altoids fishing kit "catfisher"

thingiverse

The Altoids Fishing Kit "catfisher" is my new ultra-lightweight fishing rig. I designed another little fishing reel that's more practical than my first one at http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2002148. As the name suggests, you guessed it – this reel packs down into a standard Altoids tin with some room to spare. I added metal hardware including nuts, bolts, and a 624 bearing so this one won't qualify as 100% printable. However, this should improve the design's usefulness and practicality. With this new rig, mounting is simplified to use only one zip tie and there are fewer parts to print. This reel is a basic hand-crank spool with no drag or break for the drum (you need to use your thumb when casting) but I might upgrade that after some more field testing. Due to the addition of the ball bearing, this little reel can cast baits and lures with a bit of weight so it should be well-suited for backcountry catfish dinner on the open fire. Use a 7" zip tie for the reel and 4” zip ties to fix the eye guides to a long flexible branch or piece river cane, and you're away! **Print Settings** * Printer: Prusa i3 custom * Rafts: No * Supports: Yes * Resolution: .3mm layers * Infill: 30% **Notes**: Print 3 eyes, the base, and the pin with no support. I had to design the base part with its own built-in support material because it has some unsupported mass but the slicer software was generating some really weird support material that was impossible to detach from the part (see pics for details). Print the inside spool, outside spool, and the hub with support material for best results. **Post-Printing** Clean up the parts: Remove the support material and clean up any burrs from the plastic parts. To clean up the base part, snip the 4 connections to the bottom arm (remember that this part is designed with the support material integrated into the model) and cut through the little diagonal fins that support the top arm (see pics below). Remove the chunk of support material and sand all the connection points with a bit of sandpaper or emery cloth. **Parts List** * Printed Parts: + 1 - Base + 1 - Hub + 1 - Outside spool + 1 - Inside spool + 1 - Pin + 3 - Eyes * All parts: + Nuts and Bolts: - 1 - 4mm x 30mm bolt - 1 - 4mm washer - 1 - 4mm nylock nut - 1 - 624 ball bearing (13mm diameter, 5mm wide, 4.5mm dia hole) - 1 - 3mm x 30mm bolt - 1 - 3mm x 20 mm bolt - 3 - 3mm nuts - 3 - 3mm washers * All hardware: * Misc Supplies: + 1 - Altoids tin + 1 - 7" zip tie + 3 - 4" zip ties Optional glue that will be compatible with your filament of choice. **Assembly: Step 1** Fit the ball bearing into the inside spool. **Assembly: Step 2** Insert the hub into the outside spool. **Assembly: Step 3** Using the 4mm hardware, bolt the assembly together loosely. This is the part when you could add a bit of glue to the spool halves to make sure they stay put when you get a little tension on the line. **Assembly: Step 4** Add the crank bolt and washer stuff and snug up all the hardware to your taste. **Assembly: Step 4 (Mounting)** Take the leftover 3mm hardware and install the little pin. Adjust the pin to suit the diameter of your particular fishing stick of choice (I used a pencil in the pic) and use a zip tie to mount it. Wind on a bit of fishing line, and you're ready to go.