old style floats

has anyone used or still uses old style floats like porcupine quills and the floats with a cork ball glued halfawy down a cane stem.perch bobs i used to call em when i was a kid,cos we used to fish them with a big juicy lob worm as bait for perch....... i`ve been picking them up from car boots and junk markets and stripping the old paint and
varnish from them ready to be re painted and used.any hints and tips on
where,what and how to get the best from them would be most appreciated......cheers

porcupine quills Nick, used to be used mainly for strettpegging, sort of lying on, on the river. They're good floats but they've been superceded. Mr Crabtree used to use the others for perching and he seemed to catch ok

Nick
get hold of a copy of the Billy Lane's Encyclopaedia of Float Fishing. It describes all the floats , how to use them and how to make them. We can all still learn from this great past master of float fishing. His chubber floats for fishing swims less than 12 inch deep using back shotting are brilliant tools. Copies are available from many suppliers - or ask around on this site.

Porcupine quill floats were also used for trotting on rivers and were attached with rubbers top and bottom, just like today's stick floats. My father won many a match in the fifties and sixties using these floats.

Its true you can trot with porcupines you can also fish still waters with them, versatile floats. I've still got some of my dads and I'm retired so they're old. The reason I said about using them for strettpegging is, they're just about perfect for the job and its a method that can still catch fish on a river. There was one enterprising chappie in the midlands used to make stick floats out of them using the porcupine quill as the top half, brilliant floats they were to. Goose quill is also useful for making light floats for use down the inside. Hang on a minute I'll be recommending whicker baskets next I'd better get orf

There was nothing wrong with wicker baskets Graham.
If you spilt anything in them it fell through the holes. It's a delight now when you discover the maggot box with the lid off, or a split groundbait bag, when you open your shiny new plastic seat box, and you then have to take everything out and turn it upside down to empty it.
They were a bit heavy though!