Mark Wintle
Well-known member
Just before I get ready to go and look at a load of old gear at Romsey Community School, Romsey, today 9am onwards - Tackle Fair, I'll try and explain the differences in the float names:
Ducker is a cork bodied (body about 3") crowquill with the body at the thin end of the quill, thick end as tip - about 8" long - fished on a river to beat downstream wind, now superseded by waggler variants.
Onion is a bodied (body about 1.5") crow quill with the body at the thick end of the quill with the thin end as the tip - fished on stillwater to beat wind and be very sensitive.
Zoomer - Cane stem about 8" with thick balsa body around 4.5" and loading in base about 1/3 of total load. Fished top and bottom across Welland by late Ivan Marks in very slow moving water with very favourable wind conditions i.e. off back and slightly upstream. Extremely specialised and not to be confused by commercial floats found bearing the same name.
Missile - long peacock quill stem (15") with body at base and loading enough to cock float - fished at long range bottom end only
Bodied waggler - peacock stem (12" upwards) possibly with thinner peacock insert, body (3-4") no loading. Fish bottom end only, possibly as slider, on Fenland waters or big stillwaters at range, some variants (no insert) useful in downstreamer on river where known as a Swinger.
Loaded waggler - as bodied waggler but no body and loading of 75% of shot load.
As you can see a bodied waggler ain't the same as a ducker!
Ducker is a cork bodied (body about 3") crowquill with the body at the thin end of the quill, thick end as tip - about 8" long - fished on a river to beat downstream wind, now superseded by waggler variants.
Onion is a bodied (body about 1.5") crow quill with the body at the thick end of the quill with the thin end as the tip - fished on stillwater to beat wind and be very sensitive.
Zoomer - Cane stem about 8" with thick balsa body around 4.5" and loading in base about 1/3 of total load. Fished top and bottom across Welland by late Ivan Marks in very slow moving water with very favourable wind conditions i.e. off back and slightly upstream. Extremely specialised and not to be confused by commercial floats found bearing the same name.
Missile - long peacock quill stem (15") with body at base and loading enough to cock float - fished at long range bottom end only
Bodied waggler - peacock stem (12" upwards) possibly with thinner peacock insert, body (3-4") no loading. Fish bottom end only, possibly as slider, on Fenland waters or big stillwaters at range, some variants (no insert) useful in downstreamer on river where known as a Swinger.
Loaded waggler - as bodied waggler but no body and loading of 75% of shot load.
As you can see a bodied waggler ain't the same as a ducker!