# Revo Thoughts and Kayak Crabbing



## BubbaBlue

After testing the Revo this weekend in some decent wind and waves I'm still sold on the Mirage drive. No way as much effort as paddling. Them legs do get to burning if you're at it for awhile though.  

Boat's good and dry and stable in the waves.  

One of the reasons I bought this boat is to crab from it. I spent a lot of time this week playing with ideas and finally came up with a system. Figured I'd share. 












Once the traps are deployed I move the ice chest and other crap to the middle crate. 



One of the problems with trap crabbing from a yak is "Where to I put a pissed off crab?" The crate mounted in the front is the solution. 



















As you can see, I zip tied noodle around the bottom to provide floatation and stability. There are two short pieces on the bottom to even out the slanted hatch cover but they also add to the floatation. Why?

Once I'm on the water and my traps are deployed, I take it off the yak and float it, tied off with a 10' piece of bungee.










I let it float away until I'm checking traps. It rides way behind the boat and I don't even know it's there. When I'm checking traps, I pull it in and secure it on a short leash, still floating in the water right next to the boat. I use it to dump the crabs in for sorting and to store them for the trip home. I found it useful for putting fish in temporarily too until I had enough to open the chest. There was enough water in the bottom to keep them alive.

Once I come up with a source for more crates, I plan on making up another one just for fish. A pull behind live well. It will sit lower in the water and will have a lid. (No, it won't be pink either.  It's the only one I have that has holes small enough to keep claws from reaching through. Figure I'd say something first before the WBB had a chance toy with it.  )


Now. The trap floats presented a problem. When I crab from the jon boat I just leave them connected to the trap for transport. The stack of 10 was too high for comfort on the yak so I took them off. Where to put them? I string them on a piece of string and put them in the center hatch grabbing them as I need them.














Home made rod leashes. Got the idea from another board and modified it. Just a pair of sticky velcro stuck together back to back with a loop of string between them in the sticky part. I leave the velcro part connected to the rod all the time and just unclip them to fish.













Hobie cart.










I bought it because it sounded so good. Just the idea of using the scupper holes and little Roleez wheels sounded great! Well, after fighting installing that thing over and over I'm about ready to toss it. You have to lean the boat over and dump everything out first to get it on. I even tried doing it from under water. Yeah right. What a pain in the butt. It's not wide enough for uneven terrain either and I've read on other boards that it can cause the plastic to crack near the scuppers from all the stress it puts there. So much for great ideas.  

While doing something in the garage today I tripped over an old cart I've had for years. Used to use it to haul my other yaks and canoe. Idea! Will it work? Man, that thing is great!    Easy on, easy off. Wider, more stable... it's a breeze. Think CampMor still has them for under a C-note.










I may try the Hobie one again when I know I have a lot of sand to haul across, but not until then.

Enough this time around.

cheers...

R-
.


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## stonemason

dont the crabs fight eachother since you are keeping them int he same water? i wold think putting them in a cooler would be better?


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## fingersandclaws

So that's the contraption . . . very nice indeed!!! Man, I'm sorry the Roleez cart didn't work out for you, I feel kinda responsible after telling you how much of a life saver it is :redface: 

The second cart you have it the one Fishbait got, and he loves it. He has the bigger Roleez wheels on his cart. Was it the scupper hole part you didn't like, or the wheels themselves? If it was the scupper hole part, maybe you can get the wheels to fit onto your other cart. Can't wait to hit up the Wye or Chester on these things.

BTW, I copied your designs on the crab traps, and if ya wanna fit 10 without taking the noodle out, use 4 bungees to secure the top trap to the milk crate. It'll sway a little bit, but it ain't goin' no where.


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## BubbaBlue

stupidjet said:


> dont the crabs fight eachother since you are keeping them int he same water? i wold think putting them in a cooler would be better?


Don't put them in a cooler! They are big oxygen users and will croak in a short time. 

They do fight each other initially but then they give up.

They don't need water. Just throw a wet towel over them to keep them moist and cool.



fingersandclaws said:


> So that's the contraption . . . very nice indeed!!! Man, I'm sorry the Roleez cart didn't work out for you, I feel kinda responsible after telling you how much of a life saver it is :redface:


Nah, I would have gotten it no matter what you said.  

I do like the tackle boxes and paddle leash that came with the package. Only the cart sux.



fingersandclaws said:


> The second cart you have it the one Fishbait got, and he loves it. He has the bigger Roleez wheels on his cart. Was it the scupper hole part you didn't like, or the wheels themselves? If it was the scupper hole part, maybe you can get the wheels to fit onto your other cart.


The scupper hole part. I can't install it myself without dumping the yak contents. Once I read that it can eventually kill the yak due to stress cracks, it made it even more a bad thing. The narrow wheel track doesn't help much either.

I'm going to use the old one as is until I have a problem with sand. Will bring the Hobie one along on new trips just in case.




fingersandclaws said:


> BTW, I copied your designs on the crab traps, and if ya wanna fit 10 without taking the noodle out, use 4 bungees to secure the top trap to the milk crate. It'll sway a little bit, but it ain't goin' no where.


Might try it but it seemed a little high to me with the floats installed. Also, getting the top ones out and back in may be a pain. Takes less than an extra 30 sec per trap to rig them on the water and it ain't bad. I may try 15 next trip.

My next challenge. What to do with the crabs once I fill the floating crate? I'm thinking a stacked arrangement of floaters and then just anchor the filled ones until it's time to go home. Then just daisy chain them together and drag them home.  

Note to self. Measure how many milk crates equals a bushel.
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## e-mag

BB,crabbing any good yet at crab alley?


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## cygnus-x1

Hey BB how many crabs did you get? Where may I ask do you crab? Magothy?


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## BubbaBlue

e-mag said:


> BB,crabbing any good yet at crab alley?


Reports I'm getting are that things are slow pretty much all over mid-bay. The drought has caused the salinity to rise and a lot of the decent crabs have moved north to find more brackish water. The hot spot right now is the Gunpowder River. They're also tearing them up in the Elk River too.  How's that for strange.

The drought helps the fishing but hurts the crabbing.

Yeah, they're catching them at the Wye and Chester but it's not as hot as it usually is this time of year. Lots of small crabs.  



cygnus-x1 said:


> Hey BB how many crabs did you get? Where may I ask do you crab? Magothy?


Hey Doug,
Yes I was crabbing on the Magothy near the house. 

I was just testing the setup I created and didn't really expect to catch much. Caught over a hundred crabs but most were too small. Maybe a dozen "barely" keepers but I didn't keep any.

R-
.


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## uncdub13

So i take it this one doesnt do very well on soft sand?










Almost got one similar for the beach but didn't know how those tires would do.


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## okimavich

I have similar tires and they aren't too bad. The tires are heavier and tend to dig a bit more than the large rolleze types.

But they sure beat having shopping cart wheels.


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## BubbaBlue

uncdub13 said:


> So i take it this one doesnt do very well on soft sand?
> 
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> 
> Almost got one similar for the beach but didn't know how those tires would do.





okimavich said:


> I have similar tires and they aren't too bad. The tires are heavier and tend to dig a bit more than the large rolleze types.
> 
> But they sure beat having shopping cart wheels.


Gonna have to bow to oki's thoughts on this one. It's been years since I used it and can't remember. I didn't remember I owned the thing until after I was done yaking for the weekend.  

If it digs in bad, I'll probably upgrade it to Roleez. I think the Chinese knockoffs on the Hobie one are too small to fool with.
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## stonemason

i have always put my crabs in a cooler with wet newspaper ont he bottom, and a couple ice packs. obviously opening the cooler up to put another crab in recirculates the air. on hot days, my crabs would die instantly using a bushel basket, even when using wet eel grass. putting them in a cooler or a restaurant storing them in a fridge is no different. opening up the cooler works for me


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## fishbait

BB, the frame of that cart looks identical to the roleez cart I got. Maybe a roleez wheel might fit on it. We can test this theory out next time we fish together.


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## BubbaBlue

Yeah FB, I bet adding Roleez would be easy. Gonna hold off for now because I already own two sets of them for other things. 

Next time I take the yak out, I'll try the old cart out in the sand and see how it does. The ease of installation and new wider stance stability will make up for a lot of ditch digging.   

Curious, what size wheels did they put on yours?
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## fishbait

I'll measure them and post pics when I get home.


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## Railroader

Nice write-up BB, I LOVE the Fish Finder mount. That is is the best use I ever saw for an old rod butt...Where on EARTH did you ever get such a GREAT idea???


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## stonemason

^yes, how did you mount it? i just got my yak in today...

the rod leash that came with your yak, is it small coiled wire? thats what came with mine, from the picture i thought it was going to be longer or something..

also, there is a strap that i have no idea what it is for...strap with plastic clips on both sides...

the clips ont he seat clip on the the eyelets on the side to hold it up, right?

the scupper plugs dont have to be pushed in too far right?

thanks


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## fingersandclaws

Yo Stupid, next time the boys get together, come on over and I'll show you the nooks and crannies of the Revo. PM me your number, and I'll give ya a call.


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## BubbaBlue

Railroader said:


> Nice write-up BB, I LOVE the Fish Finder mount. That is is the best use I ever saw for an old rod butt...Where on EARTH did you ever get such a GREAT idea???


A real smart dude I know told me about that one.   

Works GREAT! Almost as good as the BFGs...
 
.


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## BubbaBlue

stupidjet said:


> the rod leash that came with your yak, is it small coiled wire? thats what came with mine, from the picture i thought it was going to be longer or something..


You sure that isn't your paddle leash? 


stupidjet said:


> also, there is a strap that i have no idea what it is for...strap with plastic clips on both sides...
> the clips ont he seat clip on the the eyelets on the side to hold it up, right?


Clip the metal clips to the side to hold the seat in place. Clip the extra bungee on the rear of the seat back and then clip to one of the bungee rigging holes on either side. Keeps the back from falling forward when you get up.



stupidjet said:


> the scupper plugs dont have to be pushed in too far right?


I don't see a need for them. Haven't used them yet. I want the water to drain out, not collect.
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## wolfva

Out of curiosity...can't the crabs climb up the milk crate in a bid for freedom? It'd royally suck to haul your crate in and see they all jumped ship...<G>. 

I'm gonna have to build me some crates like that; one idea I had is to get a large nylon mesh sack and sew a pool noodle to the opening in a circle, leaving enough material to fold over so fishies don't hop out. Think that might work to? Or would it be to much drag?


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## BubbaBlue

As far as them escaping. I throw a wet towel over them to keep them cool, and that usually keeps them in. 

You are ahead of me on one thing though. I was concerned about anchoring off a full crate and it possibly getting hit by a boat wake or something. I plan on adding removable lids to the floaters. Saw on another board where a guy cut the bottom off another crate and rigged it up with bungees somehow. Going to do something similar once I get some more crates.

As far as the drag on a fish bag. Shouldn't be too bad, but I'm talking about pulling it with a Hobie peddle drive, not arm power. If you paddle, the floating crate or fish bag may be more than you want to pull around. Don't know.

There are others on here that use fish bags. Maybe they can chime in.
.


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## LiteTackleChamp

i think ryan made a top for his surf launch milkcrate, u might want to look at the pics of his crate ive been trying to build one like his for the fall run


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## BubbaBlue

I'd like to see a picture of his crate. Couldn't find anything in the gallery. 

The one I saw on another board had it hinged with zip ties on one side I believe, and then had bungees on top of the back corners. Spring shut. This might work but I want something that will stay open until I want to close it.
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## fishbait

BubbaBlue said:


> Curious, what size wheels did they put on yours?
> .


Well, I took some pics for you, but I couldn't figure out how to read the side wall.


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## BubbaBlue

FB,
Thx but I can't see the size on them either.  Oh well. Not a big deal. I don't plan on upgrading any time soon.

Just from the picture, they look like their new wider and thinner version. Perfect for a yak cart.  

You got a good deal on it. BeachCartsUSA has them for $169. 
http://www.beachcartsusa.com/canoekayaktoteframe.htm
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## uncdub13

Here's the crate i made. When closed, it's secured with both velcro and a bungee over the top. If you just wanna keep crabs in there, i think the velcro would be all you'd need.


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## BubbaBlue

Cool. I think that would work just fine for my purposes. 
 
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## stonemason

where do you guys get your crates?? i went to giant and offered to pay for 2 but they said no. am i just gonna have to go behind a 7-11 and yoink some?


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## BubbaBlue

I had the same problem. Yesterday I went into Food Lion and there was a kid loading the milk cooler. Told him I needed a couple for crabbing. He said, "Here, take them." "Isn't somebody going to complain?" "Nah."

I put them under my cart in full view, went through the checkout line and paid for my groceries (feeling like a criminal) and walked right out the front door with them. Not a problem.

First step, retire my old pink one! 

I still need two more. Hmmm.... 
.


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## fingersandclaws

creatively borrow


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## LiteTackleChamp

liberate

i think the milk crate would like to hold your crabs or fishing gear alot more than to hold milk or other heavy stuff


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## can't fish today

stupidjet said:


> where do you guys get your crates?? i went to giant and offered to pay for 2 but they said no. am i just gonna have to go behind a 7-11 and yoink some?


I bought mine from Big Lots.


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## can't fish today

uncdub13 said:


> Here's the crate i made. When closed, it's secured with both velcro and a bungee over the top. If you just wanna keep crabs in there, i think the velcro would be all you'd need.


What anchors the forward rod holders and keeps them from tipping backwards? Do you troll from them?


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## Soaked

stupidjet said:


> where do you guys get your crates?? i went to giant and offered to pay for 2 but they said no. am i just gonna have to go behind a 7-11 and yoink some?


Try Office Depot or Staples. They have 6 bizillion crates in every size, shape and color you could imagine.


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## uncdub13

can't fish today said:


> What anchors the forward rod holders and keeps them from tipping backwards? Do you troll from them?


They're bolted to the crate. I use them mainly for slow trolling or drifting live baits.


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## can't fish today

uncdub13 said:


> They're bolted to the crate. I use them mainly for slow trolling or drifting live baits.


Thanks for the info. I think I'll try to duplicate that.


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## bbcroaker

Those rod holders looked like handle bars at first glane 
Don't you all have problems snagging your rod's stored benind you in he holdes behind you like that when you're casting?
I do.
Oh almost forgot I bought my crate at Dollar General 4 bucks .


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## BubbaBlue

Digging out this thread for an update.

The latest iteration of my crab crate. Added a lid and more floats. Originally had velcro on the lid but the glue was old and didn't hold up in the water. Had to make do on the water with bungee. I like bungee better now anyhow. Didn't bother with a real hinge. Just used zip ties.












In operation:










Works really well.

If someone decides to do this, learn from my mistake. I kept my tongs and measuring stick in the crate on leash bungees. Seemed like the place to put them. Had been catching crabs, maybe a dozen in the crate. Then I crated a doubler and I knew I was going to have to toss back the female. Reached in the crate, avoiding claws and pulled out my tongs. Not a problem. Didn't notice it at the time, but attached to the leash bungee were two of the biggest crabs. I noticed them as they fell off in my lap.  Chased them bad boys around the yak awhile before I could corral them. Burned up some adrenaline there, boy.  Moral of the story, don't keep your tongs in the crate. 

Had a decent morning on the water. Caught over a hundred crabs, keeping over 2 dozen big boys. Threw back many legal crabs and just kept the #1's. FYI, they were deep. Most were between 10 and 15 feet. Nothing under 5 feet. 










Another shot of the floats. This is on a creek off the Magothy near the house.










Somebody was wanting pictures of transducer mounts. Here's my ratty looking foam mount. Looks bad but works good.











Here's the soft side chest I told a number of folks about offline. Fits the crate well. Note the pop up lid and heavy duty insulation. $14 at Wally World. 












Finally, an update on the old non Roleez cart I mentioned in the original post. I drug it in the sand today and it is a real BEAR. Trench city.  
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