For centuries, anglers' weights have conventionally been made of lead. Lead is heavy, it is readily available and it is easily cast or moulded into the form of a weight. But lead is toxic and therefore environmentally hazardous, and its resistance to corrosion means this hazard is long-terrn. At the same time, lead is palpably not a natural material in the fishing environment. Thus its use, although almost universal, is considered by serious anglers to reduce their catches because fish, which learn by association, come to perceive danger when they see lead. Nevertheless, despite widespread environmental concern, and dissatisfaction among anglers, no general replacement for lead has emerged.
It follows that there is a long-felt want for an. angling rig using a weight which is environmentally friendly and also not perceived as dangerous by fish, and it is an object of the present invention to satisfy that want.
Thus according to the invention there is provided an angling rig comprising a pebble of natural stone and attachment means through which in use a fishing line extends and is thereby attached to the pebble.
Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate the benefits of natural stone. The pebble is natural both intrinsically and extrinsically—indeed, most if not all angling areas include pebbles. Thus use of the invention as a replacement for rigs using lead weights means that angling areas will not be polluted by extraneous and hazardous material. Natural stone will not appear to fish as representing danger both because it will be camouflaged and because, being less dense than lead, it will settle more gently in the water so anglers can expect better catches. And when weights are lost, which is inevitable from time to time, they will become part of the environment if of natural stone, and support the growth of algae etc. It will also be noted that all these benefits will be most pronounced in waters which are most heavily fished, being waters which. are most exposed to lead accumulation and where fish are most wary of the appearance of lead.
In one embodiment of the invention the attachment means comprises an attachment ring secured to the pebble. This provides an easy and reliable means of attachment to a fishing line, in contrast with devices tried by small boys since time immemorial and with the use of an elastic band proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,982,350. The attachment ring may be secured to the pebble by means of a swivel, which may have a first part holding the attachment ring and a second part retained in a bore in the pebble, which use of a swivel allows the weight to be used with many common kinds of angling rig. The second part of the swivel may be fixed in said bore by a bonding agent such as a two-part epoxy resin adhesive, preferably one which cures to a water-resistant and substantially odourless state so as not to alert fish. A layer of sand may be arranged to cover the mouth of the bore, held in place by the bonding agent.
In another embodiment of the invention the pebble is formed with a bore through which a said fishing line extends in use and the attachment means is configured and arranged for loosely attaching the pebble to the line. (In this context the term “loosely attaching” as used herein refers to rigs permitting either of the aforementioned variants, and more particularly to such rigs in which the strength of attachment of the weight to the line is less than the breaking strength of the line and may be substantially zero whilst nevertheless preventing the weight from running off the end of the line, so that the rig may be both cast and retrieved without losing the weight). This form of rig preferably includes an anti-tangling tube extending through said bore and providing a substantially free path therethrough for the line. The anti-tangling tube may be retained in the bore by two beads friction-fitted over the tube at opposite ends of said bore. Preferably one of these beads is a tulip bead having its stem extending into the bore. A trace swivel may be provided with one end configured and arranged to be releasably held in the cup of the tulip bead, and in use a trace with a hook may be tied to the other end of the trace swivel.
Preferably the pebble is not soluble in water. This allows to be used again and again, for economy and to enable an angler to select a particular weight for particular circumstances.
The invention extends to a method of making an angling rig comprising forming a bore in the pebble and locating in the bore attachment means configured and arranged to be received in the bore and to receive a fishing line extending through the attachment means. The bore may be formed by a drill bit having a spear tip of tungsten carbide, which bit is preferably lubricated whilst forming the bore.
Other aspects of the invention will be apparent from the following description, which is made by way of example only with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings in which;-
Referring first to
The attachment ring 12 is secured to the pebble 10 by means of a swivel 16 bonded in the pebble as will now be described in more detail with reference to
For a Size 10 flexi-ring swivel, the bore 24 is 3 mm diameter and 5 mm deep and may be formed by means of a glass drill operated at low speed (8600 rev/min) with water lubrication. A suitable bit is the FAI GD3 glass bit, which is a bit having a tungsten carbide spear point of 3 mm working diameter and is available from Faithfull Tools of Dartford, UK. Alternatively a core bit of similar working diameter may be used.
The legs 22 are bonded in the bore 24 by means of a two-part epoxy resin adhesive which is substantially odourless and water-resistant when cured. “Adhesiveweld” adhesive from the JB Weld Company of Slough, UK, is suitable. Equal amounts of the two parts of the adhesive, ie resin and hardener, are mixed together and the mixture then pressed into the bore 24 partially to fill it. The swivel 16 is then inserted in the bore 22, causing the adhesive to come up to the mouth of the bore 22, where it is now covered by a coating 26 of fine sand. The adhesive is now allowed to cure, for a period of 24 hours and the fishing weight is then ready for use.
Anglers will now appreciate two principal benefits of the invention. First, the invention provides an angling rig having a weight which is non-toxic, unlike lead. And second, this weight appears to fish to be entirely natural (as it is), and therefore catches may be expected to improve in comparison with the use of lead.
A natural stone weight used in any way in which a conventional lead weight may be used In one angling rig that has been found particularly effective (a) the stem of a tulip bead extends through the attachment ring of the weight, (b) the fishing line extends through an anti-tangling tube and the tulip bead, (c) one end of a trace swivel is tied to the line and is inserted in the cup of the tulip bead, (d) a trace with a hook is tied to the other end of the trace swivel and (e) the weight is held in place on the tulip bead by a plain bead friction-fitted over the anti-tangling tube.
Various modifications may be made to the fishing weight of
Referring now to
The bead 38 is a simple stop bead of elastomeric material which retains the tube 34 by a friction grip. The bead 40 is a tulip bead, also of elastomeric material, having a stem 40a which grips the tube 34 and is pressed into the bore 32 and a cup 40b arranged to provide a loosely gripping seat for a trace swivel 42. The line 36 is tied to one end of the swivel 42 and a trace 44 (with, in use, a baited hook, not shown) is tied to the other end of the swivel 42.
In use an angler casts or lowers the weight 30 into water over a selected fishing ground with the trace 44 and a hook suitably baited. It sinks to the bottom, where the angler may leave it to await a fish or draw it back towards him, eg by use of a fishing reel. Either way, the grip of the beads 38 and 40 on the tube 34 is enough to ensure that the weight 30 stays attached to the line 36, and the grip of the cup 40b on the swivel 42 is enough to ensure that the trace 44 stays as originally connected. Thus, for instance, the rig remains intact during casting and other manoeuvres.
Further, when a fish takes the bait, the grip of the cup 40b on the swivel 42 is also enough to ensure that the weight 30 serves to drive the hook home in the fish's mouth. However, referring now to
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that, instead of the pair of beads 38 and 40, a single bead may be secured on the line (to the right of the weight as viewed in
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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0303146.5 | Feb 2003 | GB | national |
0306446.6 | Mar 2003 | GB | national |
0327489.1 | Nov 2003 | GB | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/GB04/00479 | 2/11/2004 | WO | 8/12/2005 |