Looking for a Butterfly Net

[cabintom]

Hey all, I'm looking for a good quality butterfly net with an extendable handle. Can anyone point me in the right direction? (or tell me how I can build a good extendable handle of my own)

Thanks!
Tom

[Adam Cotton]

The Japanese make the best ones, and I have found that Shimano is top grade. They are extendable to 5-6 metres, depending on the model.

Here is the Japanese script on the best one, Shimano EV500:




This is the best type of net frame, others often break at the hinges:




I hope this helps,
Adam.

[cabintom]

Feb 17, 2015 13:50:11 GMT -8 Adam Cotton said:

The Japanese make the best ones, and I have found that Shimano is top grade. They are extendable to 5-6 metres, depending on the model.

Here is the Japanese script on the best one, Shimano EV500:




This is the best type of net frame, others often break at the hinges:




I hope this helps,
Adam.

Thanks Adam,
I tried a google search for this brand, and am only finding fishing rods... (my dad would tell you they make great fishing rods!)

[Adam Cotton]

Indeed, Shimano make the best fishing equipment, rods and reels.

You probably need help from a Japanese butterfly collector who can check the sites such as Roppon-Ashi for the equipment you need. I used to get Nishiyama-san to bring nets and poles out with him when he visited Chiang Mai.

kawamo.co.jp/roppon-ashi/index-e.html is the English page, but when you click on the collecting tools link it is Japanese text only.

Adam.

[wollastoni]

I personnally use the extendable nets from Nature et Passion.
I am very happy of them

[Deleted]

Hi tom,

Google rose entomology. They have a telescopic net made for use in the tropics. I use their nets. Expensive but well made.

Joe

[jshuey]

BioQuip sells a 3' to 12' extendible net for around US $100. I’ve used them extensively, and they are ok (not great but for the price - ok). The biggest issue is that dirt gets into the net handle and eventually screws up the cam locking device. If Rose would develop their net handle into something that was 12' long (instead of less than 6') that would be ideal. But then they would probably charge over $400 for it!

An easy way out would be to use BioQuips collapsible net rims (very light weight) on extendible golf ball retrievers. For $100, you could take three of these back to Africa. They have the same issue as does the BioQuip handle – but at a cost that doesn’t hurt so much when they go screwy. This is what I did for many years in Belize, but switched out to the BioQuip handle because when retracted, it is shorter and fits into a 36” bag (golf ball retrievers are too long and they quit letting me carry them into the airplane cabin – but things may be more relaxed now).

If you want details about how to do this, let me know.

John



By the way - the net Adam recomends can be found here - kawamo.co.jp/roppon-ashi/sub175.htm. Translate features will get you some odd descriptions of the products! If this page is up to date - the cost is about $50 US for their larger extendible handle.

[cabintom]

Feb 18, 2015 5:38:19 GMT -8 jshuey said:

An easy way out would be to use BioQuips collapsible net rims (very light weight) on extendible golf ball retrievers.

If you want details about how to do this, let me know.

John

Details would be great! I was looking at their nets and the extendible handle and thinking that there must be a way to attach the net to something homemade (or more cost effective).

Tom

[nomad]

The best made nets and handles here.

www.watdon.co.uk/acatalog/Aerial_Nets.html

[Deleted]

Tom,

I am also in the process of making a custom telescopic net. It consists of two fiberglass poles. The locking button and the internal mechanism are made from glass reinforced nylon parts that I molded myself. The whole thing will be roughly 9 feet long when extended. All I need to do is get my engineer buddy to get off his ass and fabricate me the connection between the net hoop and the pole.

Joe

[jshuey]

So – almost every entomological supply house sells an extendible net – but most of these are fairly short. If you want a net for a little extra reach – say around 2 meters above your head these are fine. But if you are trying to pluck hairstreaks off flowering trees along the edge of the forest – then every inch is important (and you need at least 4 meters, but 5 meters is better, and 6 meters is even better, …, and so on ). But your handle needs to collapse quickly and securely into a handle that is short enough and light enough to use at ground level along cluttered trails. These are difficult trade-offs.

Here are some photos and solutions that get at the problem. First Paul and Allen model two approaches.

- Allen – on the right has the red BioQuip net. It’s short (1m) when collapsed and great for collecting inside dense forest trails, although it’s heavy and a simple light net would be better if that’s all you wanted to do. It extends to ~4 meters – which means that if you use a large net rim and you stand tall and jump, you may be able to pluck a bug off a flower at 6.5m. It’s pretty sturdy when extended, but you still have to be careful not to bend it when it is extended. The cam locks get “locked” if too much dirt gets into the system – so I have three of these right now that do not fully extend because the cam mechanism is screwed up. Ironically, they also have a tendency to not lock up when the handle is collapsed, creating a “rim-spin” problem at ground level. I’ve missed many bugs thanks to this particular issue!

- Paul – on the left, has an “extendible light bulb changer” as a net handle (around $50 on line). It is fairly long when collapsed (1.5m) and is ok at best in tight spaces. It extends a bit further than the BioQuip net, so that with skill you get bit further up the tree perhaps up to 7.5m. It is also fairly heavy for everyday use, but it is very sturdy. The blue locks hand tighten – and seem more resistant to getting screwed up by dirt and dust inside the net handle. Likewise, the “rim-spin” issue does not exist as long as you tighten the cams. The blue has an odd side effect – Preponas will often come down and chase the net if you wave it around in front of them! You have to figure out how to attach a net rim to this handle – but it’s not that hard if you use BioQuip’s 18” Collapsible Net Ring (7118RC) – there are other reasons to use this as well that I’ll discuss below.

(as an aside – look at those little shrubs behind the buildings on top of the hill. They were in flower and had all kinds of really cool hairstreaks, metalmarks and skippers on them . These nets get you about halfway up those “little shrubs”, and you have to wait very patiently for the bugs to work their way down to net reach. That is why every centimeter is important. In the second photo, you can see how Paul’s net barley gets up the forest side, where he is trying to pluck off a perching hairstreak from below. Really – length is everything in these situations!)


I should mention golf ball retrievers here as well. They work like Paul’s handle, but with some major differences. First they are lighter-weight – and on the really long ones you have to get rid of the last extension as it is just too fragile to use with a net. Even then, they are prone to bending and flexing and you have to be fairly careful when you use them fully extended. They also have the same problem with the cam that the BioQuip net has. And they spin like mad when not extended – so you have to drill a small hole though the handle and insert a metal locking pin when the net is collapsed. That said – because they are lighter weight – they are great when they are not extended (which is really how you use most of the nets the majority of the time). I used them for years and as long as you baby them, they can serve you very well. Here in the states, I use a two-section golf ball retriever as my primary net.

With any net like this, when it is fully extended, it is slow and it flexes when you try and swing it. So, we have always used a very light-weight rim on it – namely BioQuip’s 18” Collapsible Net Ring mentioned above. This rim also has some give in it, so that if you hit something that is fairly stiff, the rim gives, not the net handle (a bent extendible handle is completely and totally ruined).

Just as importantly, you need to use a net bag that offers as little wind resistance as possible. Really fine-mesh nets will give you almost a second delay in your swing as the handle flexes and pushes forward. And keep in mind, that your swing tends to be very slow when extended - so anything that makes it even slower is not useful. We use a very open mesh that allows the air to slide through easily. The flip side is that such nets are harder on the bugs, and the nets don’t last as long in the field. So – look at the photo of Paul and Allen. Allen was a volunteer who had never collected before. We gave him an indestructible net bag. Paul, who has been to Belize many times, has the open weave, but easily ripped net bag. We transitioned Allen to the open bag once he got the hang of it. But on a typical 2 week trip, I take about 3 bags/person and we use BioQuip’s Extra Soft Aerial Net Bags almost exclusively.

Hope this helps, John

John

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[zdenol123]

Tom, I` ve got spare 5m long handle...pm me if interested.

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[cabintom]

Feb 19, 2015 8:28:31 GMT -8 jshuey said:

Hope this helps, John

Wow, thanks for the very detailed response. It's incredibly helpful.

Tom

[Deleted]

Wow, those 5m+ nets are some serious hardware! Good topic and interesting responses.