Catering for the little guy...

[binka]

On the back of Derek's very excellent float thread I thought these might be of interest to some.

A bit out of my league price wise I'm afraid but if anyone needs a pair of Gudgeon Antennas...

Handmade Traditional Vintage Style Fishing Floats Pair of Gudgeon Antennas. | eBay

Or how about a Minnow Bodied Antenna...

Handmade Vintage Style Fishing Tackle Minnow Floats Bodied Antennas. | eBay

Not sure whether 'Minnow' refers to the float size, the fish or possibly both in the latter case but either way they're all very nice.

 

[thames mudlarker]

Very nice indeed Steve :thumbs:

Incidentally did yer read me PM that I sent to yer just basically wandered what you thought and the idea behind me approach

 

[Peter Jacobs]

I love those gudgeon floats . . . . . . maybe not at that price though . . . .

Just the thing for a gudgeon match at Redmire?

 

[binka]

Very nice indeed Steve :thumbs:

Incidentally did yer read me PM that I sent to yer just basically wandered what you thought and the idea behind me approach

I did mate, thanks, I will drop you a line a bit later when I've mulled it over but I think you're onto something for the situation you describe

 

[thames mudlarker]

I love those gudgeon floats . . . . . . maybe not at that price though . . . .

Just the thing for a gudgeon match at Redmire?

Absolutely Pete, proper nostalgia fishing

 

[tigger]

Funny enough, i'm not a lover of handmade floats ok they might look fancy but imo most of 'em are pretty naff. I prefer the mass produced or commercially made ones. Imo those floats in the links arn't as nice to look at or as practical as many mass produced ones including the drennan glow tip antenna wagglers for example....

Glow Tip Antenna Wagglers | Drennan Latest

If you wanted to go so called "traditional" then surely a small porky quill or short length of plain peacock quill would be more in keeping for daft gudgeon fishing events.

 

[thames mudlarker]

Funny enough, i'm not a lover of handmade floats ok they might look fancy but imo most of 'em are pretty naff. I prefer the mass produced or commercially made ones. Imo those floats in the links arn't as nice to look at or as practical as many mass produced ones including the drennan glow tip antenna wagglers for example....

Glow Tip Antenna Wagglers | Drennan Latest

If you wanted to go so called "traditional" then surely a small porky quill or short length of plain peacock quill would be more in keeping for daft gudgeon fishing events.

Yes I must admit that there are some vintage floats out there that do look a bit naff but some of em especially old lignum and cane sticks I simply love and sadly one can have a real hard job in trying to get hold of these type of floats now,

On the other hand yes mate I totally agree about the useage of quality modern floats aswell because these are mass produced on industrial machinery the floats are pretty much spot on every time whereas hand made floats can actually differ quite considerably.

Mate you've had me in creases......." daft gudgeon fishing event " mg: mg:

 

[tigger]

Yes I must admit that there are some vintage floats out there that do look a bit naff but some of em especially old lignum and cane sticks I simply love and sadly one can have a real hard job in trying to get hold of these type of floats now,

On the other hand yes mate I totally agree about the useage of quality modern floats aswell because these are mass produced on industrial machinery the floats are pretty much spot on every time whereas hand made floats can actually differ quite considerably.

Mate you've had me in creases......." daft gudgeon fishing event " mg: mg:

Now the genuine old floats and not the modern day homemade stuff with all the weird whipping and bird feathers stuck on them etc are a different matter, some of them I still like very much!
I used to have a lot of denton floats but in all honesty the majority where a bit naff although I have kept a few favourites .

glad I made you smile Stuart....that's just how I think of "daft" gudgeon matches....silly arn't they mg:. For the majority of the people who practice or participate in these foolish gudgeon matches/events I think they do it because they've seen Bob James and the trampy looking fella...Chris Yates doing it in APFA. Even when I was a kid i'd get jacked off with gudgeon so I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to catch the bleeders now unless I needed some bait :wh.

 

[thames mudlarker]

Now the genuine old floats and not the modern day homemade stuff with all the weird whipping and bird feathers stuck on them etc are a different matter, some of them I still like very much!
I used to have a lot of denton floats but in all honesty the majority where a bit naff although I have kept a few favourites .

glad I made you smile Stuart....that's just how I think of "daft" gudgeon matches....silly arn't they mg:. For the majority of the people who practice or participate in these foolish gudgeon matches/events I think they do it because they've seen Bob James and the trampy looking fella...Chris Yates doing it in APFA. Even when I was a kid i'd get jacked off with gudgeon so I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to catch the bleeders now unless I needed some bait :wh.

Absolutely Ian,

They make fantastic livey's for big Thames perch, I've used loads and had many a 3 lber perch on em :thumbs:

 

[Peter Jacobs]

The thing to remember with the gudgeon match in P4A was it was included to remind viewers that fishing is, or should be, fun, and that as Jack Hargreaves used to say; before we strive to catch big fish we should try to catch natural ones.

Personally I'd far rather have a funday on a venue than a stressful one chasing 'specimens'- still, each to their own eh.

 

[tigger]

The thing to remember with the gudgeon match in P4A was it was included to remind viewers that fishing is, or should be, fun, and that as Jack Hargreaves used to say; before we strive to catch big fish we should try to catch natural ones.

Personally I'd far rather have a funday on a venue than a stressful one chasing 'specimens'- still, each to their own eh.

I don't understand Jack hargreaves saying that, I mean, hows a gudgeon any more natural than a pike etc.
As you say Peter, each to their own as I don't get much pleasure catching gudgeon especially after the first couple. Funny enough I haven't caught a gudgeon for yonks now...thankfully .

 

[Tee-Cee]

I'm a big fan of the Drennan glo tip antenna mentioned in the last tigger post...

Now I'm not a person who takes liberties with gear and I look after my tackle, but I have found the antenna on these floats very fragile and it doesn't take much to snap one off. In fact, just drying one off to put it away after a session the stem snapped near the body of the float.
Obviously, the stem is very thin and hollow as well so always going to be fragile, so perhaps its me, but I have the feeling it is slightly brittle as well??
Any thoughts, anyone??


ps The broken antennas (yes, I broke two!) have been set into a length of peacock quill and they work very well for close in roach fishing, so nothing wasted!

Still a great float, though...

 

[tigger]

I'm a big fan of the Drennan glo tip antenna mentioned in the last tigger post...

Now I'm not a person who takes liberties with gear and I look after my tackle, but I have found the antenna on these floats very fragile and it doesn't take much to snap one off. In fact, just drying one off to put it away after a session the stem snapped near the body of the float.
Obviously, the stem is very thin and hollow as well so always going to be fragile, so perhaps its me, but I have the feeling it is slightly brittle as well??
Any thoughts, anyone??


ps The broken antennas (yes, I broke two!) have been set into a length of peacock quill and they work very well for close in roach fishing, so nothing wasted!

Still a great float, though...

I've heard about other people having the problems you describe TC although I haven't had the myself....yet! Maybe it's down to the individual batch you get your float from, not good I know!
I've found drennans crystal floats and puddle chuckers have gone more and more fragile and often the bodies seem to crack under the slightest of pressure when handling them.
Maybe we should simply take them back to the shop we buy them from in future if they fall to bits for nothing.

 

[S-Kippy]

I don't know about fragile but those GT antennae are the very devils to shot properly. I gave up in the end and started using pole floats.

 

[robtherake]

I'm a big fan of the Drennan glo tip antenna mentioned in the last tigger post...

Now I'm not a person who takes liberties with gear and I look after my tackle, but I have found the antenna on these floats very fragile and it doesn't take much to snap one off. In fact, just drying one off to put it away after a session the stem snapped near the body of the float.
Obviously, the stem is very thin and hollow as well so always going to be fragile, so perhaps its me, but I have the feeling it is slightly brittle as well??
Any thoughts, anyone?

I scrounged a couple from the tackle shop that had broken apart on display, so some don't even make it out of the shop intact. Glued up, they're a good float and I really like the glo-tips, which are much more visible than the standard type, particularly in low light.

 

[theartist]

I'm so tempted to re post that pic of 'Sherman The Gudgeon' that dude would have taken a pike float under

 

[Tee-Cee]

As a matter of interest, I looked around to try and find a 'yellow' of similar brightness to that found on the GT antenna, and settled on an enamel one made by Revell and it works very well on home made floats, particularly fishing in deep shade (under trees and the like).
I cannot give you the paint number as it's packed away while the builders are in, but from memory the one I use stands out like sore thumb in the Revell paint rack and very little difference to that found on the Drennan GT......(to my eyes, anyway!!)

On the floats I make (not necessarily antenna type) I have tended to follow the Drennan colour scheme of things with the yellow bands within those of black and red.

As an aside; On the end of some of the floats made with the broken bits of GT I have also added a tiny, oval shaped polystyrene section which used to come in packets of a dozen or so. Again, I cannot check the actual size at the mo, but painted flame orange or the yellow they stand out beautifully in very dark shade and in no way does it affect the function of the antenna. Works well for those with doggy bins and at distance!!

ps On checking the Revell range this morning, I note they also make a ' Bright Yellow Silk Matt' in 14ml tins. Not seen this before so maybe ideal for float makers who want very bright float tips!! May give it a whirl...

 

[binka]

Have you considered mixing your own colour Tony?

This might sound expensive but these are the small bottles of acrylic paint which sell for less than a couple of quid each and I've just mixed a very bright yellow (whilst deliberately avoiding flouro) from a mix of bright yellow, white and flouro yellow.

The flouro colours on their own seem to thin out on application and are a bit of a nightmare in terms of the amount of coats they need, I did a couple of pike floats with flouro orange back in the autumn and it took something daft like fourteen coats before it started to look opaque.

Mixing flouro with the normal colours helps a lot and you're back to two or three coats on a white undercoat which gives a really bright finish.

 

[Tee-Cee]

No, I haven't considered mixing in that sense, but I hear what you're saying....

Are you able to say (how vey polite!) what make of acrylic paint you use, and if you find it perfectly adequate without a protective 'varnish OR if you do use a varnish, what make it is?

The flouro/ normal paint mixture on white undercoat sounds fine!

(I'm assuming said floats have been left out for several months in freezing conditions and in water to test durability....add a smilie here!)

Cost is not an issue in the making of floats!

 

[binka]

No, I haven't considered mixing in that sense, but I hear what you're saying....

Are you able to say (how vey polite!) what make of acrylic paint you use, and if you find it perfectly adequate without a protective 'varnish OR if you do use a varnish, what make it is?

The flouro/ normal paint mixture on white undercoat sounds fine!

(I'm assuming said floats have been left out for several months in freezing conditions and in water to test durability....add a smilie here!)

Cost is not an issue in the making of floats!

As far as I can tell the brand is MP (Miniature Paints) and I buy them from my local craft shop.

Unfortunately they don't stock the flouro colours so they are from a different shop elsewhere...



I think the acrylic would be durable enough without varnish but I varnish mine just to be sure which has the effect of darkening them slightly but it's not an issue, I'm currently using yacht varnish but would like to use something with a quicker drying time.

I'm currently using Johnstone's which doesn't seem to yellow as much as Ronseal which I used on my earlier floats.

Many of my floats have been in use since May last year (1st batch) and October (2nd batch) and so they have been out in the coldest of temperatures and they're all absolutely fine, I've go no worries at all on that score