Stan Fagerstrom
02-05-2002, 10:39 AM
Sometimes Little Things Really Do Mean A Lot
By Stan Fagerstrom
Hang around this business of sports fishing long enough and you’re a cinch to run into items and individuals that are of special interest. Over the past century of fishing and writing about it I’ve encountered my share of both.
One of the individuals is a guy from Oregon City, Oregon. He is forever making some of those items I mentioned that make life a tad easier the fellow who fishes. You may not know Pat Reichner from Amos Moses but I’ll bet you’ve seen some of his products
Pat you see designed those brightly-colored plastic holsters for pliers and files that are marketed under the name HoldZit Tool Savers. These nifty tool sheaths are made so it’s easy to store and lubricate tools like pliers or files and keep them from rusting. The easy-to-spot holsters can be mounted in a boat, hooked on your belt or simply carried in a pocket.
http://www.ifish.net/saholdzit.jpg
This HoldZit file holder is just one of several handy aids to outdoorsmen invented by Pat Reichner, of Oregon City.
And the Tool Savers are just one of the handy items Pat has come up with. Others include his HoldZit Comfort Grip & Caps. The Comfort Grip can be slipped right over the handle of a casting or spinning rod. The Comfort Caps are designed to snug over the
end plate of round casting reels. They make it easier for those of us bothered with cold hands to stick it out when the temperature dips on a river on lake.
.
What do you do with the empty container after you’ve removed the film that came in it and loaded it into your camera? You might, as I have for years, found uses for some of these containers as a means of storing small items of fishing tackle. Things like snaps and swivels, split rings, smaller hooks or a number of other similar items.
Well, if you haven’t put those empty film containers to work before there’s added reason to do so now. Why? Because Pat Reichner also came up with a way of making them even easier to use. What’s he has done is so darn simple I caught myself thinking: “Now why didn’t I think of that?” But I didn’t think of it and neither did anyone else.
What Reichner did is design a little vinyl sleeve that fits snugly down around the closed end of the film container. He calls it the Squeeze Sheath. The top of the sheath has a small chain attached. You can use the chain to attach the film container to the outside of your fishing vest or any exterior buttonhole for that matter.
When you want to use something you’ve placed inside the film container, all you need do is remove the plastic top and take out what you need. And those empty film holders aren’t the only things the Squeeze Sheath can handle. If you choose you can use one to carry fly float, fly sink, fast drying glues or anything else you might use in your angling endeavors.
Readers interested in find out more about these items, as well as several others Reichner has invented, can call Northwest Adventures Ltd. At (503) 655-9576. You can also visit the company’s web site at: www.holdzit.com. (http://www.holdzit.com.)
Talking about storing small items of tackle brings to mind another plastic container that I’ve been using for that purpose for years.
Ever hear of the breath mints called Tic Tacs? They come in little containers only 2 ½-inches high and 1½-inches wide. There is a small opening at the top that can be opened or snapped shut with the fingers of one hand. Once they’re empty I find them a super means of storing smaller items of fishing gear. I often keep my larger snaps in one and smaller snaps in another. I often do the same with sinkers, swivels, hooks, split rings, rattles and a number of other smaller items.
Because the Tic Tac containers are so small, I can get several of them into a tray of my tackle box or I can carry half a half dozen in my pocket. One of the things I like best about them is that they made of clear plastic. You don’t have to guess what’s inside.
One downside to using an empty Tic Tac container is that sometimes the top and bottom tend to pull apart. The way to remedy that problem is simply put a drop or two of super glue on the sides of the top part and slip it back in place. As soon as it dries, the top is there to stay and you’ll have no more problems.
You can avoid another potential problem by keeping these little containers away from your plastic worms or grubs. You’ll have a mess on your hands if you don’t because the the plastic in the Tic Tac boxes isn’t “worm proof.”
Mention of super glue makes me think of something else I’ve discovered that has cut down on the frustrations I’ve experienced in using these fast-drying types. Perhaps you’ve shared some of the same problems.
Used to be I’d buy a container of super glue, open it and use a couple of drops. Then I’d lay it aside and figure I had plenty left to use the next time I needed to do a quick glue job of one kind or another. Trouble was, more often than not the next time I picked up the glue container it couldn’t be used because the opening had glued itself shut. If that hadn’t happened, the darn glue would have dried or hardened to where it was no longer useable.
I’ve finally found fast drying glue in a container that works better than most. It is called Quick Tite. The little plastic containers this glue comes in are shaped like a tiny bottle. It’s easy to use and lasts a long time, provided you do a couple of things each time you’ve finished using it. One of those things is to wipe excess glue from the container’s tip. The second is to store it in the freezing compartment of your refrigerator. Be sure it is stored in an upright position. Don’t take it out until you’re ready to use it again.
Handle a Quick Tite container in this fashion and it should last you for a long time. I’ve got one container I’ve been using now for a couple of years and it still does the job for me.
Incidentally, if you have suggestions regarding other things of a similar nature that might be helpful to the readers of this column, let’s hear from you. I’ll share your ideas with other readers.
By Stan Fagerstrom
Hang around this business of sports fishing long enough and you’re a cinch to run into items and individuals that are of special interest. Over the past century of fishing and writing about it I’ve encountered my share of both.
One of the individuals is a guy from Oregon City, Oregon. He is forever making some of those items I mentioned that make life a tad easier the fellow who fishes. You may not know Pat Reichner from Amos Moses but I’ll bet you’ve seen some of his products
Pat you see designed those brightly-colored plastic holsters for pliers and files that are marketed under the name HoldZit Tool Savers. These nifty tool sheaths are made so it’s easy to store and lubricate tools like pliers or files and keep them from rusting. The easy-to-spot holsters can be mounted in a boat, hooked on your belt or simply carried in a pocket.
http://www.ifish.net/saholdzit.jpg
This HoldZit file holder is just one of several handy aids to outdoorsmen invented by Pat Reichner, of Oregon City.
And the Tool Savers are just one of the handy items Pat has come up with. Others include his HoldZit Comfort Grip & Caps. The Comfort Grip can be slipped right over the handle of a casting or spinning rod. The Comfort Caps are designed to snug over the
end plate of round casting reels. They make it easier for those of us bothered with cold hands to stick it out when the temperature dips on a river on lake.
.
What do you do with the empty container after you’ve removed the film that came in it and loaded it into your camera? You might, as I have for years, found uses for some of these containers as a means of storing small items of fishing tackle. Things like snaps and swivels, split rings, smaller hooks or a number of other similar items.
Well, if you haven’t put those empty film containers to work before there’s added reason to do so now. Why? Because Pat Reichner also came up with a way of making them even easier to use. What’s he has done is so darn simple I caught myself thinking: “Now why didn’t I think of that?” But I didn’t think of it and neither did anyone else.
What Reichner did is design a little vinyl sleeve that fits snugly down around the closed end of the film container. He calls it the Squeeze Sheath. The top of the sheath has a small chain attached. You can use the chain to attach the film container to the outside of your fishing vest or any exterior buttonhole for that matter.
When you want to use something you’ve placed inside the film container, all you need do is remove the plastic top and take out what you need. And those empty film holders aren’t the only things the Squeeze Sheath can handle. If you choose you can use one to carry fly float, fly sink, fast drying glues or anything else you might use in your angling endeavors.
Readers interested in find out more about these items, as well as several others Reichner has invented, can call Northwest Adventures Ltd. At (503) 655-9576. You can also visit the company’s web site at: www.holdzit.com. (http://www.holdzit.com.)
Talking about storing small items of tackle brings to mind another plastic container that I’ve been using for that purpose for years.
Ever hear of the breath mints called Tic Tacs? They come in little containers only 2 ½-inches high and 1½-inches wide. There is a small opening at the top that can be opened or snapped shut with the fingers of one hand. Once they’re empty I find them a super means of storing smaller items of fishing gear. I often keep my larger snaps in one and smaller snaps in another. I often do the same with sinkers, swivels, hooks, split rings, rattles and a number of other smaller items.
Because the Tic Tac containers are so small, I can get several of them into a tray of my tackle box or I can carry half a half dozen in my pocket. One of the things I like best about them is that they made of clear plastic. You don’t have to guess what’s inside.
One downside to using an empty Tic Tac container is that sometimes the top and bottom tend to pull apart. The way to remedy that problem is simply put a drop or two of super glue on the sides of the top part and slip it back in place. As soon as it dries, the top is there to stay and you’ll have no more problems.
You can avoid another potential problem by keeping these little containers away from your plastic worms or grubs. You’ll have a mess on your hands if you don’t because the the plastic in the Tic Tac boxes isn’t “worm proof.”
Mention of super glue makes me think of something else I’ve discovered that has cut down on the frustrations I’ve experienced in using these fast-drying types. Perhaps you’ve shared some of the same problems.
Used to be I’d buy a container of super glue, open it and use a couple of drops. Then I’d lay it aside and figure I had plenty left to use the next time I needed to do a quick glue job of one kind or another. Trouble was, more often than not the next time I picked up the glue container it couldn’t be used because the opening had glued itself shut. If that hadn’t happened, the darn glue would have dried or hardened to where it was no longer useable.
I’ve finally found fast drying glue in a container that works better than most. It is called Quick Tite. The little plastic containers this glue comes in are shaped like a tiny bottle. It’s easy to use and lasts a long time, provided you do a couple of things each time you’ve finished using it. One of those things is to wipe excess glue from the container’s tip. The second is to store it in the freezing compartment of your refrigerator. Be sure it is stored in an upright position. Don’t take it out until you’re ready to use it again.
Handle a Quick Tite container in this fashion and it should last you for a long time. I’ve got one container I’ve been using now for a couple of years and it still does the job for me.
Incidentally, if you have suggestions regarding other things of a similar nature that might be helpful to the readers of this column, let’s hear from you. I’ll share your ideas with other readers.