The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

Evening All,
Pin recommendations please for light / very light stick float trotting please? I'm currently using a Sealey Floatking - my introduction to pin fishing (and a very nice and easy to use reel for a first pin), but I think I now need something a little more sensitive.
Thank you.
Regards Cat

a speedia is a good starter reel

gotta love a Speedia....

A Match Aerial perhaps ...

I do like Speedias but my recommendation would be a Trudex - 1/ you do not require an arbor (well theoretically you don’t need one on the Speedia but they do help alleviate line kink which you do get). 2/ You can pick a good one up for a song and 3/ they are a joy to use.
Simple. I have both Speedias and Trudex among others but as said the Trudex is just so easy and doesn’t have any negatives in view of your requirements.

Okuma Sheffield. My first centrepin and I haven't come across any as sensitive. The slightest flow with the smallest stick float will work it. Not a traditional centrepin but they certainly fish well.

Trudex or Rapidex gets my vote for - value and quality - light trotting.

A Speedia is my recommendation, a superb reel for light float fishing.

Your Sealey Floatking is a Trudex, but with white plasticware and a pale grey paintjob, supplied by Youngs for Sealey.
If you're giving the pin and bush a wipe and couple of drops of hairclipper/sewing machine oil after every trip, it should be just about as fine a trotting reel as you'll ever find.
No matter what reel you use, the limiting factor as far as lightness is concerned tends to be the force needed to pull the line through the rod-rings; I've known places where a single No. 8 shot was too heavy for presentation - you could see it dragging the bait down through the loose feed as though it had been a flat-iron - but the flow was so sluggish it needed a three BB rig to actually pull line through.
Billy Lane made the point about using a big enough float to "Boss" the swim, so don't be alarmed if you find yourself using a sizeable float to get the bait near the fish, yet some alarmingly tiny shot near the bait to achieve a subtle presentation. The upper portion of the rig - float and bulk shot - is all* about reaching the fish, the lower portion - dropper shots and hook - is about fooling them.

*Almost all - the float still has to indicate bites, so the bit above the waterline has to be kept as small as possible.

Vole wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 8:20 am Your Sealey Floatking is a Trudex.

Well I never knew that Vole - Although looking at the reels it’s obvious - another so so senior moment.
thanks for sharing that.