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DIY Fly Fishing SUP

6K views 38 replies 19 participants last post by  Jared D 
#1 ·
Hey Guys, new to the forum and to fly fishing. I reside in Houston but been fishing (conventional tackle) in Rockport TX for a couple years inconsistently and ready to take the fly fishing plunge. fished out of kayaks on the flats and will be getting the skiff one day after and amazing days sight fishing reds. Until skiff day, i had the idea to build my own SUP i could use to cruise the canals, let the wife do her yoga on it, but mainly so i could fly fish from it.
its a hollow frame wood design, so i have lots of play when decided what accessories to add to the board. but once i glass the board there is no going back,
so asking y'all for any tips or recommendations for accessories on a SUP that could be drawn from the skiff world (dont think ill need jack plates yet) that are Fly oriented.
thinking about flush mounting some yakattack tracks into the wood or using their SUP leash plug adapters to add accessories. maybe even micro pole?

excited about the board here are pics of the build process so far. mostly cedar with a few pine strips for contrast, will prob end up being 11' to 11'-6",
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#2 ·
Cool.
I've been thinking about the same project. I'm thinking, you're doing.....cudos.

Your lofting/ribs look pretty good. CNC,kit?

If/when I do it, the one feature that I've seen and thought I would incorporate in my project was a false deck on the front 1/3 of the board. This deck sat about 3'' or so above the regular deck along the centerline and curved down to the gunwales. Think about a bath slipper. Seemed like a nice place to stash wade shoes, dry bag, fly box, etc. May even be able to slide the rod sections under there and keep them from being stepped on. Sounds easy in thought, not sure about in practice.

Are you planning to fill your board with foam?
 
#3 ·
thanks Clam, used my buddy's garage level CNC for the ribs, got the plans off of Jarvis Boards in Austin,
thats not a bad idea, Jarvis actually has plans for a board (bath slipper, lol) like that on the website. little custom add ons and you will be ready
Jarvis San Jacinto model
this is my first time building anything that floats so i stuck with the simpler model, although i am worried about the potential hull slap of a flat bottom board.
not doing foam, gonna leave it hollow with some vents to keep the fiberglass from peeling. its a big board so should float fine with me and a small cooler. right now, planning rod holder, cooler tie downs and maybe a anchor trolley system, although id rather the micro power pole.
 
#13 ·
Hound i was looking and the Bote paddle sheathes and thinking how i could replicate that exact thing, will have to dial down the transition from paddle to fly rod and make sure i can do it quickly and quietly.
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looks like that would be hell with line management, but maybe like you said put it aft
 
#10 ·
Nice project.. I wish I had a shop with tools. Always wanted to build one of the Chesapeake Light Craft Kaholo with some slight modifications, little deeper v-entry bow and a wider tail, with a custom shallow water fin setup.
They offer classes where all tools and parts are available to different builds.

I would suggest some tie-down points, like leash plug inserts but large ones, so you could secure a small drybox/cooler to stand on for poling and/or sit on to take a break, re-rig...

I don't really fly fish from mine but the DrafonFly 13'6" has a great design with a clean forward deck area,
 
#20 ·
Nice project.. I wish I had a shop with tools. Always wanted to build one of the Chesapeake Light Craft Kaholo with some slight modifications, little deeper v-entry bow and a wider tail, with a custom shallow water fin setup.
I finished my board about a year ago. If I were to do it again I would have opted for the 12’ instead of the 14’. Also would have sprayed the bottom with 2 part paint.
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#11 ·
As someone who has fly fished from a SUP...my advice would be to keep it simple with as few accessories as possible.

I strapped a small Yeti to mine and attached a rod holder to it. A couple of tethers for a paddle and the stake out pole that also doubled as a push pole. That was it.
 
#15 ·
re. paddle sheath, I use a pretty $$ full carbon paddle and always thought the slot Bote has for the paddle looked like an easy way to break the tip off the paddle.. with it in front like the Bote has is in the way of any fishing, worse for fly fishing, and aft it would almost have to be vertical and that might prove to be hard to keep the paddle from leaning/falling sideways.
The transition from paddle or push pole to casting is always kind of awkward.
 
#18 ·
dang Crash, that didnt even cross my mind for the paddle breaking in the sheath, i will be making my own paddle too so would be pretty upset about snapping it.
you think the $$ was a good investment for the carbon fiber paddle? been going back and forth on spending the money, can always just do it at a later date i guess
 
#16 ·
The Bote Rackham has two different scupper anchor points in the board itself. My buddy fishes his rackham compared to my HD those two scupper holes that you can put an achor stick through are 100% worth the extra cost - time and effort in your case.

Being able to stake out easily and quietly while there is a school of reds headed your way is a huge advantage.

I don't use my tackle rack often. Most of the time I end up wearing a sling pack and set my fly rod in between my feet. I often bring a 2.5 gallon bucket with a slit cut in it to set the rod with line stripped out into the bucket. It definitely allows me to pick up and take quicker shots than if I didn't have it.

I haven't fished a board with yakattack racks on it. But have heard of them sometimes catching flyline. Not necessarily trying to steer you away from it. But if the deck isn't flat the fly line will catch it wayyyyyyyy more often than you think.

Hope this helps!
 
#17 ·
Brandon thanks, I like the small bucket idea for a strip basket/rod holder, definitely cheaper that a strip mat or something and great option for rod placement, good call with the yakattack rails, i thought mounting them flush would prevent line snare but now that i think about it, strategically placed leash plugs and the (Yakattack SUP Adapters) will be better. i can adjust and remove accessories as i use the board differently. definitely want to be able to remove all accessories for a clean look for paddling only, and then mount the necessary gear for fly and conventional fishing.
bare bones for fly fishing, little more gadgets for conventional
 
#24 ·
Full carbon paddle I highly recommend, a few hours of paddling you'll really be glad you did.

Jason.. you do a class of build from the full kit ? and why would you recommend the 12 over the 14 ?
Very nice looking board.
 
#26 ·
I fish a very simple board. It’s only features are some sea dek type standing material (Also dulls out sound from setting the paddle down) and it floats. I use an Opros rod holder on my waist that helps smooth out the paddle to rod transition. I’ve missed enough fish to file the following complaints and recommendations. Hopefully I will get to live vicariously through your build.

Fly line management: Line likes to run off the side of my board, trail behind, and then get stuck around the fin on the port side.

Fins: I took off my big fin to get shallow. Tracking is pretty bad with only two small side fins but I’d rather get two paddles/side than watch reds crawl from a distance.

Fly line management: When I set the paddle in between my legs, it sometimes goes through my free line. Line getting stuck under the paddle either keeps the cast short or more likely spooks the fish by lifting the paddle and dropping it.

Hull slap: My board is round in the nose with a little bit of rocker up there. I have literally watched as schools of fish swam steadily away from me as I tried to approach from downwind.

Paddle: Adjustable paddles either collapse while pushing off bottom (clamp/friction style) or go clickity clack (spring button style). Since your building your own you get to build it specifically for your height.
 
#28 ·
Chump and Jason,

Those are beautiful builds. Got me thinking now but all the plans say 260lbs max weight and I bring 250 by without gear.

I am almost finished refitting a 22' Aquasport Osprey. Here is what I intend to use as a fly rod holder, stripping basket. 2 for $13.00 so if I have to replace them every year, so what?

They collapse to a small disc for storage. Might need some weight in the bottom to keep them stable but it's worth the cost of admission.



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#30 ·
NOPE! still gluing away, missed some time working on it with some travel, but got back into the groove a week ago
man i hate gluing and clamping at this point ugh, not a wood worker by any means but appreciating the lessons as i fumble through
got the bottom done and almost done with the top.
then the side rails, nose and tail blocks
then she will be ready for sanding.
Plant Wood Flooring Interior design Floor


What board are you building? hopefully the San Jac that one looks awesome
what kind of wood you gonna use?
full disclosure, you will get zero support from Jarvis, i sent them so many emails with no replies at all.
the "plans" are more of a guideline, but its not that complicated so you can figure it out.

my advice is dont skimp on the work table. i slapped together some plywood on saw horses and wish i would have built a sturdier foundation.
have plenty of clamps at the ready and make sure they are long enough for when you get to gluing skins toward the edge of the board
be mindful of any attachments you want other than fin box, air vents; and where you want them on the board, need to reinforce the board underneath the skins before you close it up

hopefully will make some headway this weekend and will have better pics for you guys
 
#31 ·
alright fellas, got some work done this weekend, finished the skins on top and bottom and trimmed the hangover to the frame. finally can see what finished board will resemble. will be 11' 8" when complete. pretty happy with it so far.
next steps
1. glue up side rails, havent decided how thick to go on side rails, might just do 1/4" to reduce weight, but might do 2 layers of 1/4" pine and cedar (1/2" total) will be more durable but heavier.
2.glue up nose and tail blocks.
3. shape and sand, fix cosmetics
4. router out and insert fin box, leash plugs, air vent
5. glass it up!
6. go catch an effing fish
Bicycle Tire Wheel Photograph White
 
#32 ·
alright fellas, got some work done this weekend, finished the skins on top and bottom and trimmed the hangover to the frame. finally can see what finished board will resemble. will be 11' 8" when complete. pretty happy with it so far.
next steps
1. glue up side rails, havent decided how thick to go on side rails, might just do 1/4" to reduce weight, but might do 2 layers of 1/4" pine and cedar (1/2" total) will be more durable but heavier.
2.glue up nose and tail blocks.
3. shape and sand, fix cosmetics
4. router out and insert fin box, leash plugs, air vent
5. glass it up!
6. go catch an effing fish
View attachment 184988
Nice, I'm doing the 11'8" San Jac. Agreed about the lack of support from Jarvis, I've also found communicating with them to be a waste of time. Saw someone on another thread that did one out of plywood instead with some sort of a gel coat and am starting to wonder if I should've done that instead.
 
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