Poor Man's Netting Needle

[DIM TIM]

Been having some trouble accessing the forums the last month or so, so now that I have the problem cleared up for however long it stays cleared up, I thought that I would share a simple little project that I had been wanting to do for some time. It works amazingly well, and I'm in the process of building a crate-style fish trap, using the netting needle to lash the pieces together (you get a good idea of what I mean by watching the video I made).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywnFY2c-m1o

Most people that use the needle to make their nets, also use a gauge stick to set the mesh size. I'm going to make a net as well, and plan to use another paint stirring stick as my gauge stick. Once that is done, I plan to do another net using the "tied cord" method, where you simply tie alternating pairs of cordage to make the mesh.
Either way works really well to make a fishing net, and it's a pretty cool skill to know.

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Very nice. This is something I have not done but would like to try

[610Alpha]

Nice vid...before you brought out the big stirrer I was thinking just take two lengths of and glue them together...but the extra thick stirrer does the job without the glue!!

[qrprat77]

Great vid! What did u use to cut the u shape out of the middle? Table router? I ain't got nuthin fancy, so it would probably be knife whittled if I do it.

[kev80]

That pretty cool, love the video.

[DIM TIM]

Sorry that I havn't been back in to answer your posts everyone, but life has been keeping me busy these past few months.

In answer to your question there qrprat77...I used a drill bit to make the three holes at the two tip points and the middle. They were made to lessen the chance of splitting. I then used a utility knife to score the outline of the hole, and then made each pass a bit deeper than the last until the cuts came through the other side.
If you take your time and go slowly, you can do it without splitting the wood. I've made two so far, and although the one did split, they both work fine.

In answer to your post there 610alpha...yeah, I thought about glue myself, but it really isn't that big of a deal as far as the thicknes of the stick goes. I'm even considering making one by taking and splitting one in half the length of the stir stick, to make one that is only about 3/4" wide. It will take some doing, and a steady hand when cutting the hole, but if it works it will make a smaller needle for getting into tight places.

The most important thing about them is to sand all the edges with a medium to fine grit sandpaper. this lessens the chance of getting a splinter in you fingers, and also the chance that a piece may stick out just enough to get caught on something, and split the wood because of it.

Kev80...glad you liked the video. I hope to make another one here soon to show the fish trap that I'm making using the needle to get the cordage in between the sticks that I'm making it from. I'll be going to get some clear poly sealer this coming week or next to waterproof the whole thing to make it last a while. Once that is done, I'm going to start looking through the woods to find a sapling that I can use to make a handle for a landing net. Oh sure, I could go to a sporting goods store and buy one made from aluminum, but to be able to "MAKE" your own from natural sources says bookfuls more about a man as a provider for his family in times of need and dire situations. Hope we never get put into that spot, but knowledge of things like this should be part of everyones "survival kit".