means of a separate elongate retractor tool as for example shown in GB 2306093.

However this arrangement suffers from a number of problems.

Generally a quicker way to retrieve the fish is to "shorten" the elastic by manually reducing its length. This has the effect to increase the pressure on the fish. The fact that the elastic is attached to the bung, which has a fixed location, inside the pole section makes it impossible to retrieve the elastic without the use of the retractor tool.

If used, the retractor tool, not only retrieves the elastic but also the complete pole bung assembly. The "shortening" of elastic must therefore be achieved with the complete bung assembly attached. This is cumbersome, wastes time and the fish could be lost.

In another known arrangement, a fishing pole section is fitted with the Conical cone and an assembled plain long tube, a short piece of the tube extending from the outside S of the pole butt. The elastic is passed axially though the centre of the tube and tied off in a large exposed loop at the rear. Here the elastic is manually pulled back through the assembly to "shorten" the elastic and aid fish retrieval.

With these systems there still remain a number of problems.

When "shortening" the elastic, the excess is wound around the fingers of the user's free hand (usually the left hand -the right hand would be holding the fishing pole itself).

This renders the hand useless to perform any other tasks such as holding the landing net and manoeuvring it to land the fish. Furthermore if the left hand with the excess elastic is passed up to your right hand to free up the hand, this leads to yet another problem. The elastic must be stretched rearward and then through an arc of 180 degrees to reach the right hand holding the fishing pole. The resulting movement causes the now tensioned elastic to come into contact with butt end of the pole section causing rubbing and friction damage to the elastic. This butt end area commonly has small splinters of carbon fibre resulting from the wear of the constant assembly / disassembly of the male and female joints.

dditionally the above configuration also has the effect of forcing the cone and tube assembly further up into the fishing pole section increasing the likelihood of friction damage. Further problems can result. The deflection of the long tube against the inner side wall of the fishing pole can result in this force also being transmitted to the single cone, which is located solely by its largest diameter. This can cause serious internal damage to the structure of the fishing pole.

It is an aim of preferred embodiments of the present to address or mitigate one or more of the discussed problems.

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a pole bung for use with a fishing pole, said pole bung comprising at least one hook part for engaging a butt section of a fishing pole.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a pole bung for use with a fishing pole, said pole bung having a first elongate configuration and a second configuration in which said pole burig is bent over an edge of a butt section of a fishing pole.

For a better understanding of the present invention and as to how the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way of example only to the accompanying figures in which: Figure 1 shows a cross-section from the side showing all the assembled components, which Constitute the pole bung, embodying the present invention.

Figure 2 shows a Cross-section from the side of the pole bung of Figure 1 installed into a closed fishing pole and fitted with elastic.

Figure 3 shows a side view of the pole bung of Figure 1 in an open fishing pole after retraction, and hooked on the butt end of the fishing pole section, with the two cones released from the inner walls of the said section.

Figure 4 shows a side view of the pole bung in the open fishing pole of Figure 3 with the elastic sliding axially though the pole bung in the process of "shortening".

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to Figures 1 to 4.

Figure 1 shows the pole bung with its component parts. These components comprise a semi-flexible tube la. The pole bung is hollow along the length thereof.

At one end region thereof there is a threaded portion lb. Attached to this threaded portion lb are first and second cones 4a and 4b which are externally grooved. The cones have a truncated shape in one embodiment. The cones may be internally threaded at the nose portion to engage with the threaded portion or alternatively may have a planar internal surface engaging the threaded portion. In some embodiments of the invention the threaded portion maybe omitted and a frictional engagement may be used to retain the cones on the tube.

The longitudinal axis of the tube la coincides with the longitudinal axes of the first and second cones. The first and second cones are open at their respective ends further from the end of the tube. The shape of the cones can be any suitable shape and in some embodiments can be more cup shaped. The first and second cones 4a and 4b are spaced apart from each other along the threaded portion lb. The pole bung comprises a double hook 2 and a conical section 3a at the opposite end region of the pole bung to the threaded portion lb. The conical section is externally ridged 3b to provide a portion to be gripped. The external surface of the conical section can be alternatively smooth or have any other suitable patterning to facilitate gripping of that surface by the user.

The cone is a generally truncated shape with the wider end of the cone further from the threaded portion than the nose part of the cone. The shape of this section can of course be changed. In some embodiments of the invention, this can be more tubular in shape. Other shapes are possible. In some embodiments of the invention the ridges can be omitted. The conical section may be integrally formed with the tube or separately attached thereto.

The double hook comprises two prongs 2a which extend generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the tube. The two prongs are spaced apart from the tube by a small distance. it should be appreciated that alternative embodiments of the invention may have either less than two prongs or more than two prongs. The prongs may be integrally formed with the tube or be separately attached thereto. The prongs and the conical portion may be formed of a single part or may be separately formed.

The distance between the prongs is an amount which is less that the maximum diameter of the first and second cones. In one embodiment, the distance between the two prongs is roughly half the maximum diameter of the first and second cones.

Reference is now made to Figures 2 to 4 which show the pole bung installed into a fishing pole.

To install the pole bung into the fishing pole a single threaded cone 4a is adjusted on the threaded portion lb and inserted into a tapered fishing pole section lOa until the single cone comes in contact with the inner surface of the tapered fishing pole. The conical section 3a will protrude from the butt end of the fishing pole section by a nominal dimension of about 1.5cm or similar.

It should be appreciated that in some embodiments these cones are externally grooved and can be manually cut to form varying diameters to suite the various internal diameters of the different fishing pole sections.

The pole bung is removed and a second threaded cone 4b is then adjusted onto the threaded portion lb and re-inserted into the pole section lOa until contact with the inner pole wall is made. This enables stabilization with all-round two point contact with the inner fishing pole wall. it should be appreciated that in some embodiments a single cone may be used.

With the assembled pole bung removed from the fishing pole section, elastic 12a, which has been threaded from a fixed position though the upper tapered fishing pole sections, is passed though the semi-flexible tube la and tied off in a loop l2b, large enough to leave a small protrusion 12c, for example of the order of 1.5cm, from the conical section 3a.

The pole bung is now held in place by the elastic, which is under slight tension, gently forcing the cones 4a and 4b against the tapered inner wall of the fishing pole section.

As shown in Figure 2, the fishing pole is closed by the insertion of the tapered pole section lOb. The pole bung is now ready for use.

On contact with a fish, the fishing pole would be opened by the manual removal of the section lOb, the fishing pole section lOa would normally be held in the right hand, and at the desired time the conical section 3a, having a "grippable" outer surface 3b, and itself protruding from the butt end of the pole section is gripped by the left hand.

The user then retracts the bung axially and then to the side. This allows either one of the hooks 2 to be secured, by locking onto the outer edge of the pole section butt lOc.

In other words, the end of the pole section in is accommodated between the hook and the tube of the pole bung.

The flexibility of tube la allows this. The pole bung is now in a locked position held in place by the tension in the elastic 12a. This is illustrated in Figure 3 This action causes cones 4a arid 4b to be disengaged from contact with the inner fishing pole wall. This eliminates pole section breakages (carbon fibre is very brittle under localized compression) commonly associated with existing static models.

From the above position, shown in Figure 3, the elastic can now be "shortened". This is illustrated in Figure 4. When ready, the protruding part l2c of the elastic loop 12b can be grasped by the left hand and stretched rearward to remove the complete loop from the conical section 3a,. and then forward through an arc of approximately 180 degrees to reach the right hand holding the fishing pole, here the elastic would be trapped between the outer surface of the fishing pole section and the index finger of the right hand, the degree of shortening" is governed by the amount of elastic fed through the index finger. The left hand is now completely free for other activities, such as landing the fish.

In the above sequence of elastic "shortening", the hook 2 now locked on to the outer edge of the pole section butt lOc, results in an extended lip 2a, in this sequence the conical section 3a has been lowered so that the stretched elastic passes over the double hook 2 and the extended lip 2a as it travels to the index finger of the right hand. The elastic is now protected against any form of damage arising from friction and rubbing around the butt end of the fishing pole section.

The extended lip or prong 2a, because it extends to cover some of the external surface of the fishing pole will further protect against any possibility of the elastic 12a coming into contact with the fishing pole edge (pole section butt lOc) or the external surface.

In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the hooks may be omitted. In this embodiment, the pole bung is made of a material such as a corrugated tube or a flexible tube. The flexible tube may be of rubber or similar flexible material.

The pole bung can be bent over the end of the pole section butt lOc so as to extend generally along the axis of the pole section. The holding of the elastic would ensure that the pole bung remains in the folded configuration. The pole bung adopts at least a v-shape and in some embodiments will lie more or less along the outside of the pole section. When the elastic is released, the pole bung would adopt the position in the pole section butt, similar to that shown in Figure 2. The pole bung is thus biased to adopt the position shown in Figure 2 when the force provided by the user holding the elastic, as generally shown in Figure 4, is removed. The pole burig is thus biased to the straight configuration. The folded or bent configuration provides protection for the elastic and still allows the fisherman to have a free hand.

It should be appreciated that references to the right hand can be replaced by references to the left hand and vice versa.

The pole bung can be made of any suitable material and may for example be of a plastics material. Polypropylene is one preferred material. Any suitable manufacturing technique can be used to make the pole bung. Where the pole bung is of plastics, a moulding process such as injection moulding process or the like can be used. The pole bung may comprise a one piece structure moulded as a single piece. The pole bung may also be produced by individual machined components which are then assembled to form the finished product, this method will allow the use of varying types of material, for example the conical section 3a could, due to the operation of the elastic "shorting" be made from PTFE (Teflon) this material having a lower coefficient of friction, the remaining components being Constructed from other materials.

Claims (21)

1. A pole bung for use with a fishing pole, said pole bung comprising at least one hook part for engaging a butt section of a fishing pole.

2. A pole bung as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one hook part is connected to a tubular member.

3. A pole bung as claimed in claim 2, wherein said tubular member is flexible.

4. A pole bung as claimed in claim 2 or 3, wherein said at least one hook part comprises a prong extending generally parallel to and spaced apart from a longitudinal axis of said tubular member.

5. A pole bung as claimed in claim 4, wherein said at least one prong in configured such that said butt section is in use accommodated between said at least one prong and said tubular member.

6. A pole bung as claimed in any of claims 2 to 5, wherein two hook parts are provided, said hook parts being arranged on said tubular body one opposite the other.

7. A pole bung for use with a fishing pole, said pole bung having a first elongate configuration and a second configuration in which said pole bung is bent over an edge of a butt section of a fishing pole.

8. A pole bung as claimed in claim 7, wherein said pole bung is of a flexible material.

9. A pole bung as claimed in claim 7 or 8, wherein said pole bung is of a corrugated material.

10. A pole bung as claimed in claim 7, 8 or 9, wherein said pole bung is biased to said first position.

11. A pole bung as claimed in any preceding claim, comprising a gripping portion.

12. A pole bung as claimed in claim 11, wherein said gripping portion is generally conical.

13. A pole bung as claimed in claim 11 or 12, wherein said gripping portion in patterned to facilitate gripping of said portion by a user.

14. A pole bung as claimed in any of claims 11 to 13, wherein said gripping portion is configured to accommodate elastic in use.

15. A pole bung as claimed in any preceding claim comprising a portion to which at least one positioning member for positioning said pole bung in a fishing pole.

16. A pole büng as claimed in claim 15, wherein said portion is a threaded portion.

17. A pole bung as claimed in claim 16, in combination with at least one positioning member.

18. A combination as claimed in claim 17, wherein said positioning member is generally conical in shape.

19. A combination as claimed in claim 16 or 17, wherein a plurality of positioning members, wherein each of said positioning members can be independently positioned.

20. A combination as claimed in any of claims 16 to 19, wherein said at least one positioning member comprises a plurality of grooves for facilitating the cutting of the positioning member to fit a fishing pole.

21. A kit comprising a pole bung as claimed in any of claims 1 to 16 and at least one positioning member.