Bobber and Floats help

[HandGunner]

what are diferent looking bobbers used for? and how do I rig them? Im use to using the ones that are spring loaded and lock onto your line its red and shaped like a bottom bouncer weight. only thing I hate abouth them is they can krimp and crinkle your line plus its hard to see them sometimes and they tangle alot when your setting it deep, but the only plus I find is its easy to set up and they cast by far the furthest than any other bobber I have used. Im looking for tips and help to find better and more eficient ways to use a bobber, Im looking for good visibility since i have bad eye sight and castability and I mean some good distance without having the minnow rip off the hook, plus some help with hooksets would be nice as i seem to sometimes struggle with that

[itchmesir]

maybe look into slip bobbers for deeper options.. basically you place a stopper along your line.. which will slide gracefully through the eyelets on your rod... your bobber will slide along the line and stop at where you tied on your "stopper"...

personally i like the style of bobber you are speaking of as they have a lower level of resistance against fish tugging on them.. unlike your stereotypical red/white round bobbers.. maybe try getting them in different colors/painting them to see them from a distance.. the fish could careless what the top of the bobber looks like.. could be blaze orange if ya want it too..

[delmuts]

I seldom use the clip on ones ( except on the wifes' rod!! ) do to as you said they do crimp the line, and most times i'm using 4 #. For shallow ( 4 ft. or less) fishing i prefer the tear drop thil floats unless i'm fishing around lots of snags, where i switch to the foam ones.( they're alot cheaper) If fishing deeper, then i will use a slip float with the tie on bobber stops. ( tie one on, and leave about a 1/8 of an inch tag so you can tighten them every once in a while)

NOW!! With any of the floats i counter weight them most of the time.( i place split shot under the float for casting weight, and to have it so any light bite it will go under) You will loose the option of the float laying on it's side if a fish just picks up the jig, but i can live with that.

[dan z]

Slip bobber all the way for this guy its just a lot more finesse type of fishing you can adjust them so fast without damaging the line and I think the fish have a harder time feeling them also...

[20lbSloughShark]

Note from admin:[please read forum policy before posting again]

They rattle so you can hear bites. If they are like alot of other bobbers, you can turn the bottom so it is not tight on the line, and you can rig them like a slip bobber. Or you can keep your line tight and use a line sensor with your bail open.

[slipperybob]

Different shape bobbers can also affect how a jig dances with action imparted onto the bobber. Slip bobbers offers more vertical jigging and works well for deeper presentations. In general the more slender shaped floats have better casting distance due to wind resistance. However it's mostly a weight and rod length thing. A softer rod will prevent the bait from flinging off the hook, but also makes it harder to get a good hook set on a fish.

[Comit 2]

Quote:

castability and I mean some good distance without having the minnow rip off the hook, plus some help with hooksets would be nice as i seem to sometimes struggle with that

Use a longer rod 8 ft or better. On casting a longer rod has a larger ark so you can achieve greater speed at the rod tip over a greater distance. On hook set a longer rod will pick up more line when casting in deep water with slip bobbers.

NanoFill line would be a good line to help improve distance. It will slide through a slip bobber. Don't use a small arbor reel.

[Finlander]

Plastic Bubbles! They are bobbers that are made out of clear plastic that has a small rubber hose that attaches to each end of the bobber and your line goes thru the rubber hose then you twist the hose so it tightens on your line and holds the bobber in place.

They also come in orange or brite yellow color! Another thing about these bobbers is that you can open up the end and let some water in them to add weight so you can cast them way out there!

Good Luck!

[pulsar_nx]

Rounded bobbers will bob on the ripples imparting action to the bait on calm days, narrow floats cut through the waves and wind on windy days. Slip bobbers are great for casting and deep water, crimp on bobbers have the ability to be retrieved slowly and are great for light lures. Also some bobbers have a lead weight built into them for cast ability but you loss the ability to see an upward bite with those.

My favorite for visibility are cheap styrofoam thill bobbers that have an almost neon color to them.

Getting out there farther means more weight or longer rod. I've got an 8' slip bobber rod that will cast it out farther than I'd like because it gets hard to see way out there. Something to think about if your already having troubles seeing the bobber.

[HandGunner]

I was looking at the long slim bobbers and was thinking they could be right for me since there so long i can see it out further its not the fact i cant see the bobber its that its hard to see if the bobber went down or if it moved indicating a light bite im curious of all the funny fancy looking bobber wood foam and plastic but the info on the diferences on bobbers was great im going to have to get some slip bobbers. I only hated them because sometimes casting the bobber for es the bobber stop to slip down to the lure and i hate using swivels and having to re tie stuff

[Stick in Mud]

The long slim ones will probably ride so low in the water that they'll be harder to see far away. With the ones I'm thinking of, most of the bobber is underwater except for the red/yellow/green neon tip. And they're so light (esp if they're made of balsa) that you can't throw them very far anyways.

I like the Thill ones with the brass grommet....best all around bobber that I've found for what I use it for, which includes panfishing and corking for 'eyes.

[SteveD]

I just bought a couple of large Redi Rig floats for cats. Pretty slick bobbers - they have a line release after the fish takes the bait. I plan on hanging a bullhead under one of these.

[HandGunner]

Sounds about right I had my share tries with balsa bobbers when no one had the foam clip on ones they are teriible for casting most of them you have to attatch with a spring and it wobbled and flutters when cast plus weighing it out right to float properly is cumbersum<--- I think i said that right. I was thinking of putting a red drinking straw on top of the torpedo shaped foam clip on bobbers at least when it goes down the straw should stick up right for some time to indicate a strike.... hmmmm any ideas? even when I wear my glasses, and alot of the time the sun light messes with you!

[Stick in Mud]

I bet if you attach anything to the top of the bobber that you'll then be dealing with snags caused by the line getting tangled up with the straw. Maybe not, I don't know because I've never tried it, but that might be aproblem, esp if you are trying to cast it a long ways.

[slipperybob]

You wont snag the top of the bobber with something sticking out of it anymore than snagging up your line on the cast. It's mostly how the bait/lure tumbles during the cast. Long casting does present more opportunity for the bait/lure to tumble and snaffu. The problem is when there's even just a simple line hang up, there's no chance to twitch the bobber free of that.

Some simple ways to prevent line hang up or wrapping during the cast:

split shot spaced out along the line - possibly need to upsize bobber

use a heavier more stiff line

shorten the dropper line, especially on slip/slider bobbers

use a jig head or heavier jig head - may need to upsize bobber

[live4chrome]

Apply tension to the spool a sec before the bobber hits the water. This will straightenout your line and get your hook away from the bobber.

[slipperybob]

Ah yes. I do that so subconsciously I totally forgot about it.

[Comit 2]

Place one split shot 6in above the hook and 2 more 12in above that split shot. You lure has more drag then the bobber area so your lure is flying behind the bobber where your line is and when it hit the water you hook lands on top of your bobber. If you get a little weight away from the bobber area your lure will fly behind it not the bobber.

[Comit 2]

Before this slips away. There is a book called "Float Fishing for Steelhead Techniques and tackle" by Dave Vedder.

I know, it's not Walleyes. It has a lot of good info and I know I have landed more fish because of it.

Give it a look.