Purplepeanut007 PP007 FLOAT MAKING & FISHING ADVENTURES - THE RIVER IRWELL AND BEYOND.

 Morning All, I have been itching to try my New/Old Drennan DRX so Casterman threw down an another silver doller race challange which I readily excepted. We both decided on re-visiting the same river we had our first roach match on where I was well beaten. Link below. https://purplepeanut007.blogspot.com/2017/10/peanut-vs-casterman-silver-dolla-race.html Our target species was obviously wild roach but on this new stretch there was a chance of a few lumps so geared up accordingly. Initially we both opted to fish the bollo/avon....but, after a frustrating hour with the wind tearing up the river I switched to 4AAA Slate Grey Antennae Waggler with instant results !!!!!! Derek was not far behind me with the float change but he opted for the sliding waggler. 1.5 hrs into the session we started putting together a few fish....stamp roach to be exact...derek could not keep the smile of his face.....he's roach mad....lol. As it is a new stetch to us a little experimenting was in order. Derek

I have had another crack at this pattern using a few different threads. Black ,gold,violet and a new addition to my thread box. . . . . " Metallic grey " 😁 I have another half a dozen of these on the go with slightly different thread colours which should be ready at the beginning if the new year. I was not to sure how the metallic grey thread would work out but it looks good to me.... What do you think ? TTFN  Peanut.  If you would like to look at my handcrafted  click on the link below. https://purplepeanut007.blogspot.com/2017/01/handcrafted-floats-and-fishing.html?m=1 Join our club......Its FREE !!!!!!!   http://salfordfriendlyanglers.co.uk/join/ .    

I have never worked with  " Norfolk Reed " before. So when I was very kindly offered some from a fellow float maker I was quite eager to have a play. I did, indeed, have a play but unfortunately the float has been left un-fishished for quite a few months. In the last few weeks I have re-visited this little project and finished of the job. It was a pretty straight forward build for me to be honest. I decided to load the this float to aid with balance while casting . It will be fished mid river  in deep water on three wide stretches of the River Ribble, Weaver and the Mersey, may be even the Trent if I get my act together ay Jordan ! 😉 I made the tip extra long so the float can be under shotted, the extra tip length above the water will also help dislodge the hook bait from small snags as it travels down stream along the river bed. I decided to use blue as one of the main thread colours this time plus gold, black and violet. Two feathers were added for

Well . . . Today myself and " The Casterman " hit the river together for a long overdue roach session on the waggler which is l method we both have a lot to learn !!!!! ( An old pic. ) I had a slightly new waggler model I wanted to try and Casterman was itching for a good bag of roach.  ( his favourite fish ) We arrived at the river at 7.30. The first thing I did was mix the ground bait, bread crumb, PV1, corn, hemp and a little sprinkling of something special and we were ready to rock and roll. We had four orange sized balls of ground bait each to start with . All these went in about four rod lengths out. I had a 3AAA waggler to try initially. Most of the shot around the base of the float then 3 no 6's three quarters of the way down, then 2 no6's, 2 no 8's and one no 8, followed by the hook which was a size 18s Matrix silver fish Pole hook. These hooks are brilliant for small fish. ( Inserted Feather Inlay Waggler ) I fou

I haven't made my straight wagglers for quite some time now. Below are a prial in pink with black, purple and gold whipping, plus a jay feather inlay. All floats are 5AAA weight capacjty These are great on a rivers for slowing the bait down at distance by fishing over depth. Ideal for maggots, casters, bread, pellet etc. 😊 On still waters / commercials they are great for distance fishing up in the water on pellet, bread corn as well as the above baits These replace the pellet waggler when little more finesse is required. Also great for people with bad eyes like me . . .  Lol. 😁 I will be using one of these on the River Irwell come June 16th looking for the beam and carp. These have eluded me over the last few years although I did manage one a few years ago at a Salford Friendly Anglers meet organised by the Caster Man. It is still my PB bream at 6lb 11oz Caught on a Retro Stick float Black as coal. An absolutely STUNNIN

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With a spare couple of hours and the rivers out of sorts in Manchester I opted for a “  Smash & Grab “ session on a small pondto give my Sneaky Lifter " floats a sterner test. I originally called them Tinca Stick MKIII 's but they are that thin and sensitive you cannot suspend large baits with them. So, they are a different float really. They are perfect for fishing suspended partical baits or fishing on the bottom. So I came up with the name " Sneaky Lifters " as they are perfect for catching shy bitting fish using a variation of the lift method. Here are the originals........  I have recently been told about this pond and its all a bit " Secret Squirral " and its not to far from my home so, thanks for the info pal. ( Many thanks Mr Anonymous)   The weather was not inspiring me but as you all know I don’t get out to fish very often so with very little preparation I threw my kit in the mighty Megan & gave it a bl