The Elevator Pitch:
Long drags, deep woods, flooded swamps, and miles of wide-open prairies: Made with the lone wolves of the hunting world in mind. Strong, lightweight, packs easily, designed to make long and difficult treks a little bit easier for the die hard hunter. A one-time purchase and Life-time of use.
“You make your own reality. And once you've done it, apparently, everyone's of the opinion it was all so f#&$ing obvious.” - Logan Roy (Succession)
Prologue to the Invention:
Its technical title is the ‘Anodized Lightweight Metal Aider for Mobilizing Harvested Animals.’ That official name tag is clever in its ambiguity, and yet if we’re being honest with ourselves here thoroughly boring as it cascades, fumbling off the tongue. Patent language is often dry. Very dry in fact. That’s by design. Intellectual property rights and the white papers that come from them lack descriptive, awe inspiring, sometimes jaw dropping, adjectives. Like anything else, the game of invention is just that, a game. And like all games, and like all great gamesmiths, you need to learn the rules before you can exploit them to your advantage.
Why use the word ‘Aider’ and not Deer Drag? Why not just say Whitetail or Salmon?
- Answer: The answer is simple. The word Aider holds more ambiguity, and ambiguity can be a powerful tool. Deer drags are just that, devices made for dragging deer. But an Aider, now an aider can be anything. Aiders can be used for hunting, and can just as easily be used for fishing. Additionally, Aiders, which include hand held drags and stringers can be used to recreationally harvest any species of animal you might be interested in pursuing. And it’s an aider that has been historically used ever since axes slashed trees, and hemp was woven into rope.
- Backstory: All aiders are designed to make mobilizing animals easier. Handheld aiders are readily available in a multitude of styles and a wide variety of material compositions, shapes, and sizes. Some single hand aiders - such as the Billie club (aka ‘The Priest,’ ‘Fish wacker, ’Bat,’ ‘Bonker,’ and ‘British Bobby Baton’) are used in culling animals. You would agree that addressing the skull of a King Salmon or Kiwi with a swift crack of a solid dowel rod certainly makes it easier to transport them. Other, double handed aiders - such as the deer drag or stringer - are used in conjunction with rope or cable and designed to haul or drag animals by using organized leverage to your advantage.
Why write ‘Lightweight Metal’ and not simply say Aluminum?
- Answer: There again, lightweight metal is simply more ambiguous than Aluminum. It is true that Aluminum is a superior material in many ways. And although we do use Aluminum for many of our outdoor Aider products, we could (and may) just as easily use Titanium. Titanium being another superior, lightweight metal material that can be anodized. With lightweight metals high in tensile strength you need not worry about easily breaking or bending them with normal/customary use. You also need not worry about rot, rust, or decay. Lastly, once you’ve chosen the anodization color for your aider; you will possess a tool that will never wear out; and that is made of material that is 100% recyclable.
- Backstory: With traditional (i.e. Old School) aider designs, considerations of weight and durability were often at odds. Balancing the considerations of weight, durability and cost, materials such as wood, plastic, and thin gauge steel have been the materials of choice. Suffice it to say that weight prerequisites oftentimes required the use of lighter, weaker materials. Lighter, less dense and/or hollow materials have been, therefore, used almost exclusively in the construction of harvesting aiders. As a result, the vast majority of aiders on the market today use some type of wooden dowel stick; injection molded, plastic formed handle/s; or tube steel as the main shaft of the aider.
- Other Considerations: What’s more, whereas plastics leave the finished product fragile and brittle, the effects of weathering on wood can lead to rot and splintering. Weathering degrades the strength of wood at best, and at worst can be injurious to the user. Then there’s the matter of thin tube steel. Thin tube steel succumbs to rust or requires primers and paints at the onset of manufacturing. We are not aware of any other product for harvesting and mobilizing animals in which the primary shaft has a multitude of use options, is not brittle, hollow, insubstantial, easily weathered or broken, requires paint, and easily succumb to rust and degradation.
Conclusions We’ve Reached:
Aiders which are often - but not always - used in conjunction with rope, cable, or the like, all have in common the ability to be hand held and make the carrying, hauling, or culling of harvested animals easier: For Hunters and Anglers, of primary importance while considering features and choosing an aider are weight, durability, longevity, color variability, customization, and ergonomics.
Subsequently, despite the expansive variability in aiders disclosed in the prior art and available on the market today, all are plagued with the same or similar problems, deficits and limitations in construction and use. It would therefore be most beneficial to have an aider constructed of lightweight, uniform, durable material. Furthermore, it would be ideal for the main apparatus to be of unitary construction, where it is also corrosive resistant. Additionally, the main apparatus would be able to achieve color variability and have the propensity for customizations. Lastly, an ideal main apparatus would be made of infinitely recyclable material.
Brief Summary of Our Invention:
Embodiments of the present invention, an anodized metal rod aider for harvesting and mobilizing animals, inclusive of a one piece, infinitely recyclable, robust and lightweight main apparatus unaffected by oxidation or rust; having color variability; and customization potential has been demonstrated. We present a main apparatus shaft preferably made from aluminum rod, most preferably anodized aluminum rod.
Metals that are lightweight in rod form, are much more durable than metals in tube form. Precisely because lightweight rod metals are less dense than other metals, and therefore lighter by cubic area. They are able to be carried, utilized, wielded and/or molded in the manufacturing process with relative ease; but once manipulated and anodized, these lightweight rod metals hold their shape and composition with rigid superiority.
Anodizing is an electrolytic passivation (e.g. electrochemical) process. It is widely known that metal material capable of being anodized has much stronger cohesive strength, and is less likely to peel when impacted or otherwise stressed. Similarly, anodized metal components have increased resistance to wear and corrosion,(https://www.cadillaccoatings.ca/blog/which-is-best-for-aluminum-anodize-vs-paint-vs-powder-coating). Furthermore, anodizing is an inorganic finish which have superior scratch resistance and hardness. This is unlike organic finishes such as paint or powder coating, that are much less scratch resistant.
Advantages include the versatility of the exemplary aider which can not only be used in conjunction with hauling or dragging an animal long distances from the field; but is adaptable for use in shouldering or carrying multiple animals as a stringer; and can be used as a bludgeoning device for culling animals offshore.
Additional advantages include being made from 100 percent recyclable material, and immunity to oxidation, thereby improving longevity of the main apparatus. Anodized, lightweight rod metals are not only quite impervious to decomposition, but can also be left in their authentic color (i.e. clear anodization) in spite of the anodizing.
Epilogue of the Invention:
A metal bar aider for hunting and fishing which includes a unitary main apparatus constructed from anodized metal, most preferably anodized aluminum rod. The one piece, anodized construction of the main apparatus eliminates a large number of material short-comings related defects, and end-user criticisms.
Consequently, the main apparatus is stronger, not brittle or inadequate, free of otherwise necessary paint and primer. Yet, color variation is still easily instituted. The anodized exterior allows for a corrosion free finish. Having a rigid, lightweight main apparatus: firstly, is unaffected by oxidation, enhances longevity, and vastly improves the ability for use over extended seasons and periods of time; and secondly, means the main apparatus remains intact and durable even in the most extreme and hard-fought, contemporary, hunting and fishing practices.
Take the queues we've provided here and turn your idea into a legitimate patent. One that can be protected from intellectual property theft. Good luck and happy hunting out there gang.
Kickass Aiders up,
Mike (Rag-tag Progenitor & Gamesmith) Hiller
HangryBrand Co-Founder