The client
His crew at C. F. Swim Ltd. fishes rivers and streams in the spring, and has ordered its gear from Filmar ahead of every season since 2017.
The challenge
Elvers are glass eels a few centimetres long, and standard nets were not enough. The crew needed:
- fyke nets in 1/32 in knotless mesh, sized for each site and quick to move;
- a way to grade out larger eels right at the net;
- faster unloading: scooping elvers out of insulated boxes was slow, and water splashing on the road carried some away;
- a pouch that stays shut while transporting elvers from river to vehicle for transport.
The Filmar solution
Every piece was designed with Carson from his sketches, photos and a sample net, and every new design was approved as a prototype first.
- Portable fyke nets in 1/32 in knotless Delta: 4 x 4 ft to 4 x 8 ft openings, 7 to 12 ft wings, a funnel with a 1/2 in bycatch grate, and removable sleeves for floats and chain.
- Floating bycatch grading pouches, a name Carson's crew chose, in 335 µm Nitex with a zip-out 1/8 in inner pouch for larger eels. In 2026, a zippered Delta lid sealed three new pouches and was retrofitted on four more.
- Transport box liners in 335 µm Nitex, cut to fit the insulated boxes, with a zippered top, an aeration hose port and bungee flanges. The crew lifts the full liner out and sets it in the holding tank.
The result
C. F. Swim Ltd. has ordered its gear from Filmar ahead of every season since 2017: nearly a decade of fyke nets, wings, grading pouches, lids and liners, more than $66,000 of gear since 2020 alone. After the 2023 season, Carson reported that the new nets "fished excellent" and the pouches "worked great". The first liner "fit like a glove", and two more followed. The 2026 order shipped in early March, ahead of the season.
"The gear has arrived and we are all very pleased with it! Excellent work."
Carson Swim, C. F. Swim Ltd.
Elver season opens in April. Order in the fall and we build your gear over the winter in Saint-Fabien, Quebec. Request a quote or call us at 418-736-5717.
