Fishing Forum

hey all, have you ever been out fishing the middle of a lake i the dead of summer i your tube? im sure you have, i had a brain flash the other nigth about a way to get out of the sun, or rain without having to paddle to the truck. i mean lets face it soemtimes you just have to take a break from the sun, i know i do. i put the bimini top up on my boat all the time, why should i not put it up on my tube?? so i got to drawing, and made a plan using pvc pipe, and a light but yetuv resistant fabric to creat a bimini top per say for my tube. it is attach just at the side of where the last turn on the donut starts with bungees. i think this idea couls work. tell me what you think. man reading over that post mad eit look just like a info. commercial. here are the pics. i drew them on the paint program, so they are kind of crude, but you can get the basic idea.

i probably should mention that the top part, that actually provides the shade, folds down into the base peices, which is why it is smaller. tell me what you think.
[signature]

Hey fishboy2, any and all ideas are welcome here. Whatever your original plan may be, it could be picked apart and re assembled in a matter that may be more useable. It may even be fine as is.

I have one that I made for my tube as well. It is also out of PVC. I need to get some pics of it and have everything ready by Monday.

It would be a good idea for all of us to have a meeting of minds and come up with some good hot weather solutions.

Please keep us informed as to the progress.[cool]
[signature]

thanks, i would too like to see your ideas. i got my pictures up, they arent the best but you can see what i mean.
[signature]

How about this one? Just lash a giant umbrella to your tube. Just pray it's not too windy, the drag on that thing would be aweful!![cool]

[signature]

Your idea and concept are well conveyed. It is very similar to what I have going on mine. I guess that you can't do too much with a basic square. I should have some color pics by this coming monday.

Lots of work this week for me so there is not much time to play too much. ha ha.

Thanks for sharing that with us as well. The screen for the top is easily attained at your local building center. I'm sure you have a Home Depot over there in Utah. They sell a flexible fabric sunscreen that works well and doesn't add too much extra weight with all the other goodies that go on the tube.[cool]
[signature]

[cool][blue][size 1]I couldn't open the large bitmap files on your post. Can you attach them as Jpeg and size them down to 400 pixels wide?[/size][/blue]

[#0000ff][size 1]Having a sunshade is a good idea...if you have the right design and it is light weight and out of the way. And, as cat_man points out, you need to be concerned about wind-catching potential. Of course the sunscreen is intended to provide relief when the sun is hot and there is no cooling breeze. Right? Otherwise, you might as well get a sailboard, 'cause that's what you would become on those afternoon breezes at Deer Creek.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]I have played around with a couple of designs, using the collapsible and flexible poles from a tent. I still haven't come up with anything that is more serviceable than it is a pain in the patootie when not in use...or while it is in use.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Anyway, my mama taught me that when it gets too hot you should find some cool shade and kick back until it cools off. Down here in Arizona all the smart folks do their fishing early or late. You don't see many "dedicated" sun worshipers on the water during the middle of the day. In fact, the best fishing during the summer down here is after dark.[/size][/#0000ff]
[signature]

Here ya go TubeDude.




[signature]

[cool][blue][size 1]Hey man, I don't drive no steenking round boat no more. I need somting wit class. Check out this bad boy. Folds down and unrolls when you need it.[/size][/blue]


[signature]

Yeah, well I do. I just thought of another great advantage of my design. Think of Deer Creek, near the dam. You can't get a float tube in the water there on the south side to fish that area. All you gotta do though is get in your tube, open up the umbrella (one of those oversized beach type), and jump off. You'll softly float down to the water and land in a perfect fishing spot. You're on your own figuring out how to get back out, but those are just details anyway, right? Especially if you get into some good fish there.
[signature]

[cool][blue][size 1]Hey, Kevin, I think I know you well enough to know that you ain't been partaking of controlled substances. Maybe you've been watching too much Mary Poppins (the umbrella thing).[/size][/blue]

[#0000ff][size 1]About fishing off steep cliffs...I knew a guy who rigged up to rappel down and back up to get into a quarry pit. He fixed the tube up with straps over his shoulders and getting down was simple. Getting back up was a summagun, though and he had to have help from a buddy.[/size][/#0000ff]
[signature]

That would surely get in the way of my RPG launcher and inhibit the functionality of the big screen tv. Besides that, If I have to remove the headlights everytime that I want some shade, then it may be the wrong time of the day.
[signature]

As a matter of fact, my wife and I DID watch Mary Poppins the other day.......

Maybe that's the source of my genius! [crazy][crazy]

That buddy who did the rappeling sounds dedicated. Nothing wrong with doin whatever it takes to get to the fishys. You can worry about getting out later. The important thing is to get in there and catch some fish! [angelic]
[signature]

[cool][blue][size 1]I think all of us "dedicated" fishin' fools probably have some good tales to tell on ourselves about going "below and beyond" the boundaries of good sense...just to get to a fishing hole.[/size][/blue]

[#0000ff][size 1]Probably my craziest tubing sessions were on the dredger canals near Buras, down below New Orleans, in Louisiana. You could drive right up to them, and you could catch fish by walking around the available shoreline and casting. But, as a tuber, I couldn't be satisfied with that. I had to go afloatin'.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]The banks were either straight down or fast sloping slimy mud. If you tried to walk on the mud, you would sink to your knees. I hatched the plan of using my fins as "mud shoes/skis". I got my tube around my waist, stepped to the top edge of the mud slope and crouched. I then slid quickly down into the water, settled in and began paddling out to meet the fishies. Got a few too, as you can see in the pics.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]The fun part came when I had to get back on shore. I couldn't ski upslope. My first efforts were to keep the fins on and try the side to side uphill shuffle, like you do with skis. It worked okay until I was mostly out of water and there was no buoyancy to lighten my weight. Once I got to knee deep, I went knee deep into the mud. [/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]I pitched my rods and fish basket up onto the grassy bank to lighten my load and free up some mobility. I then worked all around the end of the canal, looking for a small stretch of bottom that had some roots or some other firmness. No luck. Finally, I got rid of the fins, unbuckled the crotch strap on the tube and pulled it up over my head and used it as a float to get myself farther up the bank. Once I got within reach of some overhanging reeds, I pulled myself physically up over the tube and the reeds to dry ground. I got muddy, and the mud stunk. But, I had worked out the problem. I had to strip down pretty good to get in my car for the drive home. Glad I didn't get pulled over by one of the locals.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]In subsequent trips, I brought a plank with cross pieces tacked to it for some traction. I also tried some old carpet. Both worked and I enjoyed some great fishing that I would have otherwise never have experienced.[/size][/#0000ff]
[signature]

Hey Pat thanks for the pics. That's a great story. I think at least part of it was in your book. The pics are a great addition. The final product of your book aughta include a few pics.
[signature]

[cool][blue][size 1]Yeah, I probably oughtta read what I writ. [/size][/blue]

[#0000ff][size 1]Pics? Man, I gots albums full to be scanned yet. There will be a shortage of pages before there will be a shortage of pics.[/size][/#0000ff]

[#0000ff][size 1]Glad you like the show and tell. I too get a lot more from something if there are pics and diagrams. I guess it is true that most of us are highly visual in our assimilation processes.[/size][/#0000ff]
[signature]

Hey thats' just a bimmini from a real boat LOL.

You goin boaty on us now TD?[laugh]
[signature]

CATMAN: thanks for resizin gthat for me. saved me the work anyways.

PAT: this style that i have made up could work on your tube also, it would just take a little mickey mouseing to get it to work. ill let you guys know how it turns out in a week or so.
[signature]

Hi there fishboy2,

This is one of 100+ 'sketches to be illustrations' I've done for tubing projects.

I believe in Velcro pads for the canopy anchors and pole stablizers.

JapanRon
[signature]

that is a good idea for the pontoon style tubes. have you put it together yet? if so how did it work for ya
[signature]

I wonder how far the rotation would be on that one. Could it possible fold forward as well as backward?? If it could go forward then it could double as a rod rest when you wanted to take a snooze. Or even a foot rest for working out those "Long haul legg cramps".
[signature]