Fishing unit

A fishing unit consisting of a drum, a fishing line secured at one end to the drum and being wound on the drum with a fishhook and casting weight secured to the other end of the line extending from the drum, and a handle for the drum arranged to be grasped by the user with his forefinger extended to overlie the line windings on the drum to prevent unwinding of the line, with the drum axis substantially parallel to the forefinger, so that when the user moves his forearm and wrist forwardly with a snapping motion, and releases his forefinger from the windings, the hook and weight will be propelled forwardly by their own momentum, with the fishing line spinning freely from the forward end of the drum. The drum is hollow and sealed to be buoyant, so that it will not sink if dropped in water, and the hollow interior is specially configurated to permit the storage of additional fishing line, hooks, bait and other fishing gear.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in fishing apparatus, 
and has particular reference to a device adapted generally to serve in 
lieu of the usual rod and reel. 
A particular object of the present invention is the provision of a device 
of the character described which, while extremely small and compact as 
compared to the usual rod ard reel, nevertheless permits the user to cast 
the hook, lure and/or bait to substantially the same distances as may be 
accomplished with the rod and reel. At the same time, the device itself is 
quite short, being little longer than the user's hand and projecting only 
slightly beyond his fingertips. This adapts the device for convenient use 
in crowded conditions, ior example when fishing from piers and the like, 
where rod and reel casting may well cause entanglement with the lines and 
gear of other fishermen, and also adapts it for use in the presence of 
low, overhanging obstructions, such as tree branches and the like. To this 
end, the device consists generally of a drum to which the line is attached 
and on which said line is wound manually, the drum being arranged with its 
axis adapted to be disposed generally parallel to the user's extended 
forefinger, and having a handle generally parallel to the drum axis which 
may be gripped by the user with his forefinger extended to lie across the 
line windings on the drum to prevent unreeling of the line. Then, with the 
hook, bait ard/or lure left dangling a few inches from the drum, the user 
snaps the device forwardly with a motion of the wrist and forearm similar 
to that used in casting with a rod and reel, releasing his finger from the 
line windings on the drum at the proper moment so that the hook and bait 
are propelled forwardly by their momentum, with the line unreeling from 
the forward end of the drum. After the hook and bait enter the water, the 
bait may be "played", such as by twitching it and pulling it in a series 
of jerks or the like, and the line retrieved by manually rewinding it on 
the drum. 
Another object is the provision of a device of the character described 
including means whereby it is rendered buoyant, so that it will not sink 
and be lost if it is accidentally dropped in water. 
Another object is the provision of a device of the character described 
having a hollow interior which not only renders it buoyant, but also 
provides storage space for extra fishing line, hooks, bait, lures and 
other fishing gear which may be required by the fisherman. 
Other objects are extreme economy and simplicity of construction, the 
device having no moving parts in the usual sense of the term, efficiency 
and dependability of operation, and ease and convenience of use.

Like reference numerals apply to similar parts throughout the several 
views, and the numeral 2 applies to a hollow cylindrical outer drum, 
formed of plastic or other suitable material, and having by way of example 
only the size relationship to the user's hand 4 indicated in FIG. 1. Said 
drum has an outwardly projecting flange 6 at its forward end (the left end 
as viewed in FIG. 1), the rearward peripheral edge of said flange being 
rounded as indicated at 8, and the flange being interiorly threaded as 
shown. The rearward end of drum 2 is completely sealed by an integral end 
wall 10, and said end wall is extended to a larger diameter than the drum 
to form a flange 12. Said flange is interrupted by a notch 14 opening 
outwardly from the periphery of drum 2. A straight handle 16, parallel to 
the drum axis but offset eccentrically therefrom to lie flush with the 
periphery of drum 2, and in angular alignment with notch 14, is formed 
integrally with end wall 10 and extends rearwardly therefrom. Said handle 
is provided at its rearward end with an enlargement knob 18, and a 
flexible cord loop 20 is threaded through an eyelet 22 of the handle and 
is adapted to be looped about the wrist of the user as shown. 
A hollow inner drum 24 is disposed concentrically within outer drum 2, but 
is of smaller diameter than said outer drum to leave an annular space 26 
therebetween. The rearward end of said inner drum is open, and extreme 
rearward end portion is flared outwardly as indicated at 28. The forward 
end of the inner drum is closed and sealed by a thick end wall 30 which 
extends outwardly beyond the diameter of the drum to a diameter equal to 
that of flange 6, and the extreme forward end portion of drum 24 is 
externally threaded to mesh with the internal threads of the outer drum, 
so as to join the two drums detachably, the threaded connection being 
indicated at 32. A gasket 34 interposed between end wall 30 and flange 6 
seals the interior of outer drum 2 when the two drums are joined. The 
forward peripheral edge of wall 30 is rounded as indicated at 36. 
A section of fishing line 38, equal in length or exceeding the distance to 
which it may be desired to cast, is affixed at one end by knotting it into 
one or the other of a pair of holes 40 formed through flange 12 at 
respectively opposite sides of notch 14, as indicated at 42 in FIG. 1, and 
then wound manually on outer drum 2, as shown. The opposite end portion of 
the fishing line is left extended from the drum, and has affixed to its 
extreme end, for example, a lead sinker weight 44 and a fishhook 46, to 
which bait 48 of any desired type may be applied. The sinker weight 
supplies the weight or mass necessary for satisfactory casting. If a solid 
lure is used, it will in most cases supply the necessary weight for 
casting, and no sinker, or for that matter no separate bait, will be 
required. The flanges 6 and 12 prevent the line from accidentally slipping 
off of the ends of the drum. A portion of line 38 immediately adjacent the 
sinker and fishhook may then be wedged snugly into a narrow slit 50 formed 
in the edge of flange 12 to secure the line temporarily against unwinding 
from the drum until it is actually desired to make a cast. 
When making a cast, the user first slips cord loop 20 over his wrist, as 
shown, and grips the shank of handle 16 with the thumb and last three 
fingers of the hand, while at the same time extending his forefinger 52 
through notch 14 of flanga 12 and pressing it downwardly against the 
windings of line 38 on drum 2, also as shown in FIG. 1, in order to secure 
the line against unwinding. Then, with the fishhook and bait left dangling 
a few inches from the drum, and after making certain that the line is not 
engaged in slit 50 of flange 12, the user moves his forearm and hand 
forwardly with a snapping motion of the elbow and wrist, the motion being 
much the same as is used when casting with a rod and reel. He then 
releases his forefinger from the windings of fishing line 38 at the moment 
his forefinger reaches a horizontal position, more of less, and the weight 
of the fishhook and sinker, or of a solid lure if such is used, projects 
the hook and sinker forwardly to enter the water at a distant point, with 
the fishing line spinning over flange 6 of the drum, which is rounded to 
prevent catching or snagging of the line thereon, and to prevent backlash 
of the line. The precise moment at which the forefinger should be released 
from the line windings may be determined by practice, and is an easily 
acquired knack. Generally speaking, release at a higher point, that is, 
before the forefinger reaches horizontal, will produce longer casts, while 
release at lower points will produce shorter casts, the different release 
points producing respectively higher and lower trajectories. The 
thickening of forward end wall 30 shifts the center of gravity of the 
device farther toward the forward end of the device, and this is generally 
conducive to the ability to make longer casts if desired. This effect may 
be further enhanced by metal inserts in said forward end wall, if desired. 
The extension of the forefinger as described is conducive to greater 
accuracy of casting, in that better control of the direction of casting 
may be had by simply "pointing the finger" in the desired direction. The 
knob formation 18 at the rearward end of the handle tends to prevent the 
user's grip on said handle from slipping rearwardly if the hand or handle 
is wet or slick, and thus tends to maintain the user's hand and forefinger 
in proper relation to the device. The engagement of cord loop 20 about the 
wrist prevents the entire device from being "thrown" forwardly if it 
should accidentally slip free of the user's grip. Once the hook and bait 
are in the water, the user may retrieve the line, when a fish strikes at 
the bait, simply by shifting his grip on handle 16 to obtain a whole-hand 
grip with the drum axis extending generally at right angles to his 
forearm, and manually rewinding the fishing line on the drum. He may also 
"play" the bait, for example by retrieving the line in short jerks or 
twitches, in order to impart more lifelike movements to the bait, which is 
more attractive to fish. 
Gasket 34 completely seals the interior of outer drum 2 against the entry 
of water, so that the device is rendered buoyant and will not sink if 
accidentally dropped into water. When the two drums are separated by 
unscrewing the threaded connection therebetween, extra fishing line may be 
wound on the inner drum so as to occupy the annular space 26 between the 
drums when they are reassembled. The ends of this stored line may be 
secured by wedging them into narrow slits 54 formed in the flared rearward 
end portion 28 of the inner drum. This stored fishing line is not 
illustrated in the drawing. Extra fishhooks, bait, lures and other fishing 
gear, also not shown, may be stored within the hollow interior of the 
inner drum. Even the fishing line 38 normally wound on the outer drum may 
be stored within the inner drum temporarily for convenience of handling 
and transportation, if desired. Thus virtually everything the fisherman 
may need for a fishing trip may be carried in a neat, very compact 
package. 
While I have shown and described a specific embodiment of my invention, it 
will be readily apparent that many minor changes of structure and 
operation could be made without departing from the spirit of the invention 
.