Pot Puller - Redux

Wandering Sagebrush

Wandering Sagebrush

Free Range Human
I looked through the shrimp/crab pot puller thread and it looks like most folks like the Brutus Ace or the EZ pullers. They seem to be a bit on the spendy side (now that I have retired). Is anyone aware of a pot puller in the $300 range??

Steve
 
no... its really the cheapest one out there. a local company makes a electric puller that hauls twice the weight of the Ace and at twice the speed, they start at
$1200 and go up fast from there. the ele. puller heads that hang from a pole are even more money. its not that the Ace is $500 bucks , its less then half of any other one out there. I looked for a used one for a long time but they seldom come up for sell.
 
Your right on Tom, and there are several folks making those high end $1200 units. That pole mounted jobber also uses a planetary drive system which is noisier than most too.
We went with the Electra-Dyne and couldn't be happier. If you really want to scrimp, use the same set up used by some to pull an anchor, consisting of a buoy and a stainless ring. Priced around $40 total.
Mike (eating up 4 1/2 gallons of tails from last week end!)
 
We have used an anchor puller for the shrimp pot. Problems 1: pulling 300' of line puts the float a long ways behind the boat. In traffic area, there is always some one that will want to go behind you. 2: The speed needed to push the float out/down to get the pot to come up, bends the hell out of the pot, and several times opened the door and lost every thing that may have been in. 3: I think the speed flushes some of the shrimp thru the web. At the same spot we pulled by hand and had 2 to 3 times the number.
This experence was in S.E. Alaska, there was no other traffic. We tried using a larger float and slower speed, still bent the pots. We were using stainless conical welded pots. Got expencive replacing bent up pots.
Gary
 
I've always wondered if one couldn't design a combination windlass, davit and pot puller. It seems to me that all three require a fairly hefty electrical motor but are typically geared and driven a bit differently. It would seem that one motor with a multiple gear transmission might be able to do all three or least least 2 of 3 jobs (with some clever design). I've also thought about ways to possibly rig a windlass so that it could pull a dinghy onto the roof - e.g. imagine one had two tracks that the provided a ramp from the transom to the roof and that said racks were hinged so that they could fold back onto the roof. It would seem to me that you could use the windlass (combined with some chocks and perhaps a pulley), to pull the dinghy onto the roof. Perhaps with appropriate chocks and a different gearing system, the windlass could also be used to pull shrimp pots. Crazy?
 
Roger,
You are a deep thinker.
I have the same thoughts and it can be done with a snatch block on the anchor pulpit and a remote, to control the windlass from the back deck. A short mast on the cabin roof for leverage. A folding rack that would hinge to retrieve a dinghy off the stern. 75' of line the same size as the anchor rode. I picture setting the rack on the dinghy, securing it to the rack, retrieving it to an inverted position over the cockpit. Using the windlass for power. Crazy2
 
Gang,

Thanks for all the input. I guess I am going to have to get over my penurious ways and kick out the dollars for a pot puller.

Has anyone adapted the Brutus to a Cannon mount? I could not find anything on line that was made for that purpose.

Steve
 
Just a little info on the Ace Puller. I bought mine brand new and I love it. My neighbour bought one used at a garage sale and when he turned it on at home he heard an awful grinding sound coming from within the motor or gearing. He thought that he had just been taken to the cleaners as there was no 12 volt system available to try it before buying.
The good news is that he took the Ace Puller to the local retailer and they sent it to Ace for repairs. It came back within 10 days with a brand new motor and gearing......NO CHARGE! My neighbour wasn't the original purchaser nor did he even know how old the thing was.
This sure made me feel even better about my choice when I purchased mine.
Scotty downriggers have a lifetime free repair policy too.
These are things that make the initial cost of the item more tolerable.

Tom
 
The noise is due to that planetary gear box versus a right angle configuration on the Ace.
Mike
 
garyk":29pebw7z said:
We have used an anchor puller for the shrimp pot. Problems 1: pulling 300' of line puts the float a long ways behind the boat. In traffic area, there is always some one that will want to go behind you. 2: The speed needed to push the float out/down to get the pot to come up, bends the hell out of the pot, and several times opened the door and lost every thing that may have been in. 3: I think the speed flushes some of the shrimp thru the web. At the same spot we pulled by hand and had 2 to 3 times the number.
This experence was in S.E. Alaska, there was no other traffic. We tried using a larger float and slower speed, still bent the pots. We were using stainless conical welded pots. Got expencive replacing bent up pots.
Gary
Click to expand...

I use anchor puller and have had good luck with it. I only pull about 5 to 6 mph tops and shrimp in 500 to 700 feet with 3 pots on a line. Have never bent a pot except one time when it hung up on the bottom. Think a puller would be a plus and perhaps that’s in the cards for the Triple J but filling the gas tanks is pulling hard on the wallet right now.
 
Wandering Sagebrush":3gt1p7zc said:
Is anyone using an Endurance Pot Puller? The price through John's seems a little less than the Brutus.


pot_puller_color_1.jpg
Click to expand...

Just called John’s sporting goods about the Endurance Pot Puller, was told they won’t have them in for another 90 days or so. The person I talked to said they where going to upgrade the product with a ball baring motor and other improvements. Said the Endurance should be quieter and more refined when they get them back.
The Ace is still their best seller but I need a puller that can handle 5 pots on a line. Here in Alaska, at lest in Prince William Sound, the good shrimping in down 500 to 700 feet. We have a 5 pot limit per boat so being able put them all on a single line just make sense.
For now I’ll just stick with the buoy pulling method and opt for a puller next year.
 
I use a Powerwinch designed as a pot puller with a capstain. I made a bracket so it attaches to the gunwale and built a fairlead. It works well but you will need a bit of ingenuity to make it work. The whole process would be much easier if you mount it permanently but I wanted it to be removable, it is small and easily stored. I bought it last year and think it was just under $300. I pull 1,000' of line with 5 weighted pots and it handles it easily. It could pull twice the weight.
 
CaptMac, We use pots to fish for Spot shrimp which live in rocky areas. I fish the pots from 300-600'. I've never heard of using pots to fish warm water shrimp but see no reason why it wouldn't work. People use all kinds of bait, from canned and dry cat food, commercially prepared bait pellets and fish parts. I've found that for short soaks ground up herring works best. Check your regs, you may be able to use them.
 
I spent a week on a rental boat a few weeks ago and it had an Ace pot puller on it, WOW, what a week machine. I got quite a workout helping the ace pull the 5 pot string, I think I put more work into it than the Ace did. I'm sure glad I went with the Powerwinch on my boat.
 
Bearbait,

There must have been something wrong with the pot puller on that rental boat.

I pull 5 pots with my Ace and it's pretty easy. I just sit on my tool box and guide the rope into the big tub that holds the rope, the float and and the anchor I use. I just have to keep enough tension on the line to let the big pulley wheel grip it.

It could be the rental boat equipment gets treated pretty rough.

Pat
 
Back
Top