Duct Tape Fishing Net

I love fishing. I love it. I primarily fish for musky . If you are a fisherman (or fisherwoman), you know that these fish are very difficult to catch. If you spend a week fishing and have not caught anything, you can easily get angry, disappointed, and frustrated. More than anything else, you just want to catch a fish. And on that last day, you might say, "To hell with it, I don't care if I catch a small fish, just let me catch a fish!" If you are like me, though, and don't want to spend that extra 20 bucks to buy a new net because your other one is way to big; then you would want to build your own. I built this fishing net out of an old, broken tennis racket and less than one roll of duct tape. That's right, I just needed two things. This project is very easy to build (i.e., if I can do it, you can too), but it is very time consuming. I will say though that it was a huge hit, and when I was building people came up to me and asked, "What is that?" You will enjoy building your very own fishing net if you like the outdoors, because a fishing net is always very handy to have around. This fishing net can be attached to your belt, or easily held with the handle.

I have said this for all of my instructables, but this one I think needs the least amount of things. Here we go.

Materials:
- Duct Tape
- Old Tennis Racket

Tools:
- Utility Knife
- Needle Nose Pliers (optional)

First things first, acquire an old tennis racket. Make sure the frame is intact, because that's the only thing you care about. That and make sure the frame has little tiny holes. Next, you have to take apart your racket. The grip was falling off of my racket, so I peeled that off. Then, I used a utility knife knife and cut all of the strings off. Finally, I peeled off these things that plugged in the little holes and helped hold the strings. When I was done, I was left with just the frame. That is all you need, too. 

First, take a long piece of duct tape. Then, using a utility knife (I used my hands for all of this), split the piece in half. Then, take each of those halves and split them in half to get four pieces. Then, take each piece and fold them in half to get a long piece of tape without any of the sticky stuff on the outside. Repeat until necessary. For me, necessary was 36 strips of duct tape. Why? Because I had 70 little holes. Divide that by two and you get 35. But, for this project, you need an even amount of strips. Let me repeat that. You need an even amount of strips. I needed 35 strips, but because I needed an even amount, I made 36. So, find how many strands you think is nessecasy, and make that amount. Just make sure that amount is even.

Note- For this part (and pretty much from here until the end), it would be wise to take this part slowly and cautiously. I made many mistakes because I rushed.

The next step is to take your strips and string them through the little holes.  On the outside of the frame, make an overhand knot for each strip so it stays in place. Go every other hole with your strips when stringing them through the little holes. Believe me, if you do a strip for every hole, and you have 70+ holes, you just tripled your work load. Alright, next step is to take two strips that are next to each other. Grasping both of them together, tie a simple loop knot with them, leaving an inch between the frame and the knot. Then, grabbing the next two strips, do the same thing, and try to make the knot at the same height as the previous one. Continue around the frame until each pair of strips are knotted together (this is why you wanted an even number of strips). Once you have completed this, go down an inch or so and take two more strips that are next to each other (but from a different pair than the original pair to which it is from), tie another loop knot to make a diamond. Continue around the frame again until each strip is tied together with another strip. Then, do a third round of loop knots, making the same knots and using the same technique. Do several more rounds (I did 6 rounds) until the leftover strips are about six inches. Then, make a larger loop knot with all of the strips at the bottom together to seal your net. Cut off excess length from individual strips.

Next, take a long piece of duct tape and wrap it around the loop knot at the bottom, so that it is completely covered. Then, take another long piece of duct tape and wrap it around the top so that it covers the overhand knots that keep the strips in place. I put two pieces of duct tape around it for extra strength. 

To make the handle, first take a long piece of duct tape. Then, take a slightly smaller piece of duct tape and join the two sticky sides together. You should have a little piece of the sticky side on each side of the strap. The, attach the strap to the bottom of the handle of the racket so that the sticky side of the strap adheres to the handle of the racket. Then, cover the racket handle in more duct tape, especially the area where the duct tape handle is attached, so the duct tape handle is now secure. The loop should be big enough to fit your hand through. The handle is nice because you can attach it to your belt, hang it up somewhere, or make sure the net doesn't fall in the water.

You are now done with your very own fishing net that you made by yourself. Congratulations! Show it off to everyone, and watch them be amazed when you said it was made out of only a tennis racket and duct tape. Take it with you on your next fishing trip and use it to catch a fish. Enjoy!

This net will only work for smaller fish: bass, large bluegill and other panfish, trout, ect. Please practice catch and release.

I have not yet used this on a fishing trip, but when I do, I will take pictures and post them.

This instructable would be very happy if you ranked it, commented on it, made your own net and posted pictures of it, and voted for it in the Great Outdoors Duct Tape Contest. Thank you!