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[frozensalmon]

hi

I was trying to float fishing with pencil lead weight , I was confused about which of the following way is better:
1. cast and once it's in the water, just focus on if the float dip and leave the line alone, (no retrieve at all), and of coz if it dips, set hook hard
2. cast and once it drops in the water, retrieve and keep the tension with the float always, in that case you always have contact with the first feel of what happen under the water


 I have seen some people doing both ways in vedder river today, but maybe there's a better/pro way?

Thanks for your advise!!!   

[jacked55]

i too asked that same question as i have seen both ways being used on the vedder.

[Rodney]

It depends on what you are using under the float.

The very first thing to get right when float fishing for salmon in the Vedder, is to balance the float correctly. This means, adding enough weight to sink the float so only a coloured top of the float sits above the water surface.



Once you cast your float you, try keeping as much line between your rod tip and the float away from the water as possible. This means lifting your rod up so line does not fall down onto the water surface, but don't lift enough to pull the float back and away from where you want to drift. It's a balance between avoiding a belly of your main line on the surface and maintaining a natural drift of whatever you are fishing with to entice fish.

If I am fishing with roe or something that imitate eggs, I like to keep the drift as natural as possible. This means, I try to avoid creating any resistance on the line. I want that egg in the water seem like it is drifting down freely in the current. If I am fishing with a spinner under the float, then I usually create a slight resistance to the line so the spinner would spin. If there isn't that resistance, then the spoon/blade would simply flutter in the water, which isn't necessarily a bad thing as it also catches fish.

[Funeral Of Hearts]

when drift fish i try to maintain contact with the float so i can have a quick hook set. If the line bows and u set the hook you will pull on the slack and not the hook. That being said i aim to maintain a natural drift and try not to pull back on the float. Unless of course resistance is desired to spin a blade under the float.

Edit: Rodney beat me to it, but same idea.

[frozensalmon]

thx very much for all info ! will try to work it out next time on river

 

[chris gadsden]

Don't have your float on its side or hold back. As Rodney said when using roe float should be going downstream the same speed as the current, Maple Leaf float sitting straight up. If not there is a good chance you will be flossing or long lining fish which is the norm these days by many.

[nickredway]

If dead drifting roe is not working sometimes holding back slightly and swinging it across the current can be very effective. If you have the depth set shorter than the run you are fishing you are not flossing when you do this, you only want to swing it slightly otherwise your roe will be on the surface.

[Fish Assassin]

Option 2

[inspate]

I personally prefer spilt shot when short floating I find you have way more control of the sensitivity of the bite. The float always seems to balance better than pencil lead? Less resistance?? Cast lightly take slack and it seems you have all the control in the world

[Oilcruzer]

I personally prefer spilt shot when short floating I find you have way more control of the sensitivity of the bite. The float always seems to balance better than pencil lead? Less resistance?? Cast lightly take slack and it seems you have all the control in the world

I use both.  Lead above the swivel, 2 foot leader, split placed on leader where it puts roe at desired height.  Strangely, I get a lot of hits when the split has slid down to the roe too. 

[adriaticum]

Don't have your float on its side or hold back. As Rodney said when using roe float should be going downstream the same speed as the current, Maple Leaf float sitting straight up. If not there is a good chance you will be flossing or long lining fish which is the norm these days by many.

Holding back a little bit also means that as your presentation is drifting downstream your roe is the first thing the fish sees, then she sees the lead.
Depending on the speed of the current and difference in the speed on top and on the bottom, this is sometimes necessary, especially if fishing riffles and boils.

[nickredway]

Agree, my friend showed me how effective this was recently,  we were fishing a fast narrow boiley bouldery run for Chinook in high clear water, he would set the float deep but then hold back, backing the roe downstream in a straight line at a slower speed than the surface current into the deeper pockets pockets where we could see Chinook holding. You could actually watch them come up and hammer it before the float went down, we were getting them fishing shorter on the dead drift too so its just goes to show there's no "right" way to float fish, just different approaches which all work at times. It's a fun learning process for sure.
NB Obviously there are "wrong" ways to float fish but I'm not getting into that.

[bigblue]

When going for stealthy dead drift in clear slow waters, I often use egg sinkers.
They tend to balance better than pencil or split shots and provides very natural dead drifts.
For 3/8 oz float, one 1/4 and one 1/8 oz, and for 3/4 oz float, three 1/4 oz egg sinkers work well.
Just let the sinkers slide freely on top of a size 7 crane swivel.

[jacked55]

for those of you who use hollow pencil lead as your weight. do you pinch it so it cannot move or do you leave it unpinched so the line can be pulled through the weight? i have been given reasons for both techniques so i am curious what the majority of people on here use.
thanks.

[Rodney]

for those of you who use hollow pencil lead as your weight. do you pinch it so it cannot move or do you leave it unpinched so the line can be pulled through the weight? i have been given reasons for both techniques so i am curious what the majority of people on here use.
thanks.

Unpinched, but add a bead between the pencil lead and the swivel to prevent knot damage.