Advice please for best beach shelter

[Dadwood]

I've always had a large, strong umbrella and been very grateful for its protection on countless occassions. But as the years go by I'm now thinking of getting a beach shelter to afford a bit more comfort on cold, wind swept beaches. Can anyone tell me which type to go for? I want one that's not too heavy to take around, gives good protection and can be erected without too much bother in windy conditions. I watched a chap struggling to get one assembled recently. It really was a pig to put up. I've no idea what type it was but it took a long time to put together. And when it was erected it was very disappointing in terms of the amount of protection it gave. (About as disappointing as a soft one on honeymoon.)

[avitsomemore]

hi mate

ive a ron thompson ,4 legs fold out and 1 pole to slide in front ,mud walls that you can cover with shingle ,and pegs ,good sling bag. fished in hurricane conditions at hurst ,best bit of kit ive bought cheap as £ 40 now ,ian golds and IMAX as well are worth look at , did have a mustard shelter but ended over the I.O.W (with my flask in side) in high winds ha ha

[MRG2000]

I have a Zziplex (Ian Golds ) , easy to put up ,light to carry ,fits on the side of my rod bag ,a little bit pricey @ £99 ish.



Here it is " in Action" on the beach

Originally Posted by MRG2000

I`d purchased a "Zziplex" (Ian Golds) beach shelter and was keen to give it atry ,after all the talk on how good it is in the wind . With 20mph easterly winds thrashing Penarth i headed off a mark called "The Ranny".Parked up and walked down towards the beach ,it was blowing an absolute hoolie ....

A very lumpy sea and onshore winds ..Tackled 1 rod up and got it in the water ,then turned attention to the beach shelter. placed it so the back would be taking the wind and erected it . Its a doddle to put up ,spread it into a v shape ,cover the lower flaps with some shale ( rocks will do ,or whatevers on the beach really), click the roof brace in ,lift up the cover and click in the back rod ...JOB DONE in 30 seconds .

Shelter fits snugly on a rodbag,only weighs a couple of kilos,lower flaps secured by shale or whatever you have to hand at the venue,also has 4 hand ground pegs



Its very stable when position with the wind coming over the back ,plenty of room inside for all your bits and bobs



With everything organised inside ,set up the second rod and settled down ,inside out of the wind ,marvelous ,blowing a gale around me ,and i was able to read TSF in comfort ,not even the newspaper holding the bait was moving .Even baiting up or changing rigs is simpler ,strap the rod to the velcro rod holders on the top and sit inside the shelter to do it .

Snug inside out of the wind, velcro rod holders are great for holding the rod while you rebait inside out of the weather



Fished 2 hours up and 2 down ,steady stream of bites resulted in 10 cod "fishfingers" and a 5 bearded rockling ...pleasant afternoons fishing ,i think if i`d have been stood outside in the biteing wind, i`d have lasted about 45 mins .

[Chopper]

I have had a Ron Thompson one but found it was a little on the small side, after a few PMs to MRG I also settled on the above shelter and cant fault it.

[scottish_and_mental]

The best shelter - and probably the reason everyone has tried to copy it over the years is the John Holden 'beach buddy'
ive had mine for donkeys years and its without doubt the best 100 squid i ever spent !
The diamond shaped tackle tart tents are fine until it pisses with rain and you have to cower in the back

[MRG2000]

Originally Posted by scottish_and_mental

The diamond shaped tackle tart tents are fine until it pisses with rain and you have to cower in the back

Surely you dont go fishing in the rain ,how common !!!!!

And your wrong ! , there`s plenty of room to sit and stay dry ........

As for being a tackle tart ,your absolutley right

[scottish_and_mental]

Originally Posted by MRG2000

Surely you dont go fishing in the rain ,how common !!!!!

And your wrong ! , there`s plenty of room to sit and stay dry ........

As for being a tackle tart ,your absolutley right

I would never have aimed that comment directly at you Mike

I kip in mine sometimes and having the doors on the front are good when your slobbering down your chin with your hands in your pants at 6 am and the lady walking the dog walks past

[MRG2000]

Originally Posted by scottish_and_mental

I kip in mine sometimes and having the doors on the front are good when your slobbering down your chin with your hands in your pants at 6 am and the lady walking the dog walks past

Thats a picture i dont want to think about

[scottish_and_mental]

yes, its probably not a pleasant sight -
I spoke to John Holden last week and he's no longer involved in the making of the beach buddy - i think he said sundridge are doing it all now ..
Ive had to replace one of the rivets on the block but was thinking of having an aluminium one made to replace the blue plastic one ..Apparently he says they were made that way so that if the shelter ever took a pounding and flew off or blew over the rivet/block would give way instead of bending one of the main legs ..makes sense when you think about

Sadly he no longer keeps spares which is a bugger as he used to give new blocks,rivets and poppers out free to anyone who asked him

I had my beach buddy set up on town quay last week - it chucked it down and i had it up and my kit under it in seconds .. i did get a few funny looks mind you but it doesnt bear thinking about not having somewhere dry and wind free to fish from ..
Dadwood - its something that should last you a lifetime and if your clever you can look on ebay as ive seen two original beach buddys going for a bout 30 squid ! get the best you can afford - i tried cheaper ones when i started out and wouldnt even have used them for the kids sunbathing now

[Rob M]

Ron Thompson for me, or my 'John Thomas' as Fishypaul once named it.