Floater fishing

[daniel121]

I make my own floats out if clear plastic drinking straws with lead in the bottom. The line goes through the top of the float like a controller, the result is a more delicate presentation which is essential when carp are rejecting baits, something everybody who must have fished on surface baits for carp would have have noticed.

Of course the best way is free lining but this is not always possible due to the distance carp are feeding

[Keith M]

I occasionally use home made and weighted streamlined balsa surface floats which I make in various sizes and shapes and can be made inline by drilling through them lengthwise.
I obtain my balsa fairly cheaply from a nearby model shop.

As for bait I usually use either Chum mixers dipped in water and left overnight to go slightly soft or large pieces of breadcrust dipped momentarily in water to give them a bit of casting weight; but now and then I’ll use a large lobworm injected in the head with air using a syringe and they float with their head on the surface and their tail end wriggling below the surface enticingly, and sometimes this can be a really killing bait not only for Carp but also Chub on the rivers.

Another floating bait that I have used in the past has been a sloppy boilee mix with a bit of baking powder added and then baked in the oven until it thickens into a dryish cakey texture as this stays on the hook a lot longer than a floating crust and can be cast a lot further without fear of it falling off on the cast, plus it can be coloured and flavoured.

Anyway best of luck with your surface fishing

Keith

[s63]

Often referred to as “floater cake”, an excellent bait.