The Ultimate Milkcrate

[Gunsmoke]

Below are some pictures from my newly fabricated "Ultimate Milkcrate." It measures 21" x 24" x 12" without handles. 21" x 29 1/2" x 12" with handles. It weights in at 206 pounds. If anyone is interested, I can post pictures of it during the fabrication process.

It is designed to hold 7 rods. The back side with 3 rod holders will hold up to 50W's. The front side with 4 rod holders will hold up to 30's. I designed it to take on long range tuna trips. I figure I need one 50W, one 30W, two jigging outfits, two large spinning outfits, and one bait rod.

Stainless steel eye hooks are behind the rod holders to secure the rods with bungee cords. Stainless steel screws were used throughout the fabrication. It should not move or shift no matter what size seas it will encounter. The rubber feet are solid 1 3/4" thick rubber. Handles will support 500 pounds each. Lee 90 degree medium size rod holders were selected because they are the most proven holder on the market. It is completely fiberglassed and coated with five coats of white epoxy paint.

The core of the crate is constructed with a buildup of 1 1/2" of 12 ply plywood. The plywood core was filled with concrete to gain some weight. I will need someone to help me lift this beast onto the boat. It's one very well constructed heavy milkcrate that will not have to be tied down to the deck. It should not shift or move what so ever.

[MrBill]

Originally Posted by Gunsmoke

This device is for manly men only. No whimps allowed to touch it. If you can't load it, then you should consider another sport than offshore fishing.

Man, I leave town for a couple of days and you've become an enviromentalist and Charles Atlas all at once. If I remember correctly, I'm the poor sucker who gets to take this beast for it's maiden voyage. Hey, I actually met some internet fisherman this Friday at Roy's. Nice guys. They were asking a lot of questions about you. If you don't quit posting, you might have a cult in a couple of years.

[Deep_Sea_Gull]

Originally Posted by MrBill

Man, I leave town for a couple of days and you've become an enviromentalist and Charles Atlas all at once. If I remember correctly, I'm the poor sucker who gets to take this beast for it's maiden voyage. Hey, I actually met some internet fisherman this Friday at Roy's. Nice guys. They were asking a lot of questions about you. If you don't quit posting, you might have a cult in a couple of years.

I'm rolling on the floor laughing my backside off.....

Leave it to MrBill to seperate the BS from the fishing...

[Snagged]

The only question about GS is, is he for real or the top BS'er in the country.
Nice meeting you this week Mr Bill.

[Gunsmoke]

I'm not Al Gore, Charles Atlas or David Koresh. I don't lay on the BS as I work hard and play hard. When I play, I want excitement. Things happen when you get a little bored. That's my life and I enjoy being with people who live the same way.

I don't have to make up stories as nothing can replace real life experiences. I have thousands of stories and I enjoyed living and learning from each one. Sometimes I post one of my adventures because it reminds me of some good times with good friends. I also enjoy my privacy and private time.

I had a long talk today with some of my close friends and all agreed on one thing. Forums on the Internet should only be used for gathering information. I'm certainly guilty of using this and other forums as a means to relax. This 360 tuna forum is the best fishing forum I've found and I just wanted to say I've enjoyed posting but it's time to lay low before some cult member whacks me.

[Minnow]

Gunsmoke,

I have really enjoyed reading your stories, I am sure many others have also.
360tuna forum is a fishing community where fishermen and fisherwomen gather together to exchange information and stories. It's a place to meet new fishing partners and make lifetime friendships.

And it's definitely a place to relax, so dont hold back if you have anymore of those stories. They are really pretty amazing and funny.

[mcgolfer]

with this internet explosion it has brought so many more people into our once small fishing groups. the addition of these people has brought many different opinions. these oinions maybe different than that of the smaller group but they still help the group by giving us another perspective. there will be disagreements but if done in a civil tone we all can apreciate both sides of a story or an issue.

gunsmoke don't fade to black. your drive to do it right the first time no matter what the cost is a worthy trait. besides your way of describing incidents that have happened in your life is some funny chit....rick

[Snagged]

GS,
We all enjoy the stories, we all exchange information and we all relax with friends.

[MrBill]

I went to visit the creator of this beast today. I was surprised to see it pulled out from it's hiding place with new additions. He decided to add some heavy duty stainless "O" rings to the stainless "C" clamps. These "O" rings have a breaking strength of 4965 pounds. A little overkill but the reason for using them was to allow the user to either use HD bungie cords or safety straps. I also saw the drawing for adding up to another 7 rod holders. (Very cool.) You can never have enough rod holders.

Here's a few PICS I took. The rings have 500 pound mono leader material crimped to the ring. The mono is stuffed into the rod holders with safety clips temporally tied to the reel end. The reel ends need to be crimped once the rods are in place. Each one will be different. I almost took it with me today for the Cinco Big E trip in a couple of days, but didn't want to burn up a tank of fuel over the next two days hauling it around.

[mcgolfer]

gunsmoke does do beautiful work. just set it on the dock next to the crane that is required to lift my tackle cooler......rick

[Bret]

That thing is a work of ART!!!!