How to Make Your Own Float Steel Head

For some steelhead anglers, catching fish using floats they have made themselves is as rewarding as the fish itself. Making your own floats is not only cost-effective; it also allows you to create the type of float that best suits your fishing style. Balsa wood floats are very light and buoyant and are also inexpensive and easy to make.

Things You'll Need

  • Mini lathe
  • Drill
  • Hand saw
  • Tape measure or ruler
  • 1-inch thick balsa wood dowel
  • 80-grit sandpaper
  • 150-grit sandpaper
  • 320-grit sandpaper
  • 6-inch long bamboo skewer
  • Waterproof glue
  • Wood stain
  • White primer
  • Fluorescent orange or green craft paint
  • Clear coat polyurethane
  • Paintbrush
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Instructions

    • 1

      Choose a size and shape for the body of your float, then cut the desired length from a balsa wood dowel. Push a 1/8-inch drill rod through the length of the dowel, then mount it on the lathe. Turn using 80-grit sandpaper to mold the body to the desired shape, then turn using 150-grit and finally 320-grit sandpaper to smooth the surface.

    • 2

      Remove the body from the lathe. Push a bamboo skewer through the hole left by the drill rod to make the stem. Make sure the skewer extends 1 inch past the top of the body to make the tip. Apply glue at both ends of the body and allow to dry.

    • 3

      Apply a coat of wood stain according to the instructions on the container to the entire float and allow to dry. Apply a second coat if necessary and allow to dry.

    • 4

      Dip the tip and very top of the body in white primer and allow to dry. Dip the same portion in fluorescent orange or green paint and allow to dry. Sand lightly with 320-grit sandpaper. Apply a second coat of paint and allow to dry, then sand lightly.

    • 5

      Brush a thin coat of polyurethane over the entire float to seal the wood and make it shiny. Hang upside down to dry. Apply two or three more coats, allowing the polyurethane to dry between each coat.