Thill bobber question

Fishing With Larry · 12-20-2003, 01:28 PM

I have been using the thill bobbers for drifting bobber & jigs and I use the one with the wire out the bottom. I have found that I prefer this one for many reasons. I have two problems that I have found and I am wondering if anyone has found ways to overcome them. First is that the wire can get bent or come loose on hook sets. Is there a way to prevent this? Second where do you find replacement rubber bands for the top and more importantly the bottom tiny blue piece when they wear out or come off during fishing? The bobber can't work correctly without them and it doesn't seem like you should have to throw it out with a piece as simple as a rubber band missing from the mix.

DanS · 12-20-2003, 01:38 PM

You can get a silicone sleeve kit from Lindy Little Joe, or have your local Thill supplier order you one. For a few bucks you get enough sleeve material to cut a bunch of replacement sleeves. When the wire stem bends I usually just shove it further into the balsa body and bend it back as straight as I can. It's not easy to do especially on a cold wet day.

Rakkasan · 12-20-2003, 01:40 PM

[ 12-20-2003, 03:20 PM: Message edited by: DSRods ]

Wild Chrome · 12-20-2003, 01:53 PM

I found a rubber sleeve replacement kit, I think at Fisherman's Marine, about 3 or 4 years ago. Still have some left. I noticed Thill now uses a thinner (worse) material for their rubber sleeves than they used to. If my wire bends, I bend it back, sometimes reglueing it into the balsa. I quit using these floats on big water because the sleeves often wouldn't hold the main line (esp. braided) on long casts.

Fishing With Larry · 12-20-2003, 02:09 PM

Thanks, I wasn't aware that a sleeve replacement kit was available and I have some contacts that I can check with. I especially like how this type of float stands completely upright letting you know exactly where your jig is in relation to the float. You mentioned that you no longer use that kind of float on rivers where you need to cast greater distances, does that mean that you found a float that you feel works better?

Wild Chrome · 12-20-2003, 02:24 PM

I like dink floats on big rivers. This is my setup:

10.5 foot Lamiglas, 14 pound Fireline, Nick Amato Dink(or similar homemade dink float), 2 #4 split shot, Palomar knot to #8 (?) swivel, 12 pound Maxima leader with another split shot to the jig. Sometimes I drop a split shot. All the split shot should be at least 6 inches apart, 6 inches from the jig, and at least 3 inches from the swivel to help avoid tangles.

If you use braided line, wrap duck tape around the dink to keep it from splitting when you hook a fish, as the braided line is very sharp.

Works for me! I still use the Thill TurboMaster on small rivers because they're so sensative and land with little disturbance. Plus, they're much prettier than a dink! Good luck!

blacktail · 12-20-2003, 04:26 PM

If you want to use Thills, but don't want to mess with the little bands on the Turbomaster, you can use one of the Thill "Center Sliders" and just put a bobber stopper on either side of the float.

It's still depth adjustable by sliding the bobber stops, yet you can still fish it fixed. If you get to a really deep hole and want to fish it sliding, just move the "upper" stop farther up your mainline to match the desired depth.

The smaller center sliders work great for me. They aren't quite as sensitive as a Turbomaster, but I've found them more sensitive than the Dinks.

This is the way I fish them the most, either with the Thills or West Coast floats.

Mike

[ 12-20-2003, 05:28 PM: Message edited by: blacktail ]

SalmonJeff · 12-21-2003, 07:04 AM

blacktail ,

that is a great idea I have often tried to think of a way to do something like that with a center slide and that sounds like a plan

great tip

Fishing With Larry · 12-21-2003, 09:16 AM

Blacktail,

That is an awesome idea. I have many of the smaller thill center slide bobbers but I didn't like how the smaller jigs had to pull the line through the bobber and it effected the way the jig sank. Sometimes the jig actually hangs up close to the bobber and doesn't slide through until the rig is half way through a hole. I typically put a second bobber stop down low but above my leader to retrieve the bobber when you break off on a snag. It seams to work 60-70% of the time. I really like the fixed bobbers because of the sensitivity and the way the jig sinks to the correct depth unincumbered. I also spoke to my cousin Brad (Brad's Wigglers/BS Fish) at Bob's in Longview and he was unaware that Thill had a replacement kit recommended in an earlier post. He plans on bringing them in as soon as possible.

Eric

blacktail · 12-21-2003, 10:52 AM

Eric,

So is Larry your uncle?

My Dad and Larry were best friends growing up.

Mike

Mikeymoto · 12-21-2003, 07:04 PM

Eric, so if Larry is your uncle then Randy is your cousin, huh? MM

periwinkle · 12-21-2003, 08:58 PM

Doesn't anyone down here (south) use Drennan floats?? They are the 'Cadillacs'....