I'm not sure if I've brought this up on FM(and I can't be arsed to look)but as available floats have changed so much I'm finding it difficult,nay impossible to find the kinds of waggler 'I' believe necessary to achieve my presentations,either a peacock style float thin at the tip 4mm or so and obviously fattening at the base,or insert floats,in my view these inserts need to be at least 4in in length,this is to ease the effects of surface draw,similar to bodied floats,they mustn't be loaded,because I need at least 3AA to give the different combinations,it is coming to the stage where I'm going to have to buy two floats to make one which is annoying a Drennan used to make three patterns of float that were perfect...
Wagglers for Stillwater's.
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markcw
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have you tried googling "Drake Floats" ? they did/do a range of wagglers similar to your needs, There is an article in this weeks Anglers Mail about getting the blister packs of floats from the poundshops and cutting tip and stem of the bodies and using quill or other material in the body to make floats to your own style,
rich66
Well-known member
Have you looked at the Drennan Stillwater glo tip antenna range ? They have quickly become my favourite float.
Drennan Glow Tip Antenna Floats
Drennan Glow Tip Antenna Floats
ian g
Well-known member
A mate of mine loves the Drake floats , Benwick have a great range.
Wagglers (2) - Benwick Sports Angling Centre
Wagglers (2) - Benwick Sports Angling Centre
I've been on Benwick sports website,the Drake floats are loaded in the patterns that suit and the metal loading is much longer than you'd believe,I bought some last year,for me a float that takes say 4no4,but has loading equivalent of 4aa is poor,I know I can use adaptors that fix the depth,but it still doesn't allow fishing a bulk or using said float as a slider.As for the Drennans mentioned, the pattern with the nice length of insert is too sensitive, of a!lowing shot to be dragged in tow, hard to please aren't I.
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ian g
Well-known member
Whitty, are you talking about the old Drennan stillwater blue inserts? or are they to sensitive ?
No good buying something that isn't right
No good buying something that isn't right
why not make your own? miles cheaper and you create the exact model you want.
mind you - that brings up the problem of sourcing peacock quill - there appears to be a couple of sources on ebay.
Stillwater blue inserts are like billy's canal grey aren't they ...... and the drennan glow tip mentioned is the modern version of the same.
mind you - that brings up the problem of sourcing peacock quill - there appears to be a couple of sources on ebay.
Stillwater blue inserts are like billy's canal grey aren't they ...... and the drennan glow tip mentioned is the modern version of the same.
I'm struggling to find good insert material Alex,thin peacock is a s*d to straighten even with steam,simply doesn't hold it's straightness,i have fat end peacock in abundance,it has to have the buoyancy of peacock or balsa or it's ineffective for me...
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I cannot understand how top match anglers are fishing with an insert of an inch and a half on stillwaters,a scudding wind will pull it along even when there is an undertow in the opposite direction,even with a large bulk to catch that tow,i've made floats in the past 18in long ,just for that reason,made from full length peacock,I feel many of the 'skills' are lost,and as they are,then the 'tools' go with them....
You and I know Alex,there are cases for specific floats,many don't think so,but that is down to lack of knowledge in the main...
I will get round this and will probably have to make something up,just wondered why these sorts have float have vanished.
You and I know Alex,there are cases for specific floats,many don't think so,but that is down to lack of knowledge in the main...
I will get round this and will probably have to make something up,just wondered why these sorts have float have vanished.
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ian g
Well-known member
I think stillwater blues are a bigger version of the glowtip ones . I agree with the other post regarding making your own.
sam vimes
Well-known member
No, they are pretty much the same. The Glow Tip Antennas are just an update of the old Stillwater Blues made with different materials and with a different paint job.
B
binka
Guest
Anything to tickle the fancy here Alan, there are a couple or more of unloaded insert types...
Coarse Fishing Floats
I've got a few Premier Floats, they're nice enough but a bit imaginative on the shotting capacity sometimes.
Coarse Fishing Floats
I've got a few Premier Floats, they're nice enough but a bit imaginative on the shotting capacity sometimes.
I recognise the problem - there are some uses - fishing overdepth on slow rivers, light sliders etc - for which only thin peacock inserts will do, and there's a dearth of such floats.
Drennan's range is, for me, really limited these days, when you think of such creations as the Swingers and Tench Perfections - both small, neat bodies on long, thin peacock stems. I wrote to them to ask what happened to these great designs: "not commercially viable".
Because I couldn't find thin peacock for float-making anymore, I've resorted to buying cheapish thin straight peacock floats from a local tackle shop and cutting them into the short lengths required for inserts. Needs must.
Drennan's range is, for me, really limited these days, when you think of such creations as the Swingers and Tench Perfections - both small, neat bodies on long, thin peacock stems. I wrote to them to ask what happened to these great designs: "not commercially viable".
Because I couldn't find thin peacock for float-making anymore, I've resorted to buying cheapish thin straight peacock floats from a local tackle shop and cutting them into the short lengths required for inserts. Needs must.
Steve,the nearest float that I might use is the premier swinger 3-4aa,probably not sensitive enough mind.
And yes Kev,that looks my best option,for the nearest thing to my needs.
I'm not so fussed Alex,bet when you have 4-5ins of thin peacock it can end up being like a bloody banana,that would pee me off....mg:
And yes Kev,that looks my best option,for the nearest thing to my needs.
I'm not so fussed Alex,bet when you have 4-5ins of thin peacock it can end up being like a bloody banana,that would pee me off....
mg:It's quite easy. Drennan Insert Crystal + relevant length Combo tip or Drennan Giant Crystal + relevant length Combo tip. For bodied take a Puddle Chucker with a short insert and change that to a much longer Combo tip. If you have enough floats and enough Combo tips you can make dozens & dozens of permutations of waggler.
I haven't used a Peacock waggler since about 1984 as Crystals can make everything I need without the need to carry so many different individual floats.
If you want the 'body' of the float way under the surface and to avoid bad wind/drift you can join the body to the tip with mono and then have any length you like.
I haven't used a Peacock waggler since about 1984 as Crystals can make everything I need without the need to carry so many different individual floats.
If you want the 'body' of the float way under the surface and to avoid bad wind/drift you can join the body to the tip with mono and then have any length you like.
sam vimes
Well-known member
I suspect that many people are unaware that packs of Drennan Combo Tips even exist. I know I have very rarely seen them in bricks and mortar shops, especially in the more outlandish sizes.
Winchester ?
No need to cut any sight bob off just buy the Match ones as they're all straight