Hi all,
I work very closely with disabled veterans here in Omaha. One of the areas that has bothered me is what seems to be a lack of fly rods for one armed veterans. I think something can be done with a simple 12V motor connected to a reel, and controlled by buttons/and or switches affixed to the rod handle.

So does anyone know if something like this has been done already, or do I need to dig in and start designing.

Thanks for any help.

For taking up slack line you always have the old "automatic" fly reels, although you'd probably have to source a used one somewhere. Beyond that, I'm not aware of anything.

.............

Checkout this video

[www.youtube.com]

Link to automatic reel

[www.pfluegerfishing.com]

start here [www.adaptiveoutdoorsman.com]
[www.handicappedoutdoors.com]

or get those creative juices going you might be able to adapt something from the radio controlled hobby sector as the batteries are small and light and motors are quire powerful.
I know they have reels for casting and spinning but never heard of one for fly fishing you might new the new inventor

The best day to be alive is always tomorrow !!
Think out side the box when all else fails !!!
Wi.

John, Have a good one armed friend that I have designed a rod for inshore light tackle here in No. Calif. I remember as a kid a fly reel that was my dad's that was spring loaded and auto retreived ( I think it was a Phuegler,bad spelling sorry) Not sure if that company still is in business.Depending on the distance of retreive, I think a simple spring system might work. Stay in touch.............Darrel

Come on Rodboard readers, we need to help John out here. John’s request for help is the most deserving posted here since I joined (except mine, of course lol). I will certainly offer my Habitual-Over-Thinking and fabrication abilities (or lack thereof) but John will certainly benefit from as much feedback as Tom allows. A simple, cold comment can spark up a lot of ingenuity! Come on, cough it up and spit it out; good or bad, right or wrong, serious or stupid does not matter. Let’s make this the biggest post ever!!!!!!

Mark Talmo
FISHING IS NOT AN ESCAPE FROM LIFE BUT RATHER A DEEPER IMMERSION INTO IT!!! BUILDING YOUR OWN SIMPLY ENHANCES THE EXPERIENCE.

instead of traditional fly fishing how about Tenkara ?

Just pole fish

With rollers behind you

Very long lightweight pole with elastic in the pole

Check out ''UK style pole fishing''

Need plenty of room behind you

Big fish can be tamed with the massive amount of bend in the very long rod and the elastic in the pole of varying thickness

Easily done with one hand and a bit of practice

Talk to the Vet. Ask him/her how they would hold the rod and go about casting and retrieving line. Pick their brains and work closely with them and you will discover a way. Let them borrow a rod for a day and fish with them. They will figure it out and provide feedback.
Adapt And Overcome.

For trout fishing, Tenkara is a very good option,, no reel to contend with. A number of rod models available.

Phil,

Tenkara is one that actually did come to mind. I have introduced it to my Vets and some seem to enjoy using it. Only problem of course is distance. We fish on lakes so often need to get a little further than tenkara will work.

I actually did find an automatic reel. I used one when I was a kid, many moons ago. It works well on the retrieve, but the problem is stripping line off the reed with one arm. What I need is a reel that will automatically retrieve line and some way provide line at a controlled rate while casting. I've been playing with small dc motors and Arduino micro-controllers for a rod lathe and epoxy mixer I am designing, and I might be able to build something around that concept. I could use two micro-buttons on the handle, one to retrieve one to "strip line off". The buttons might provide the control I need. Now I just have to design the holder for the motor and a spool for the line. Then figure out how to power the motor and controller and pack everything into a rod handle. Micro miniaturization to the extreme.

Oh well, the challenge never ends it seems.

Thanks.

John