Bobber Style & Size in the Brush

[DaveB40]

Looking for some good advice on brush fishing. Need some info on style and size
of float/bobber for brush fishing. I'm setting up rods for next year and got some
great advice from the members about type of line, weights and hooks. Do any
of you use the small Thill Floats or are you using the foam cigar shaped floats?
Thanx again for all of the help. This only my 2nd year crappie fishin', so I'm
still in the info gathering stage. Dave

[Ketchn]

i like both the floats you mentioned but almost never use my thills in brush unless i am sure i can get them back . i dont like slip floats though and use the pinch on variety with most of my rods being strung up with 6 pound mono . i do have a few strung with braid for the tougher situations as well . i only use jigs and they are typically 1/32 or 1/16 .
hope that helps ...have a great day

[Dave and Lynn]

I use as thin a slip float as I can get away with. I understand the reason some don't use slip floats, they can be a hassle at times but if you break off in the brush the float normally comes back up so you can retrieve it . Using a slim float style makes it easier to detect bites and the fish feel less resistance when they pull it under. This is no matter which style you pick. Do not like the cigar type floats my self but have seen others use them with success.

[Hanr3]

I prefer the Thill Pro Series slip floats. They come in many sizes and colors.
Pro Series Slip Floats - Thill

I prefer the regular style slip float and slim body (pencil) style. Either work well in trees, brush. Some come with weights attached which is Okay, but has pros and cons. I prefer the weighted slip floats when fishing really shallow, less than 2-3' deep. I prefer non-weighted slip floats everywhere else. Here's why: I place my lead weight about 15"-18" from the hook/minnow. This restricts how far the minnow can swim up, and alter the depth I am fishing. If I use no lead weight, and set my slip bobber depth to 8', the minnow could be swimming on the surface. Which defeats the purpose of the 8' depth.

The primary purpose for the lead weight is to keep my minnow close to fish depth. The secondary purpose is to reduce buoyancy of the slip bobber. I set me weight so the bobber barely stays afloat. Neutrally buoyant as possible. When fishing shallow, there won't be much room to put a lead weight 15"-18" away from the hook. Plus I greatly increase the likelihood if getting hung up while casting, or retrieving. With the slip bobber weighted I reduce the odds of getting hung up.

I use the regular body style 90% of the time. I use the slim body (pencil) style on windy/wavy days. The pencil style offers less wind resistance and will stay in my target area longer. Although there is an advantage to using a regular body style in the wind, cast up stream and let the current carry the bait into the fish. Crappie face upstream/current to eat. They swim out to eat as the food floats on by. Dart back behind the current brake and wait for their next snack/meal.

Several techniques for such a simple method of fishing. I could go on, but this should get you started. One of these days I will make a video.