01-05-2003, 12:49 PM
[cool] Not being an accomplished floatation fisherman does not make you a bad person...just deprived, rather than depraved.
Yes, Virginia, there are "NON-INFLATED" craft available. My first "store bought" craft...around the mid '70's, was a molded plastic "donut", with a semi-comfortable hard seat, a molded-in rod tube and a depression to hold a small tackle box. It worked fine, as a novelty and semi-fishable craft. But, I found that for comfort, stability and floatation, I still preferred my truck tube dinghys.
I guess the hardsided tube sensed my dislike of it. On one spring crappie excursion, it succumbed to years of banging around and the degradation of heat, sunshine and atmospheric polution. Shortly after launching, it began to settle into the water and a large stream of bubbles issued from a cracked seam where the top and bottom halves were joined. I kicked quickly back to shore, but made it only to about four feet of water when it left me standing. I lost my dignity, and blew off the fishing trip, but suffered no major damage to myself or my tackle.
A couple of manufacturers have recognized the sensitivity of some who are reluctant to trust their safety to a thinly stretched piece of rubber or plastic. There are a couple of models of donuts available with closed cell foam as flotation. There are also some really good pontoon craft with solid foam construction. These are big favorites with the river running crowd, since you have to be less mindful of snags and rocks. They provide no insurance against stupidity, however, and you must still pay attention to the basic rules of safety and sensible operation.
If you would like to further investigate this awesome pursuit, but with non sinkable equipment, I will be happy to research out some models for you to check out.
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Yes, Virginia, there are "NON-INFLATED" craft available. My first "store bought" craft...around the mid '70's, was a molded plastic "donut", with a semi-comfortable hard seat, a molded-in rod tube and a depression to hold a small tackle box. It worked fine, as a novelty and semi-fishable craft. But, I found that for comfort, stability and floatation, I still preferred my truck tube dinghys.
I guess the hardsided tube sensed my dislike of it. On one spring crappie excursion, it succumbed to years of banging around and the degradation of heat, sunshine and atmospheric polution. Shortly after launching, it began to settle into the water and a large stream of bubbles issued from a cracked seam where the top and bottom halves were joined. I kicked quickly back to shore, but made it only to about four feet of water when it left me standing. I lost my dignity, and blew off the fishing trip, but suffered no major damage to myself or my tackle.
A couple of manufacturers have recognized the sensitivity of some who are reluctant to trust their safety to a thinly stretched piece of rubber or plastic. There are a couple of models of donuts available with closed cell foam as flotation. There are also some really good pontoon craft with solid foam construction. These are big favorites with the river running crowd, since you have to be less mindful of snags and rocks. They provide no insurance against stupidity, however, and you must still pay attention to the basic rules of safety and sensible operation.
If you would like to further investigate this awesome pursuit, but with non sinkable equipment, I will be happy to research out some models for you to check out.
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