River float collection?

[binka]

A bit subjective but what floats would you include in an all inclusive 'river collection' to suit your own fishing?

From slacks and eddies to fast glides, shallow riffles to deep and steady runs?

I'll 'fess up and say that this is more than a general curiosity given that I'm looking for a project to while away the Winter nights.

My river float fishing is almost entirely done with sticks and Avons, I've got plenty of bolo's but I don't really use them in a situation that an Avon wouldn't cope with.

So for me, with niche excursions included, I'm thinking...

Avons
Avon sliders
Slim Avons (a bit like the Thames Roach floats)
Sticks
Wire (or carbon, or both?) stemmed sticks
Straight wagglers
Straight insert wagglers
Chubbers or Loafers
Perch Bobbers (universal but essential!)
Dibbers

I'm not a lignum user as I tend to just use a heavier float and bulk some shot directly below it if I need distance.

Anyone think of any others that they'd likely use as part of a river collection?

 

[theartist]

Match sticks - technically a float and deadly in the low water levels this year especially on tiny streams

Bubble floats - Ideal for mullet on estuaries

 

[Keith M]

I have the following floats for fishing in flowing water.

a selection of:

• Avon’s; (3 versions) traditional Avon’s, slimmer bodied Avons plus a selection of Fluted Avon’s.
• Balsas for fishing in more turbulent waters and with larger baits.
• Sticks with shoulders to help prevent them from riding up when holding back or mending line, and with both wire and cane stems.
• Bodied Wagglers; with slightly shorter stems and slightly longer bodies; for use in downstream winds.
• Perch Bobbers For fishing worms and small livebaits.
• Chubbers for shallowish streams; I also use these occasionally when I’m ‘Trent Trotting’ on very shallow streams.
• Quills I like using these if I’m Stret Pegging directly downstream of my rod tip.
• Onion Wagglers A selection for fishing at longer ranges on much wider rivers; sometimes fished ‘top & bottom’.

95% of the time I’ll be using various stick floats and slim Avon’s but every now and then I’ll use one of the others.

Keith

 

[tigger]

I've got all kinds of floats for river fishing and a number of stick type jobbies and avons which imo are all made redundant by numerous sized bolo floats.

I recently got a clarusso bolo float and am gonn'a give it a go when I can get to the river. Apparently you can keep it stationary mod river or hold it back and make it shoot across river!...well see lol. Maybe you could try making one of those odd looking contraptions for your collection?

 

[sam vimes]

Without mentioning wagglers, as I try to avoid using them on rivers, I tend to use a fairly limited range of floats which tend to revolve around bolo and Avon patterns. Proper stick floats barely get a look in.

I recently got a clarusso bolo float and am gonn'a give it a go when I can get to the river. Apparently you can keep it stationary mod river or hold it back and make it shoot across river!...well see lol. Maybe you could try making one of those odd looking contraptions for your collection?

Which model have you gone for? IIRC only the Surf is quite as manoeuvrable as that, but it takes some practice. I certainly never mastered the Surf. The Bolo model is a bit more conventional, but it's still strange. They do what they say on the tin and resist coming into the nearside longer than any normal float. Other models, like the shark, are more adept at being held back.
The one thing I found with any of them is that they are a bit strange on the retrieve. The weirdest of the lot being the bolo and surf with their strange angles. It's like striking against, and winding in, a mini sail against the flow.

 

[tigger]

Without mentioning wagglers, as I try to avoid using them on rivers, I tend to use a fairly limited range of floats which tend to revolve around bolo and Avon patterns. Proper stick floats barely get a look in.



Which model have you gone for? IIRC only the Surf is quite as manoeuvrable as that, but it takes some practice. I certainly never mastered the Surf. The Bolo model is a bit more conventional, but it's still strange. They do what they say on the tin and resist coming into the nearside longer than any normal float. Other models, like the shark, are more adept at being held back.
The one thing I found with any of them is that they are a bit strange on the retrieve. The weirdest of the lot being the bolo and surf with their strange angles. It's like striking against, and winding in, a mini sail against the flow.

It's just the bog standard bolo version, it has a dog leg wire comind oit ot it and a quite falt wide body, plust about four different tips. It also has a couple of bits for trotting left or right. It was 5.45 posted so cheaper than i've seen them before and cheap enough to try one out. I got the 4grm size but think I should have got the 6grm. I've never used one so am intrigued by them. I'll give it a go and see how I get on, if I don't like it i've not lost a fortune.