Is the art of float fishing slowly diminshing?

[yoggy]

Nice to know steve you took the time and effort in teaching those young uns,well done mate,but further to my original post..i popped into a local tackle shop last night to "add" to my float collection,would you believe they didn"t have one stick float for sale??!!!!!..i couldn"t believe it.The sales assistant said "we have no demand for them".They sold pole floats and carp style wagglers by the bucket load.Its becoming harder each year to buy decent stick floats...does anyone know of a tackle shop who sells a good collection of sticks??.If so let me know!!!.I"ve caught fish from dace to barbel on the stick which is why i cannot understand why anglers are so obsessed these days with fishing "on the deck"?.

 

[Newfie's Drool]

You can always make your own floats with quills. I have a draw full off them and they work very well. Nice and cheap too, and easy to see.
When I was a nipper they are all I used when I fished with my father on my favourite river the River Thame or the Thames.

 

[Ron 'The Hat' Clay]

Most tackle shops in my area sell stick and other trotting floats. Len Squires at the shop in Bawtry right next to the River Idle has one of the best selections of stick floats.

I would also suggest Banks and Burr in Rugby or Baileys of Warwick. Try also giving J&K Tackle on Bicester a call. Merv Wilkinson works there and he is very helpful

Drennan do a whole range of trotting floats from Avons and sticks to loafers.

I must have a selection of at least 40 various river trotting floats in a plastic tube these days.

 

[Neneman Nick]

how about a stick float fish in/teach in session....my stick float and pin technique is pretty poor.

 

[Neneman Nick]

yoggy,give webbs tackle a try,its opposite peterboro hyundai.they had loads of different style floats on display when i went in a few weeks ago.its only just five mins from the patch where you deliver to.

 

[yoggy]

Cheers Nick,I"ll check it out,bring along your pin to Elton and we"ll have a trotting session!!.

 

[Michael Howson]

Over the last few months i have float fished the rivers idle,trent and the rother.Ive polefished at aston ponds, decoy lakes,dents of hilgay and some of the lakes and rivers in denmark. I have also fished the feeder and straight lead on most of these venues in the recent past. I must admit float fishing with running line is the most enjoyable but at the same time putting fish on the bank is usually the object of the exersise so all methods are valid in thier own way.I am only a moderatley successful angler so am happy to adopt a method that suits the conditions on the day as i suspect are many more.

 

[john ledger]

Most people make the mistake of shotting poorly when stickfloat fishing and usually will use two or three heavy shot rather than grouping bunches of eights and its usually because they cannot be bothered.i set all my floats on rigs for every occasion.heavy set ups for the likes of the Swale Upper Trent light rigs for the Idle etc.When you strike and your shot is in neat groups there is less resistance through the water
I always use three rubbers with the one at the bottom of the float overhanging by 4 or 5mm.I do not use Toppers or Avons because Lignum cast better.
Some of the best floats i have in my collection are Steve Mahers from Fishermans Friend which Steve designed for the Severn.
Problably of no interest to anyone but thought i would put it on

 

[madpiker]

probably interesting to plenty of people john,myself included

 

[Nigel Connor(ACA ,SAA)]

John, surely Toppers and Avons would suit some circumstances when a stick, even a heavy lignum one would not suit?I,m thinking of those swims which are deep and boily where the advantages of a stick ie an even falling bait to pick up fish on the drop would be lost.

It can be a bit confusing to beginners I think to call trotting, stick float fishing as there is a tendency to do.There is a whole range of river floats from trent trotters to fish swims of a foot deep or less to heavy sliding balsas for deep rivers such as the Thames.The stick float is a very specialised float IMHO.

 

[Neneman Nick]

how about a stick float master class then john???

 

[Ron 'The Hat' Clay]

The classic stick float is excellent on rivers such as the Idle, parts of the Trent, Don and other rivers with a bit of depth and reasonably moderate flow.

Get on the Hampshire Avon where the river is very fast and boily and a float that really grips the current is better.

A small loafer or even a big Avon will enable you to trot down the other bank.

 

[john ledger]

Nigel
Nice to hear from you and nice to get off the other subject as fishing is more interesting.
The Steve Maher floats are excellent for your boily swims with good body and thick top which is visible well down a tree lined bank.
I have used Toppers and Avons and if you need plenty of shot down the line or in the Toppers case under the float they are ok.
The beauty about the Lignum stick is it cast so well with less shot which works well in Northern rivers but might not be so good where you fish on the Avon.
I tend to sit and feed a swim for about 15mins before casting in when i know the fish will feed. Do the same when i loose them and no it was not my brain that thought that one out but John Allertons. He did that on the Ure and caught 36lb of dace in a match. John did admit it was another Yorkshire stickman that had told him,bet it was the great Kenny Kendall.
We should all pass our knowledge on anyone who does not is in my mind a poor angler(sure you are a good un Nigel)
Nick
Nice to hear from you ,think this old coffin dodgers past his masterclass days,you would give me one

 

[Steve Spiller]

John good advice mate.
The "Topper" Haskins float was designed specifically for the Bristol Avon.
It is brilliant for fishing at depth, in the right hands it can be cast to the far bank in 13 foot of water, up to 15BB.
It's amazing how sensitive it is, even at that depth and weight.
The trouble is they now cost ?2.50, hand made and signed by Topper.
It hurts a bit when you catch a shopping trolley or a car and lose the lot!
On a different note I fished a winter match ages ago (I ended up walking, I'm glad I did), I sat behind a guy catching roach on red maggots on the stick, lose feeding hemp, it was winter!
He told me it was all about your feeding pattern and the amount of feed going in.
He knew he wouldn't win because chub would win it.
I remembered that lesson and did it myself, large roach are beautiful until cormorants arrive!

 

[Alan Tyler]

So, how do these topper things work? I've never invested in any 'cos they just don't look "right" to me; there's no "shoulder" to hold back to, and the quill is cut and stuck in, rather than passing intact through the body, which seems a source of inherent weakness. However, a lot of good anglers are very excited by them so I suspect I'm missing something.
Is it to do with the fact that the Bristol Avon flows West, so the prevailing wind is upstream?

 

[Graham Whatmore]

The advantage of using an Avon float is when you are moving from one swim to another, and I know Nigel likes to do this, because you can fish one setup at most depths and distances its more versatile than a stick.

The stick is a brilliant float in the right conditions but it does have its limitations and in matches when I've switched to a waggler through the same swims, I've caught fish where the stick produced nothing. This is probably due to the way the fish want the bait, slowly like a stick or running at them like a waggler or avon for that matter.

Avons are very sensitive if they are correctly shotted and the fact that they carry a lot of bulk tends to put anglers off. Different floats suit different conditions and all have their part to play in catching fish and the wise angler will have all of these at his disposal.

 

[yoggy]

I do all my "trotting" with a 13ft rod most of the time this suits my needs.However i have been thinking of buying a longer rod.I"ve been looking at the map 16-18ft,i"m aware that with the extra length this could give me better control etc..would it be worth me investing in one or should i stick with my 13ft??.

 

[Ron 'The Hat' Clay]

For over all trotting I like a 14 foot rod.

I do have a MAP 16footer but it breaks my wrist when I use it.

 

[john ledger]

I use a 15ft Prestons Carbonactive which as well as being delicate will stop a train.to be honest i never use a rod less than 14ft for float fishing in fact on the Idle i use my old Shimano Stradic spliced tip again 14ft and as Ron would agree on this river you must fish light

 

[Neneman Nick]

john,do you fish the pin or fixed spool type reels???