THE TROTTER
🏞️ THE TROTTER FLOAT
(A Classic Shallow-Water Specialist)
The Trotter is an old but very effective float design. If you’ve never seen one before, picture a small, dumpy body with a very short antenna — a simple but clever float. First used on the Trent in the 1950s for shallow swims of just 2–3 feet, it became known as the Trent Trotter.
I first used this float as a young match angler on the river Taff in Cardiff. It was a spate, shallow river full of roach between 4–6 oz. I was seventeen, fishing against experienced men in an open competition. I drew a peg with just 2 ft of water. Using my trotter — a float I’d relied on many times — I put together an all-roach bag of 20 lb 8 oz and won the match. It was a moment that cemented my affection for this little float.
Later, we nicknamed it the Uskette, after the river Usk in the Wye Valley — another shallow, fast river packed with dace. On one memorable occasion, fishing a swim only 6 inches deep, I could see dace darting about and caught over 40 lb of them with the trotter. It remains one of the most efficient floats I’ve ever used for this kind of venue.
🧰 Design & Features
-
Body: Small, dumpy shape
-
Antenna: Very short (around ½ inch)
-
Material: Often adapted from a small body waggler
-
Shotting: Locked with sufficient weight to cock the float; small No.4 shot down the line to drag bottom
-
Casting: Best with a side cast for smooth laydown in the current
-
Rigging Note: Avoid backshotting unless you’re holding back hard
The design allows the float to hold position in a fast, shallow flow as if lying on the bottom. This makes it extremely effective in swims where other floats simply won’t track properly.
🌊 Why It Works
-
🪝 Ideal for shallow, fast-moving swims (2 ft or less)
-
🧭 Holds steady in the current when shotted correctly
-
🐟 Perfect for roach and dace work in spate rivers
-
⚖️ Easy to cast and control with minimal tangles
-
🌀 Tracks cleanly and predictably with the flow
The Trotter thrives in water where big-bodied floats are overkill. Its dumpy shape offers excellent stability and instant bite detection — perfect for shallow rivers with visible shoals.
🏆 Clive’s Match Memory
🎣 Venue: River Taff, Cardiff
Age 17. Shallow swim, just 2 ft deep.
Armed with my trusty trotter, I worked a small shoal of roach steadily all match.
Result:
20 lb 8 oz of roach
🏆 Match win against seasoned anglers.
Years later, on the river Usk, the same float helped me bag over 40 lb of dace from a six-inch swim. Few floats can match that level of control in water so shallow.
🧭 Pro Tip
-
Convert a standard body waggler by cutting down the antenna to around half an inch.
-
Lock the float with bulk shot, then place a small No.4 shot down the line to hold bottom.
-
A side cast gives better control and reduces tangles.
-
Avoid backshotting unless necessary — it can cause tangles on casting.
-
Always carry one for shallow pegs — it can save a match.
🕰️ Classic Float Heritage
“The Trotter may be small, but it’s unbeatable in shallow, fast water. It’s won me matches on rivers where nothing else would have worked.”
— Clive Branson
🎨 Illustration Box
🪶 Float Type: Trotter
🌊 Ideal Venue: Shallow, fast rivers (2–3 ft)
🐟 Target Species: Roach, dace, chublets
🪝 Rigging Tip: Lock shot + No.4 down to drag bottom
🧪 Key Advantage: Holds rock steady in fast shallow swims
🪵 Materials Timeline
-
🕰️ Early Years: Hand-carved wooden or cork body with short cane stem
-
📈 Practical Era: Adapted from small body wagglers
-
💡 Modern: Plastic or balsa dumpy bodies with improved shotting control
Back shot to hold float against the flow
Now Available: The Complete Float Manual. Over 169 pages of content on Amazon
Click on the link below
📘 Download the Complete Float Manual – Instant Access
Bring decades of float-fishing knowledge straight to your screen.
Written by World Champion Clive Branson, The Complete Float Manual is a 167+ page eBook packed with practical techniques, classic float designs, diagrams, and championship-winning methods.
✅ Learn how to use wagglers, stick floats, pole floats and more
✅ Discover the history and evolution of float fishing
✅ Get pro tips and tactics used at the highest level
✅ Ideal for beginners and experienced match anglers alike
💻 Instant Download (PDF) — no waiting, no shipping
💳 Secure checkout with PayPal
👉 Order now and start reading within minutes.