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Over the last 12-18 months I've got right into my wading and thought I'd have a crack at making my own tub. After a bit of looking around at other set ups, I figured it was best to just dive in and see what happened. 

The basic idea was I wanted to be able to carry more than one rod, be mobile amd be organised. After a trip to the hardware store and the local boating store, I had all the parts I needed. Within an afternoon it was done! 

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Generic UV stablised create, electrical conduit for axels, marker bouys / poly floats for wheels and all secured with S/Steel bolts, washers and nylocks. 

Below is a selection of on the job photos.

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Overall it works really well. The rod holders allow me to carry multiple rods all rigged differently. This does two things, (1) when I get a season ending wind knot, I just bench the rod and grab another. No lost time not fishing! (2) It speeds up my apprenticeship as I can run multiple options simultaneously and figure out what works in different scenarios.

Only issue I have found is having the reels face inwards takes up a fair amount of room inside the tub and ironically, the reels get wetter inside the tub than outside. This is because when I land a fish, drops of water fall off the net which I dump in the tub during hook removal etc. I tried facing them "backwards" and outside the tub, seems to solve the problem.

1st planned upgrade is a small esky, big enough to fit a YFW in the 30-35cm range!!

TL

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I cant claim the idea as my own - after seeing Undy's I got thinking and it festered until I did something about it.

Seems to handle the chop well, as in doesnt tip or anything. But trying to rest on it / use it as a work station during chop is challenging. Essentially your standing still and your height wont change, but the tub rises and falls with the chop. 

RE: the guld worm, I had the same idea but thought to use a cranka crab instead. Still on my list of things to do but im sure it has merit.

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Very Nice TL! Does look a little familiar 🤔. I like the triple rod holder to manage  2 rods and keep that landing net handy and tub free. Might have to borrow that idea!

You'll be able to take a slightly heavier outfit to tackle one of those flats bronzies soon :laugh:

One thing ive noticed: After a season or 2, the conduit wears down from sand ingress and needs to be replacing. 

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@Underpants familiar? What ever do you mean? Hahaha its essentially a direct replica of yours mate. I saw yours in action and was very impressed.

RE: sand ingress, Ive read your comments on that before and considered goining with aluminum tubing - but cost and the reflective properties put me off. Figured I would see how long version 1 lasts and upgrade as I learn more.

RE: Rod holders, they work great! Not just for the extra rods, but storage of said rod when removing hooks / re-rigging. Net works well in the holder as well, however I managed to get lures tangled in it a few times. I have also thought of using 1 rod holder to hold a stake-out pole. So I could anchor the tub to a specif point, then roam un-restricted. Sooooooo many options to pimp out a tub!

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@bjorn2fish definately makes things easier. Dont get me wrong there are some small inconveniences at times with the tub - in comparison to just wading, rod in hand, bag on you back. However the benefits far outway the cons!

An updated version 2 of the tub came to life last weekend!

After a bit of research I found the a pretty suitable esky. A 20L IceKool esky. It was small enough to fit in the tub, but big enough to fot a 35+ model YFW. Worst case scenario if the reality was not quite as I had envisaged, I had a good BBQ beer esky 🍻

The esky didnt fit exactly as I imagined, especially with the rod holders on the inside, but it was workable. It also took up more room than I anticipated, odd given I knew the measurements before I made the purchase. 

I used some lengths of hardwood dowel to strengthen up the axels so they would cope with the extra weight of an esky with ice, drinks and hopefully a few fish!

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Then it was time to hit the water to test it out!

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Overall it worked really well and I was very happy with it.

Next upgrade will be some additional flotation - possibly by adding a 3rd axel - as whilst an esky with ice and a few drinks is fine - I soon found out, the weight of any fish in the esky quickly adds up!!

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