Would you ever shot a stick float like this?

[Silverfisher]

Thanks! I'll take this opportunity to explain why I have found fishing bulk down to have been very useful advice I was given even if it doesn't seem very traditional.

1) Fishing fast paced rivers like the Middle Severn and a Weir I figure there is slightly less advantage to strung out pattern anyway.
2) It gets through Bleak.
3) It's very stable and direct and you can still hold back to make the bait flutter.
4) It's virtually tangle free for a beginner.

I agree with all of those. I only really use strung out shot on the stick here during the short periods you get in late autumn and winter when bleak cease to be a problem and the flow has yet to pick up or has dropped off but when it is the bleak season (summer to first half of autumn) or faster flow parts of the autumn and winter then I go bulk if fishing maggot or caster. If I’m fishing an anti bleak bait like hemp in the slow flow summer and early autumn part of the season then there’s really not much benefit to the stick here so I just fish waggler as it’s easier.

 

[Ken the Pacman]

If you apply one simple thing to your fishing it is that your hook bait needs to mimic the behaviour of your feed as closely as possible assuming you are feeding the same bait as you have on the hook and the closer you can match the two the more bites you will get.
Everything you do to achieve this is dictated by conditions depths rate of flow etc. known as the variables.

 

[Kojak]

Just for curiosities sake. Say you have an 8 no 4 stick float, would you ever use a single SSG shot to cock it? Maybe with one dropper?

Personally I'd side on a bulk of no4s instead for versatilities sake but I can't see why not if using a simple bulk? I know a lot of people prefer no 8s.

Always shot mine with number 8s