Newark Needle Floats

[markcw]

Does anyone remember these, or used them ? I got my first one free with if I remember correctly the Anglers Mail. The line was held in place at the top of the float by a "slot" then down the float to a small piece of yellow hard silicone tube a couple of mm long, the weight used to cock the float looked like a small cut off from a bicycle spoke again held in place top and bottom with hard piece of silicone tube, this silicone was very similar to early pole float "rubbers" that D.A.M brought out in a plastic container, (I still have 2 containers somewhere) but unfortunately no Newark Floats. I knew a few anglers who either used snips of thick gauge wire or snips of cycle spokes to use in shirt button style , the reasoning behind it was if changed size of float it was easier to add or subtract the snips of wire/spoke than play around with shot,

 

[The bad one]

In deed I do. wasn't it some guy like Walter Boyer or something like that that created them? Never used them though.

 

[markcw]

In deed I do. wasn't it some guy like Walter Boyer or something like that that created them? Never used them though.

Yes, I think that was his name, he has since passed away, I used mine when on Norfolk broads, and I thin half of Norfolk did as well, Didnt see many around Warringron area, They came in different sizes but again didnt see many for sale in shops around Warrington at the time

 

[Aknib]

It was Walter Bower, he had some gravel pits at Muskham along with a stretch of the Trent and his wife continued to run them long after Walt's passing, there was always rumoured to be a feeling of 'not being alone' whenever someone fished his favourite river swim.

I believe the pits are still there and now a nature reserve alongside a housing development but the old farmhouse is long gone, I took my personal best Pike and only thirty I've ever had from one of them around twenty five years ago.

I think one of the match fishing 'Hooked' series which were hosted by Jack Charlton was also filmed on one of the pits around the mid 80's... Can't remember too clearly but Tommy Pickering was either a heat or final winner with some nice waggler caught Chub.

The Newark needle floats never really took off around here and they often appear on Ebay either mixed in with job lots of other old floats or intact with their weights and floats in a sealed pack.

As for their general regard as a float?

Well, sorry Walt but there are rumoured to be many still hanging from Trent bankside trees well within retrievable range but many seemed to think that was the best place for 'em

 

[chrissh]

I had a set of 4 Newark needle floats I think I bought them from Bennett’s of Sheffield mail order ad or a pull out magazine in the angling times.

Was it the same guy that made a hinged float or jointed float

 

[flightliner]

It was indeed Walt Bower Steve. Walt had a barn opposite his house where he had rigged up a testing tank that comprised of a large glass tube full of water and a selection of popular well known stickfloats in general use at the time, mixed in with them were one of his needle floats.
All were cocked and atop the tube was an automatic "clapper" that came down on all the floats at the same time.
Walt showed it me before he died and every time the clapper came down on the floats his needle float sank the furthest which was food for thought.
TBH I always thought his float had more potential than it ever got.
Not many knew but Walt was an ex fairground boxer of the take on all comers variety.
A good angler in his own right also as well as a character!
Ps- almost forgot but after Walt died and Dot, his wife carried on running the fishery I was talking to her one morning, she in the kitchen , me outside where anglers paid and we were chatting about the needle floats when she said quite openly that the patents for Walts invention were behind the Wallpaper in the far corner of the living room.
Dot sadly passed away later and I often wondered if the patent was ever found when the house was demolished to make way for the new estate a year or two later.

 

[xenon]

I remember these coming out-could not see the point of them in terms of advantage over existing systems. Now if they would only bring back the "Mabby"....

 

[David Rogers 3]

If you snapped a Newark Needle Float in half and sniffed it, it smelt exactly like what I believe it was actually made from - a pencil!

 

[S-Kippy]

He did "leger pins" too. These looked like the metal stems from a NNF fixed by a silicone rubber each end. IIRC a week or so before the season opened there would be an article in the AT about somebody bagging up using them. Shameless product placement....I had a set of NNF but I didnt fall for the leger pins caper.

 

[john step]

I got a set from ATimes. To be honest I thought they were a con and useless. I thought someone had bought a job lot of reject pencils without any lead in them and thought of a way to offload them.
:doh:

 

[David Rogers 3]

I thought someone had bought a job lot of reject pencils without any lead in them and thought of a way to offload them.

Ah, so I wasn't the only one to make the "pencils" connection, then!

 

[no-one in particular]

I also remember them and couldn't get on with them so they were ditched. They disappeared generally so that says a lot. I think my problem was you could never get any of the float rubbers to fit out of those little tubs of float rubbers I used to buy. I cannot remember exactly, maybe they were better than that but given there is a lot of choice of excellent floats for every job going, a new design would have to be something special and this was not one of them.

 

[rayner]

Never needed any other floats than the Ultra floats that I had an endless supply of. George Stenton the owner of Ultra was the Brother in law of a very dear friend who recently died. Through my time spent with my friend I became a friend with George.
A shame that George moved to Nuneaton, he was a very good angler who gave me some very good angling information.
He mentored Klaus fix, another top match angler who was a very nice man.

 

[nottskev]

I had one of those floats - I think it was free with Angler's Mail. It went in the float box, adding to the random bunch in there, but I can't recall that it ever came out. Some of the top anglers of the day were given samples to try - to raise the profile, I suppose. I can't remember the exact words of his feedback, but Kevin Ashurst was reported as saying something along these lines: I can't tell you how much I admire your floats, Walter, the time and thought that's gone into making them. But do you know, they're no bloody good.

I never bought the leger pins, but there are times when a nail-shaped weight is the thing to use, so I wouldn't dismiss them out of hand.

 

[sam vimes]

If anyone is feeling nostalgic enough to actually part with cash for some......
5 x Newark Needle stick floats for river fishing match | eBay
Beyond reading about them and seeing the odd picture, I have no experience or recollection of them. They either passed me by completely or were from prior to '83ish.

 

[markcw]

I would say they were mid to late 70's Chris.