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Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
#11750570
07/31/16 12:47 AM
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,508
TexExp
OP
Extreme Angler
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OP
Extreme Angler
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,508 |
What kind of grate do you have in the bottom of your cooler? I need to do that also..Thanks Gonzz asked what this is from another post and thought maybe someone else would want to try it or another idea. I custom made it. Trial and error. I think it is some kind of shelving. I cut it to fit with bolt cutters. but the crappie would still slip through the grate. So I used shears or tin snips to cut some hardware cloth. Took a while to get it snug around all the edges. But it works great to keep the crappie up and out of the wet slime. This is the shelving. I don't know if it is for regular shelves or from big walk in coolers. I found it somewhere... You can see on the original long piece that it is only bent on one side. So I used vise grips to bend every tine to match the other side and make it level. then I used tin snips to cut hardware cloth to fit snugly over it. Every cooler is different and some have curved insides because of wheels, so I had to get creative. Leave yourself an edge, like in the green cooler, to get it out to clean it. The hardware cloth will stick into you and the cooler every which way... but it is flexible to form fit. You can see that smaller middle one is perfectly bent. I was at a 4th of July crawfish boil and the host had a big scrap pile behind his giant pole barn. there was another shelve just like the one I found. This time the facilities guy where I work took it home and bent it on his metal shop equipment. Heckuva lot easier than using vise grips. lol Good fishing!
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11750612
07/31/16 01:12 AM
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 19,677
Bobcat1
TFF Guru
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TFF Guru
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 19,677 |
Bobby Barnett
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11750620
07/31/16 01:16 AM
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Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 2,431
Fooshman
Extreme Angler
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Extreme Angler
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 2,431 |
Good idea.
I've had good results using a grinder to sand the pokey parts. Then I'd attach it with some zipties.
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11750659
07/31/16 01:35 AM
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Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 726
BrazosRiverTom
Pro Angler
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Pro Angler
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 726 |
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11750711
07/31/16 01:58 AM
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Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 210
crappieman1985
Outdoorsman
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Outdoorsman
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 210 |
you might also try some frozen two liter soda bottles with ice instead of cubes as there will be no water to leak to the bottom.
I told my boss I wouldn't be in today, I got my arm in a cast!!! ========================================================= I have spent most of my life fishing. . . the rest I've just wasted.
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11750802
07/31/16 02:46 AM
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Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 2,213
Gonzz
Extreme Angler
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Extreme Angler
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 2,213 |
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11752204
08/01/16 01:01 AM
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Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 14,310
river-rat
TFF Guru
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TFF Guru
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 14,310 |
"I have not failed, I just found 10,000 ways it won't work". Thomas Edison
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11753174
08/01/16 05:29 PM
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Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,662
Action_Jackson
Extreme Angler
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Extreme Angler
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,662 |
Katchin krappie...doin surgeries(filleting)...and givin hott grease baths until krunchy and golden brown is what it's all about!!!
"STAY ready for the THUMP"!!!!
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11753225
08/01/16 05:59 PM
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Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 172
TurboDan
Outdoorsman
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Outdoorsman
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 172 |
Great idea, going to have to do that myself.
- dan "formally known as gazn357" "Life is what you make it. Always has been. Always will be." - Grandma Moses
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11753281
08/01/16 06:33 PM
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Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 1,192
Anchorman
Extreme Angler
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Extreme Angler
Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 1,192 |
Stupid Question: Why keep them out of the slime?
If it ain't yours don't mess with it! Need a friendly place to talk hunting? www.talkhunting.com
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: Anchorman]
#11753668
08/01/16 09:39 PM
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Joined: May 2007
Posts: 3,695
Ken Gaby
TFF Team Angler
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TFF Team Angler
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 3,695 |
Stupid Question: Why keep them out of the slime? Not near as much MESS at the cleaning table. The fillets aren't laying in a layer of slime and the fish don't slide all over the table when you're cleaning them.
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: TexExp]
#11753809
08/01/16 11:10 PM
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Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 7,256
Jon
TFF Celebrity
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TFF Celebrity
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 7,256 |
That's a great idea!! I think it keeps the filets firmer also when they're not marinating in fish slime for most of a day. That may be just in my head but they sure are easier to handle and way less mess and slop on the cleaning board.
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Re: Grate for ice chest - Keeps crappie out of the wet slime
[Re: Jon]
#11754323
08/02/16 03:21 AM
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,508
TexExp
OP
Extreme Angler
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OP
Extreme Angler
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,508 |
That's a great idea!! I think it keeps the filets firmer also when they're not marinating in fish slime for most of a day. That may be just in my head but they sure are easier to handle and way less mess and slop on the cleaning board. Yep, exactly, on all points! If they stay up in the ice all day, they are 'clean' and firm, not soggy and slimy. If you don't mind slime, go catfishing! lol Way more meat on a 20 lb App. Late June through August, we put them straight into a cooler rather than the live well. When the water temp is close to 90, It's like boiled fish in a live well after a few hours. White tails and fins and slimy warm fish. yuck I have a buddy that lives and fishes in Hawaii. To be able to sell his catch to a market, (Swordfish, Mahi, tuna etc.) he has to put his fish directly into crushed ice on his boat and maintain the internal cold temperature on the meat. good stuff! Good fishing! ... and catching!
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