Alittle while ago, I wrote an article on foraging for food locally. One of my favorite forms of foraging includes fishing. Unfortunately, over a period of two recent fishing trips, I lost one pole due to it flying out of the bed of my truck while offroading and another pole simply snapped in half. Now guys, what better reason than to get some new poles, right? I mean, even the wife can’t argue that purchase. Anyway, I headed down to the local Turner’s Outdoorsman (sporting goods store) and after alittle shopping and comparing, I walked out with two brand new Fennwick (5’6″ ultralight / fast action and a 6′ light / fast action) and two Okuma Californians. Why two? One setup for my wife, of course. I did, however, feel alittle guilty because I had spent more than I’d planned, but I figured with proper care, these poles will last me a long time… which brings me to the topic of this article.
DIY Fishing Rod Case
DIY Fishing Pole Case
The last poles that I had were a lot less expensive (about $40 for the rod and reel). And because they were so cheap, I didn’t put as much care into protecting them (childish error, I know). Anyway, since these poles were a lot more, I wanted to make sure I protected them from damage during transportation. I checked out some commercial pole cases, but most were very big and required the reels to be removed. Now I’m not big on removing the reel after each use, so I put the old brain to work and came up with the case below. It’s basically made from a 5″ x 5″ vinyl post, two matching caps, and some salvaged materials from some old packs I’d been saving. This DIY Fishing Pole Case holes two rods with reels attached. Here’s the build.
Material List:
1 – 4′ length of 5″ x 5″ vinyl fence post (I had to buy the entire 8′ section at the Home Depot)
Closeup of the fence post and end caps.
2 – 5″ x 5″ post caps (see picture above)
1 – salvaged backpack handle
12 – feet of 1″ nylon webbing
2 – fastex buckles
2 – 1″ x 4″ strips of velcro
The Build:
1) Measuring for your rods – measure the length of your fishing rods and add approximately 3″. My rods are two piece rods and therefore, the longest section was 35.5″ I added 3″ and came up with a total length of 38.5″.
Measuring for the cut. Rod length + 3″.
2) Cutting the main body – cut the vinyl fence post to the length you just measure. I used a miter saw and cut the 8′ vinyl fencepost to 38.5″. There was a lot of plastic debris as well dust inside the fence post, so I hosed it out. Attach the end caps. You’re done (sort of)!
I washed the fence post out to get rid of plastic debris and other foreign objects.
End caps just press onto the fence post.
3) Making the handle – using the salvaged nylon, velcro, backpack handle, and fastex buckles, I used my sewing machine and made a harness to go around the fishing rod case and over the end caps. The straps that goes over the end caps helps to secure the caps in place. The fastex buckles make it easy to detach the end caps and remove the rods.
Custom made nylon straps from salvaged materials.
Velcro used to secure the two cross straps to the main body.
The DIY Fishing Rod case holds both my rods and reels securely and protects them from being crushed during transport. The only thing I’m not totally satisfied with is that the reel handles must be collapsed for both rods to fit. A minor inconvenience, but nothing compared to having to remove the reels and transport separately.
Both my rods with reels attached inside the DIY Fishing Rod Case
Since building the DIY Fishing Rod case, I’ve used it several times and so far, no other complaints. There is really nothing to it so it does it’s job fine. The rods remain protected on or off road, the straps over the end caps prevent the end caps from accidentally falling off, and the fastex buckles make it easy for me to remove the end caps to retrieve my rods.
Fastex buckle and strap used to secure the end caps.
I had tried lining the inside of the DIY Fishing Rod case with some soft materials to further protect the rods. I have some 1/8″ thick padded felt material that I can use, but I haven’t found an adhesive I want to use yet. I tried double sided tape and it worked for the first couple of times, but eventually the tape started to peel away. I thought about using a spray adhesive, but I’m alittle concerned about the odor of the spray adhesive penetrating the fishing line and scaring away the fish. If anyone has a solution, I’d love to hear it.
Padded felt lining for the interior.
Hope this helps someone other there. Happy fishing.
~ John, Modern Bushman
Great idea for a rod case which can leave reels attached. Individual rod socks can be made from any type of soft fabric. The length will simply be long enough to cover the rod. The width will be enough to fold over the rod and reel like a taco. Stitch the side and one end by hand or machine, turn inside out to keep the loose seam fabric inside. You are done! The excess fabric flopping around at the tip end provides excellent padding to keep those delicate tip-tops from slapping around. Finally, if you care to, a drawstring sleeve can be created at the open end by sewing over a small flap around the entrance and introducing the drawstring with a thin dowel, wire coat hanger, etc. Just make certain that all loose seam fabric is on the same side. I hope this helps.
Thaddeus: thanks for that. I tried putting a liner in, but it always seems to peel off after several uses. Maybe I will have to try the sock method next.
How about split foam that goes around water pipes to encase the rods.
Lars: I wanted something that I can install on the inside of the case so I can make putting the rods away easier. But having used it for several months now, I don’t think the case needs a lining. The rods don’t seem to bounce around as much as I thought they might.