[george tinkham]

ANYBUDDY USE THE BOBBERS THAT LIGHT UP FOR CATS?Drifting the bobbers down river until a big ole rivercat or channel drowns it.i have mentioned this along with my unorthadoxed rod and reel/line gear i use.i've had much discussion over the rod and real.not much about using the lit bobby.has anybuddy tried this.i get a nice fish about every float as fast as i can release a cat and get another float going.average about 5-7# on the cats and now and then get a decent bass.i use mostly 7" chubs.this works fantastic and is lot of fun but i admit i love hearing the clicker singing from a long run too when bottom fishing.but i don't miss all the snags.

 

[Ðe§perado™]

I use the lighted bobbers. It helps keep the bait off the bottom and my kids like watching the bobbers move around and go under and catching nice cats and sometimes bass and even carp.
I found those little capsules that you bend and break the tube inside them and they light up, they work great, but only last one night. I just use rubber bands or elec. tape to put them on the sliding bobbers and they stay lit the whole night.

 

[flathunter]

I never fish a bobber for cats.

 

[george tinkham]

its very effective i catch lots more cats and no snagging.don't get me wrong but i do fish bottom with my old collector rod and reels .love those clickers too.zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

 

[Ðe§perado™]

Give it a try Jack. Just let the bobber float down into a snag, the current will take it close to the snag and start around it and then that is when you get bite. Just something different to try.

 

[M.Magis]

I always have at least one rod rigged up with a float and light stick when fishing for flatheads in lakes. It can get difficult in some of the rivers I fish with all of the snags. Usually, it's best to keep the bait down on the bottom in those areas. I have used a rig I read about in In-Fisherman a number of years back that allows you to suspend the bait off of the bottom, but still keep it stationary. It works well, but seemed like too much trouble to use regulary. If you ever fish any waters that allow you to use a float effectively, you should really try it. Not only can you suspend a bait right where you want it, but your bait never stops struggling, which I feel is important. I just use a standard Carolina rig with a 2 oz. sinker , then slip a bobber stop on and a large balsa float above the sinker. The sinker helps slow down the bait, whether it's a goldfish, bluegill, or whatever you use. The sinker seems to be key in keeping the bait managable. Otherwise they're swimming back to the bank in a matter of minutes. I had all but given up on using live bait under floats until a friend of mine told me to use a sinker with the float. If you have the opportunity, you should try it Jack. It can add a whole new dimension to flathead fishing.

 

[Flatheadmaniac]

im with ya Jack

I fish only RIVERS for cats and these local rivers have way to many snags to float fish.
If you've got good live or cut bait, the flatheads will find it.
Might work on small cats, but i'll stick to my tactics that have proven successful so far!

 

[george tinkham]

i fish a smaller river too and its nothing but snags .all the sinker fisherman are always hung up.when you float you can guide your bobber as it goes downstream.i can float within inches of any snag and whamo i got another cat.sometimes i can catch a lot of cats off one log.the bobber helps bring the cat from bottom too reducing chances of it snagging you on bottom.i never snag using bobbers.snag all the time on bottom.and that battle from far away bringing that cat upstream.now thats a battle.

 

[MISFIT]

floats for cats

drifting a bait under a float in a stream can be highly effective.i've never used the system for flatheads,but have caught plenty of channels that way,over the years.when they're on the feed it can be some fast action. a fish on every drift,at times,when you find a good stretch of water.

 

[FishNasty]

I know for a fact that using big floats is a real popular method in lakes in this area for big flats, I'm talking 30 and up. I've tried it and really have trouble with the gill coming to shore, even with a couple of oz's, I've even tried trimming his fins so he can't swim as good. Now in the Ohio River it's even more difficult, too much current, maybe if you had a drop line with a no snag sinker. Probably too much trouble.

 

[LookMa-NoHands!]

Up here in the Maumee my fishing partner and I use floats exclusively for flatheads. And I'm not talking dinks. Our average fish is around 15lbs., with quite a few up to 30+ lbs. taken every year. We use a great big Thill float, about 1/2oz of slitshot, and a big, lively bluegill.

Nice thing about this method is you can wade around and fish several holes in one day(or night). You can cover a lot more water, target the active fish, and best of all-we almost ALWAYS smoke the shore-sittin, big-sinker guys! An average 3 hour trip will get us usually 4-12 fish between the two of us. Don't knock it till ya try it.

 

[Flatheadmaniac]

LookMa-NoHands

sound like you guys are having fun...
Also sounds like the bottom anglers up there dont know what there doing..lol

 

[LookMa-NoHands!]

O yeah-it's a real blast. One of the reasons we came up with it is at one of our particular holes, a guy and his family will literally work in 'shifts', watching 8-10 rods.

This makes it impossible for anyone else to fish from shore, as they take up all the available space. So now if he's there, we just go out beyond his rigs and start yankin flatties left and right!

You can't beat it for fun either. I agree it may not be right in some situations, but up here it is the best way!

 

[george tinkham]

it works just as good for rivercats(flathead,shovel head etc.) as it does for channels.actually you can catch anyting thats big enough to take the large bait.i prefer lively minnows usually big chubs as they are real plentiful and big enough.

 

[cwcarper]

I use the three inch glowsticks made famous by paylakers on a float balanced for the size of bait I'm using. It's an excellent method for covering lots of water in rivers and streams and finding the active fish fast. It's surprisingly good at keeping out of snags, too, once you get the hang of it. I've caught lots of channels and flats this way, and it's how I learned to catfish. In rivers, it seems sticking to the bottom is the still the best way to go for flatheads. I've gone mostly to bottom fishing now, though float fishing is still a fun way to wade during the day for cats.

I've found it can be especially productive in lakes. For some reason there are times when the cats won't take a bait on the bottom, but they'll nail it when you suspend the bait in the water column. Then you have to find the right depth, and you'll be catching fish you would never have even known were there if you were on the bottom.

 

[Doctor]

Floats

I've done it with balloons on the river but when I tried floats, the current would take the float down stream then the bait would rise up from the preset depth and you would see the float then the bait would be up behind the float, Balloons offer no resistent at all and you can guide them very effectively, plus with a balloon you can slip them off in a matter of seconds and your back on the bottom of the river, where I do most of my fishing anyways, but I'm all ears to a different approach for river fishing. I like it that I can switch back and forth in a matter of seconds with the balloons. All my fishing is done out of a boat.

Doc

 

[MISFIT]

Doc

i see your point on the big river.i think the current there would be a little strong for floats.smaller rivers and streams with less current is where it really works great.i've had times in the licking when i could pick up a fish on every drift

 

[george tinkham]

i float it downstream to 100yds,have to walk the bank sometimes to regain line if i go 100yds.thats all the line i have.usually i get a fish long before 100yds. while the bait and bobber is still in a float.its really neat to see the lit bobber streaking off at about 100mph all way across the river in the darkness.i usually have a clicker reel tightlined while floating lit bobbers.