I would think adding something to the rod would do more to mess up the feel of a bite then wearing gloves. I couldn't imagine fishing without my fingerless fleece gloves this time of year. I only remove them to wring the water and fish slime out of them after releasing another fish They will actually dry from the inside out due to body temp.

A friend of mine has the same fishing vest as me that has the fleeced lined handwarmer pockets. Over the years he has learned to fish with both hands usualy with the "off" hand tucked into his pocket. May be worth a try?

Then, like others are suggesting, there is always the old mountianeers saying, "if your feet get cold put on a hat."

I hope you figure something out as being cold sucks!

"I'd rather wear 1/2 inch thick latex condoms on my willie then have to wear gloves while fishing."

I don't know what kind of fishing you are doing but it sounds a bit risky. You may want to try a new spot.

Come live near the south shore of Lake Superior, and being cold won't be just a seasonal situation.

I know. . .that doesn't help you out much. My guess is that if there were a better way, the crew in this neck of the woods woulda figured it out by now. Messing with the stick or the reel would be outta the question for me. I would personally favor big daddy latex (ie. raid the OR scrub rooms for some big fitted R/L ones) over fingerless woolies, in combination with overdressing everywhere else and some sort of heat pack application. Unfortunately, our OR's don't stock latex big enough to go over my paws when wool is on them. Having a tough time justifying the standing order through purchasing folks for 10.5's but that's a different story. I just saw some heat packs at a local store that come with a big circumferential adhesive, like a gigantic heated bandaid. I'm interested in giving those a try on the forearms.

Using this kind of combo has taken my hands out of the position of limiting factor to fish in the cold (now it's line and guide ice. . .gotta cure for that?).

An alternative would be either fishing with a float (ie hand in pocket) or something where you're more active with your hands so they don't freeze like bricks; reeling or linework during the presentation like flyline or heavy metal.

Doubt that helps, but cold is something I know well,

fb

Try a new reel. The graphite or composite body makes a big difference. Jim Beam helps too.

Vhawk- It has been found that Viagra works well for your problem . Getting in to your waders may be a little difficult.

matt

Vince,

I would NOT heat my real for one simple reason.....melting or liquifying the grease on the internals.

What you propose, if I read you correct, is a fairly simple but crude heating element. I'll go out on a limb and guess the temp. would not be able to be controlled. So here you are fishing away, having a good time and you lose track of the fact your reel has been "activated". All of a sudden, you smell this petroleum odor only to find your reel purging itself of all it's life giving grease and oil.

Let us know if it works.

Eric,

Just remember that reels are water cooled =) I dont suppose you could get that kind of heat out of any such device to warm up a reel hotter than fishing on a hot summer day in the sun! =) Good point theoretically though!

Vince, I to suffer from the rath of the steelhead gods when the temp drops below 35 or so. I was up at the puyallup fair a few years ago and bought 4 handwarmers that are a clear plastic bag about 2.5" by 4" filled with a clear liquid and have a small metallic disc in there also. You flex the disc and it causes some kind chemical reaction that makes the liquid turn to a hard crystal that gets very hot and stays that way for 4-5 hours. I put one of these on the handle just behind where my hand rests on the reel seat. I just put my hand on this for a few seconds between casts( start out early,not after your hands are too cold or you will not get the best effect.). I put one of these on the rod handle with a strip of velcro that I have superglued to the handwarmer. Easy to change out when it gets cooler. I have had these a long time and the manufacturers name is gone:(. I tried them right on the reel seat but they get too hot to handle. Maybe someone knows a source for them. Laterun

Had a couple of the snap disc liquid crystal warmers too. Whatever happened to those guys? Did that stuff inside end up being toxic?

Check em out on ebay! They are all over there... looks like all of them are out of the UK, but hell, they are still cheap!

Ebay handwarmers

Google pulled lots of results too...

Google Handwarmers

The heated socks worn over the forearms sounds lika a winner to me. Maybe just poke holes in the socks so you can put your fingers through. Let us know how it works out.

Later.

Funny, I don't see any radiators on mine

My apologies Eric... All of my new reels have been designed by VHawk Rod & Reel... I believe his latest product lines reel wise include a heater core from a geo for cooling, With a gear drive water pump that operates off the worm gear, with a 1" pickup tube that sits in the water at all times and a water heating element stuffed in the butt of the rod

Couldn't resist, Vince! =) I can sympathize with ya tho! I just have to use my breath to warm my hands quite often as I can't seem to stand wearing gloves myself! Just not worth it to miss a fish over common sense! That would be unruly! lol...

I'll let you guys know how the heated sock thing works out. I'm going to see about hooking it up to the reel feet. I doubt it'll get hot enough to liquefy the grease.

I watched a Discovery Channel (I think) program a while back where a guy was working bare handed in sub freezing temps doing some kind of work that required finger dexterity. They heated his chest and it kept the blood vessels open to his hands. He was able to perform without so much as even feeling uncomfortable. They then removed the heat and he froze up (not literally) in very short order....just like you would expect.

I never put the two together before watching that program, but I remember vividly putting a hand warmer in my shirt pocket. I felt quite hot but not so much so I was compelled to remove it. The day was raining sleet and my hands were literally steaming and I wasn't the least bit cold. I thought at the time that I just had good blood circulation, but now I think it was due to that shirt pocket hand warmer.

With the weather going the way it is, I'm going to try it again. I hate when I can't feel my spool because my thumb and finger tips are iced up. (Ah, the trials of fishing... )

Good comeback.

I bought a couple from GI Joes last Winter. I also took them back a day later. They stayed warm for about 45 minutes. I don't know if the old ones were better,but the ones Joes sells suck.

I have had the sme problem of keeping my hands warm. Then one elk season I put a hand warmer in my wool shirt pocket over my heart, and my whole body seemed to stay warm. Ever since I try to keep my core as warm as possible, and it seems to keep my hands plenty warm. I use fingerless wool gloves when they do get cold though. My suggestion is to layer some clothes with a flannel shirt or wool shirt, and when you get to the river put one of those disposable hand warmers in your chest pocket over your heart. Then put on a vest and then what ever else you usually wear. That has really worked for me. If all els fails just pair up with Sol and grab the KY?? :p

Anybody ever try these? Of course, some sensitivity would be lost, but maybe with a little personal tweaking here and there to fit your individual outfits/styles could minimize that.Might be just the ticket

http://www.heatgrip.com/pages/1/index.htm