DIY Pliers Lanyard

Deneki Outdoors

Most premium fishing pliers these days are built to withstand a lifetime of abuse (such as these, or these). However, it seems like we’re always scrounging around for replacement lanyard bungees to keep our pliers from falling into the drink.

So, today we present you with a super clever way to make your own lanyard bungees, courtesy of Alaska West guide, Jim Palmersheim. Not only are they cheap and easy to make, but they’re far more rugged than any other lanyard we’ve used. Just follow the steps below to make your own!

Make Your Own Pliers Lanyard

What You’ll Need:

  • Parachute or Accessory Cord of Choice
  • Weed Whacker Line
  • 2 Snap Hook Clasps of Choice (found at any hardware store)
  • Shrink Tubing
  • Duct Tape

Instructions:

  1. Remove nylon core from a length of parachute or accessory cord, leaving just the outer coating. Length depends on what you want the maximum reach of the lanyard to be.
  2. Thread weed whacker line through the parachute cord coating.
  3. Wrap the cord/weed wacker line tightly around a pencil in touching turns. Tape each end of the cord to the pencil to keep from unraveling.
  4. Place the coiled line and pencil into a pot of boiling water for five minutes.
  5. Remove from boiling water, and place in freezer or ice water to cool.
  6. Once cooled, remove the cord from the pencil and slide a short piece of shrink tubing onto each side.
  7. Attach snap hook clasps to each end of the lanyard by doubling over, inserting the end of cord into the shrink tubing, and heating until tight.
  8. Attach one end to your pliers and one end to your sheath and get fishing!

Originally published here.