Care of Tackle or, Don’t Step on the Rods!

While more rods probably get broken in car doors and home screen doors, a fair number of them are also broken while fishing. That sad fact is true whether fishing from a boat or shoreline.

I watched one angler at the end of a fishing trip, not realizing that the crossing rods in the upper part of the car trunk were part of the spring mechanism, crush both tip and butt sections of three rods as he slammed the trunk shut. Another, distracted, rolled up the rear window of his station wagon with the rod tip sticking six inches out of the window.

More dangers exist when actually fishing. More than one angler with a few rods in his boat has had a few minus one when the trip ends. Rods die in boats in several ways. If the boat is large, rods are often laid on the deck where they are stepped on.

If rested with the tip ends against the gunwale when traveling between fishing holes, vibrations from hitting waves can create a crack in the rod that will cause it to break the next time it is cast or two months later. This is particularly true of graphite rods.

The butt ends of rods and the reels that they hold are also subject to damage. By banging against the deck butt ends can be bruised and vibrations can back out the screws in reels. In addition, spinning reel handles are particularly susceptible to getting stepped on and broken.

One way to help protect both rod butts and reels is to use a thick old sock—like an athletic sock—to slip over the rod butt and reel to protect them and also prevent rattling noises that might alert fish to your presence.

Let a lure hang over the side of the boat on a long run, and the lure can catch the water where water pressure can pull the rod right out of the boat. Not good!

Put rods in a vertical rod holder with a lure on the end of the line, and that lure will dance around and might catch other tackle or you. A lure hanging from your clothing or face is not a suggested accessory or fashion statement.

When shore fishing, the angler with an arsenal of rods may lay down those not being used. Other anglers or any angler in the heat of fighting a fish can forget and step on one or more rods. Instead, prop then up against a tree, bush or large rock if there are big boulders along your favorite river or lake. If moving from spot to spot along the shore, it helps to bundle rods together with rubber bands or a rod carrier (available from your friendly tackle shop) to safeguard them.

The secret of all this is to think, whether boat or shore fishing. Think where to store or rest rods to keep them out of danger and where they will not endanger anyone else.

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