George387

Certainly is, I find Billy to be a wealth of knowledge in not only making the floats I fish with but also the tatics he describes, and which I use today 1st class angler.

Here is a shot of billy's Books & others from an earlier subject which I posted on here about float making

Gary, You bidding on a carbon rod...tut tut...lol

Hi, there is indeed some good barbel fishing in the clyde....if you know where to look If you drop me a PM I will discuss some areas with you which I dont make public due to the buckfast brigade.

Thanks guys, I look forward to the day its attached to my rod with my favourite fish on the other...a Grayling, For sure they will never be forgotten

Hi guys as some of you were aware I lost my mother at the start of the year and with some of the money she left to me I got a memorial reel made, well it arrived today and what can I say but Thanks to Ray and the team at adcock stanton they have done a cracking job all round, some pics as promised although the pictures dont do justice to seeing it in real life.

Thats nothing new shakespeare released one of these about 15 years ago in black, if I have a proper dig out I may even find my one

Well in tigger a good start to your new season

Chris I dropped him a PM over 6 weeks ago and he still hasnt replied so am not sure if he is checking his PM's or not as I wanted one myself but when I got no reply I went elsewhere.

Only after I have drooled lots over it

Was contemplating it myself but a new handmade split cane fly rod beat it to the starting blocks, also waiting on my custom Adcock to arrive so can drool over that for a while also.

No kevin sorry I dont. I mainly fish sheephills for my barbel and for my flyfishing & general trotting work, the tees, the Ure & the Upper Swale.

didnt see the date on the postings was going to say what has been said already, dsregard post its jet lag kicking in

Hope you get what your looking for steve, Ive settled on a Adcocks stanton 4.5" customised reel, have spoken to ray and he can tick all the boxes I require as a memorial reel. Thanks for the info you supplied on the other choices I was considering George

Maybe we should all start quoting bum gear then they would leave the decent stuff prices alone

or if you know someone serving in the RAF ask them to go to there GEF Flight and ask for a cockpit polishing cloth, it takes all the small scratches off the cockpit glass and as well as polishing glass is excellent for bullying boots (Old army days) and I have used it for taking scratches off my car and other glass around the house, so it would definately do your scales.

I agree mark, they wouldnt be my 1st choice in floats and by the research done since chesters posted about it, I cannot find any articles where anglers have praised them. It goes to show though that these floats were around for a long time as the original patent goes way back to 1913 then allcock's took another look at them in the 60s. Am sure if anglers from those days saw some of the contraptions we use today they would be saying similar about our kit. Angling was more simpler and fish more plentiful in those days to the angling of today, good or bad who knows. I was brought up to believe an old saying...keep it simple and in most circumstances its worked for me

Great minds think alike steve, you should know that. Steve, Where the quill to quill was called the allcocks linked, The quill & balsa I would imagine would be not disimilar to the float that appeared in the allcocks catalogues during the 60s and was called the true-bite float. It was a hinged float of quill & balsa and was redesigned from the original float patent by JW Tunstall in 1913. Allcocks designed it as an alternative for beating the wind. I love delving into the old books as you can see Dont you be working too hard mate.

so it was 2 porcupine quills linked together. The allcocks linked was only 1 which was cut like above, and there were a few variations, ah well was enjoyable having a tinker with it anyway Amuzed at your comment of big flat places to trap line as the bottom half is 4" and the top half is 2", the measurements you gave in your original description and even if it was 2 quills its still going to be 4" & 2"...

Chesters, Was your linked porcupine quill anything like the one below? From your description and from some research I knocked this up yesterday as I like to tinker with floats, I have seen linked floats before, hence the allcocks linked float but never tried it. It has yet to be lacquered so still not totally finished.

Have to agree with you there steve they are terrible to fish with and used once then gave them away. I much prefer fishing with a cut down porcupine quill rounded at the top as a stick float, they take 4 - 5bb and are the dogs go nads...

Chesters the float you refer to was called the allcock's linked float and was created in the early 1960s. It was a porcupine quill cut into 2 pieces with an eye on the bottom as normal then on the cut section it was joined by another eye to the upper section which was painted and lay flat along the surface. They went on to make several variations of the float using cork tops etc but it never really took off. Chavender you are if not worse than me for experimenting, you should see some of the creations I have made in the past, am currently working on a float which looks like a chequers board by alternating colured balsa....going Rennie macintosh with some floats...lol

Ive used ultima flocast for 8 months now as my main trotting line and can highly recommend it, but only in warmer weather. Whilst grayling fishing this year it fell to bits and unwound itself with the extreme cold weather, I contacted ultima about it and they confirmed it was not designed as a trotting line in cold weather, and they even sent me 2 spools to compensate for my loss I always use another hooklength with it as it effects the presentation as its designed to sit on top of the water & not below.

Simon here is another option for you not far from York, dont know it it would be of any good to you? Brompton Lakes Richmond

Hi Guys just catching up on the threads since Ive been off for a week or so sunnying my old bones in morocco...it was raining 2 of the days! Gary, Ive an idea...you make me a rod and I will sideline your floats for you leaving you to concentrate on the rods, cant be any fairer than that....lol Steve......dont you be trying to muscle in and accept a wading stick...lol Gary will drop you a line over next few days for a day out on the river with the flies. Regards George