If you’re looking for fish fighting belts, chances are you want to reduce fatigue and improve comfort while fighting large game fish. Both rod belts and fish fighting harnesses are well known for their ability to fight and land big fish easier and more efficiently. But these types of stand up and sit down sport fishing gear come at a cost. They can be expensive and cumbersome to use. Switching fishermen to “share the burden” during a long fight can be next to impossible unless you each own one. Did you know there is a great alternative to fish fighting belts that won’t break the bank or your back? This article is about the Cush-it, a high end, soft plastic cushion for fishing rod butts. Let’s learn about the cushit and how it can be a great alternative to fish fighting belts.
What Are Fish Fighting Belts For
The whole point of fish fighting belts and harnesses is to increase leverage and pressure on a fish while reducing fatigue. This decreases fight times and improves landing rates. A fish fighting belt features a pad which houses a cup. The rod butt (gimbal) goes into this cup. It becomes the fulcrum during the fight. The pad covers the lower abdomen or groin area and is attached to a belt that goes around the waist. The belt is typically attached to a harness via drop straps.
Fish Fighting Harnesses
The harness is designed to spread the load of a heavy fish over your body. It will either attach around the shoulders or low back. It attaches to the reel via lugs on the top of the reel.
That seems like a lot of straps, belts, and adjustments ahead, doesn’t it! What you have with a belt and harness system is a gear setup that needs to be uniquely fit to the individual fisherman. It’s impractical to switch harnesses or belts during one fight. Multiple belts and harnesses must be purchased and fitted to anyone that’s going to be in on the action. At $80-$100 each for a quality fish fighting belt or harness, this can get costly. What if you could switch fisherman as easy as handing off the rod, and still have the unique benefits of a fighting belt without the hassle?
Cush-it Can Replace Fish Fighting Belts
The Cushit can replace the need for fish fighting belts. The Cush-it is made of proprietary soft plastic, or, high-end foam. The opening of the Cushit is simply slid over the rod butt as soon as the rod is removed from the holder when the fight begins.
Bruised and Sore from Fighting Fish?
Many medium to large gamefish really don’t require fish fighting belts to land. Yet, a long day on the water fighting numerous fish can leave a fisherman bruised and sore! So whether it’s salmon on the Great Lakes, tarpon in the Florida Keys, grouper in the Gulf, or halibut in Alaska, the Cush-it is an effective, convenient, economical alternative to those cumbersome, expensive fish fighting belts!
The amazing cushioning properties of the Cush-it keeps the rod butt comfortably in the groin area. You can sit or stand with it as you fight. For the largest of game fish, you can still utilize a harness that clips into the reel. Just watch this video as we land a 400 pound bull shark using a cushit, a basic shoulder harness, and a cooler as our chair! Here’s another cool shark fight, if you’re interested.
Fighting a 400 Pound Bull Shark with No Fish Fighting Belt, Just a Cush-it and Basic Shoulder Harness and a Cooler!
Now you don’t need dedicated fish fighting chairs or cumbersome fish fighting belts to land giant game fish. Keep a few Cush-its on board, and fight fish with ease.
If a Cush-it over your rod butt doesn’t work for your setup, give a look at the Ultra Float as well. This provides great cushioning properties as well as the ability to float some rods and float landing nets.
