How to Make Shrimp Nets
In commercial shrimp fishing, giant shrimp nets are dragged through the ocean to catch hundreds of shrimp at a time. On a smaller scale, shrimp fishing is done from a bridge, pier or small boat, and sometime even from the shore if the shrimp are close to the beach. Shrimp nets are typically on long poles, with a netting sock of around two feet. While commercial shrimp nets cost upwards of $30 or $40, homemade ones are far less expensive, and easy to make. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- White netting, about 5 feet
- White 4-gauge wire
- Wire cutters
- Metal pole, 20 foot by 1 inch
- Metal drill
- Needle and thread/sewing machine
- Scissors
Instructions
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1
Bend the wire into a circle, with a diameter of about 11 inches. Leave around 15 inches on both ends of the wire for winding on the pole. Cut a 5 or 6-inch piece of wire and wind it around the two end pieces at the base of the circle, leaving the 15-inch ends free, but closing the circle.
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2
Fold the white netting in half lengthwise. Round the folded edges by cutting the corners in a semicircular fashion, then either machine or hand-sew the open seams of the netting. This makes the netting sock.
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3
Place the netting sock in the center of the wire circle, and pull it through until the sock is around 2 feet long. Fold the excess netting over the sides of the wire circle, and either machine or hand-sew the netting around the wire, creating a casing for the wire with an opening where the wire ends of the circle come out. This will look much like a drawstring casing on sweatpants.
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4
Cut the excess netting away, leaving a flap of netting around the area where the 15-inch wire ends come from the circle. Carefully hand-sew the flap of netting around this part, so that the whole net is now secure.
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5
Drill two holes, 3 inches from one end of the metal pole, around 0.25 inches in diameter through the sides of the pole.
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Thread the ends of the circle wire through the end of the pole, and bring them out of the drilled holes, one on each side. Pull the wire ends quite taut, so that the circle is drawn down as close to the pole end as possible without it warping.
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7
Keep the tension on the wire, pulling in an outwards motion. Wrap the wire around the top of the metal pole tightly, pushing the end of the wire back into the drilled hole at the end. Do this with both pieces of wire, so that the netting and wire circle are firmly attached to the pole.
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Tips & Warnings
Only use white or silver wire and white netting, because it is invisible to the shrimp. Common fishnets made from green or blue wire are visible to shrimp, and will significantly hamper shrimp fishing efforts.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit shrimp image by cherie from Fotolia.com
