Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

hi all. after much searching over hill and dale, I found a nice little bamboo stand with tons of perfect pushpole specimens. I went ahead an got a few good ones (thick, medium, skinny) to experiment with, but I'm still trying to figure out a good way to them to the top of rubrails on my boat like you seen on all the flats skiffs. I know they sell plastic pole holders and the like, but I'm not sure how well they'd work considering no two pieces of bamboo are exactly the same circumference and they tend to taper at one end, so while they would may fit snuggly into a hole at one end, they would bounce around quite a it at the other end. Oh and I'm a cheap, lazy #$@#, and a DIY kind of guy I was thinking of more of a nylon/vlecro lashing system of some sort that I could tighten down on the pole as needed to keep it from bouncing around in transit and while underway. Maybe cut some PVC in half length wise, mount them to the rub rail and use them as cradles. I could then put some kind of adjustable nylon/vleco lashing through a slit in the PVC to snug them down? I know PVC will eventually break down in the sun, but I keep my boat covered when not in use which should help cut down on the UV exposure. Plus I can always make a new set for free, if/when need be. I'm open to ideas. If worse comes to worse, I can just buy some, but what's the fun in that? Thanks.

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

If you lightly sand and spraypaint the pvc it will last along time in the sun.

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

Cool. I guess that makes sense; the paint provides the UV protection. Although, I'd probably just paint the white PVC white to match the boat. LOL. Any ideas on how to paint fresh, green bamboo? I'm still not sure if I want to or will paint the pole itself, but it might look kinda cool. I'm guessing it might have to dry completely, in which case I'll use the one I have now while the others I cut down dry, then I can paint them when/if I feel like it. I love bamboo. It's Mother Nature's PVC I'm still not exactly sure about clamps/pole straps :/ I have some SS pipe clamps that I could use, but I don't want to have to use a screw driver or tiny socket just to release the pole, I'd rather have some sort of click in/out set up but they are weather resistant and infinitely adjustable, so we'll see. I'm still open to ideas. Thanks again.

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

1. let it bounce

2. bamboo will work while it's green, shatter when it dries. but it's disposable; just replace every 3 months or so.

3. for reason #2, don't bother painting. Plus it won't stick.

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

yeah, I think I may pass on the painting, besides the fresh, green is nice and feels great as is. I would still would like to figure out some sort of lashing/clip system to hold the pole along the rubrail :/ I've seen a couple clever DIY solutions online, they look like they work great, but they're for poles of uniform diameter along their entire length. Of course not two piece of bamboo are exactly the same diameter, and they tend to taper a bit at one end, so some sort of ability to adjust them would be needed. I found some velcro straps that I tried to modify, they sorta worked, but alas to no avail ($5 down the tubes). I'm thinking a couple of little nylon straps with the two D-rings on one end that you pass the strap through in an over/under manner and can snug down as tight as you like, but I'm not sure where to look? Maybe good 'ol HF will have something. Oh well, I'll keep tinkering away (that's really the point of all this after all, especially in the middle of the cold snap we're having right now). I'll try to get some pics up when/if I figure out a clever solution (don't hold your breath ). Thanks again. Cheers!

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

You might use electrical pvc conduit rather than pvc pipe. It will hold up better to the UV but not the pounding of the boat.
If your going to split the pipe lengthwise, you could leave some pipe together at both ends and add end caps. Then just bow the bamboo to store under the ends. Velcro straps could be added if needed in the split sections, and the end caps will give enough gap for them to go under the pipe.
good luck
huts

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

look at rodsaver fishing rod tiedowns

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

I might try to add some padding to the holders, and some kind of simple, rubber stap to hold it tight but not bust or crack the Bamboo. I think this would make the boo last longer than a hard plastic holder if the boat bounces alot. It sounds like you've got an endless supply though, so you could make a bunch and just grab a new one when they crack or wear out!! I'm fixin to make a pushpole holder for my boat so let us know what you end up doing please.

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?-SOLVED!!!!

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?-SOLVED!!!!

I think I got it!!! Best of it all it cost less than $5 for the whole kit and kaboodle. I got two of the nylon, vlecro straps shown below from good 'ol HF for a whopping $1.50 each. I then cut out all but a few inches of the felt part of the velcro and kept most of the snaggy bit. I then sewed the snaggy bit on the remaining felty bit with the D-ring in it (very technical terms, I know). I essentially just shortened the overall strap from 32" to about 6". As you can see my sewing leaves much to be desired, but they are very strong and hold the pole way more securely than I would've thought. I secured the straps to the rub rails using #8 SS sheet metal screw ($.20 x 2) with a #8 SS ($.20 x 2) washer beneath the strap and an aluminum finishing washer ($.20 x 2) on top. Good 'ol ACE hardware is my new favorite place. It's about the only place around you can buy less than 9000 fasteners at once like at the big box stores. Plus, they had a funky hard to find bolt I needed for my trailer. I'm very happy with the results the pole is very,very secure and doesn't budge even if I tug on it. It's not my primary form of locomotion, but it should come in handy in all the skinny water around here (N.FL). Of course I spent way more time and money on this than I should have, but it was fun and I'm all about anything DIY. Hopefully, someone else can get an idea or two from these. Cheers!

P.S.
Sorry about the messy boat, I'm doing a bit of spring cleaning/tinkering.

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?-SOLVED!!!!

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?-SOLVED!!!!

ayuh...... let me be the village idiot you could get a panda bear!!
but you would have to keep an i on him or he would eat your poles

woosterken

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?-SOLVED!!!!

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?-SOLVED!!!!

A panda first mate could be interesting. I'm just glad a I found a sweet bamboo stash so I can go get a new pole whenever I need one. My OCD is now telling me to wrap the pole in white duct tape so it can match the rest of the boat. I feel a lot better having it in the boat. Not only can it help get around in the skinny water, I can use it to help get me out of a jam, and it's disposable should I ever loose it, or break it. Now I need to figure out some fort of a bamboo cradle for my little 3 hp kicker. I need something that can allow it to lay on it's side at the back of the boat, when not in use about and inch or two off the sole so it doesn't get wet, or dirty while under way. Ah well, there's always another project to be done......

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

Thats a pretty neat pole holder there, not much stuff to get in the way of fishing etc. I like your PVC mods too! I made a vertical 4 rod holder almost identicle to yours that I mounted to the side of my sideconsole livewell. I used 2 pieces of varnished oak scraps to hold it off the side 1", to clear the lid on the livewell that was flush w side. I also used one 90 on the front and 3 Ts w the last one open, instead of a 90, to let leaves, tree debris, and water etc. drain right out of the pipes. I fabbed the notches and tops of the pipes to hold 2 spinning rods, and 2 baitcasters securely when dropped into their holders and it works great.

Re: Any ideas for a bamboo push pole holder?

thanks mommicked. it was kind of an experiment, but I'm surprised how solid the straps hold the pole. The tricky part was finding velcro strap short enough for the job. There are lots of 3'-6' versions, but it's a lot harder to find a 3"-6" version, so I had to make my own. They're pretty ugly up close, but they're only $1.50 each if I ever need to replace them. If I had a sewing machine or knew what I was doing with a needle and thread, I could've done a much more professional looking job, but they work well as is, which is all that really matters. I've been on kind of a Bamboo/PVC tear here lately. Here are a couple more things I've made recently out of PVC. I also recently made a bamboo cradle for my kicker motor and it's little 1 gal fuel tank. I don't have a pic right now, but it's basically just a bamboo ladder I lay down behind the rear bench seat. It allows me to let kicker motor laid on its side such that I can lash it along with the little 1 gal. gas tank using just a couple bungee cords. Before the motor and gas can rattled around they got wet/dirty after a day on the water. Now they're nice and secure and sit a couple inches off the bottom and should hopefully stay high and dry. The best part is that it's removable so I can remove it and hose out the boat at the end of a trip.



(tiller extension using 1-14" thin walled PVC, slit at one end and secured with pipe clamps)

(home made bilge pump also using 1-1/4" PVC and a "piston" made from a piece of old plastic and a couple flaps of rummer hose. It works great and pumps TONS of water)

Thanks again.