Year: 1898

page_text: I, DAVID MEFFORD MEFFORD, of 39, St. Mary Square, Kennington Road, in
the County of Surrey, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows.:-
This invention relates to fishing floats, its object being to effect such a con-
struction of float as may be readily detached from or attached to a fishing line,
and is capable of adjustment as to its position on the line.
According to this invention I construct the float preferably approximately
egg shaped as is usual and having a longitudinal slot into which the line may
be inserted. The slot is such that the line is gripped by the sides of the slot
and a hook or similar device is preferably provided on the top of the float close
to the upper extremity of the slot so as to prevent the accidental displacement
of the line from the slot. The slot extends preferably slightly beyond the
centre line or axis of the float and is also preferably somewhat contracted at or
near the centre of the float so as to grip the line securely.
One construction of float according to this invention will now be described
by way of example.
A float approximately egg shaped in form is made of wood, cork, or similar
light material and is provided with a longitudinal slot extending a little beyond
the centre line of the float. The slot has parallel sides for the greater part of
its length but is contracted at the bottom say at or near the centre line of the
float. The contraction may be formed by causing the sides of the slot to con-
verge and so form a V-shape bottom to the slot or the contraction may consist
of a short extension to the slot of narrower width than the main portion of the
slot and with parallel sides.
In order to prevent accidental displacement of the line from the slot the float
may be provided with a hook, split ring, or equivalent device to engage the line
where it emerges from the slot, either at the top or bottom of the float or both.
One advantage of the construction of float according to this invention is that
it may be readily attached to a line at any point therein without the necessity
of handling either end of the line as is necessary where the line has to be
threaded through one or more rings on a float of the construction commonly
employed.
1000
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: Improvements in or relating to Fishing Floats.
I, DAVID MEFFORD MEFFORD, of 39, St. Mary Square, Kennington Road, in
the County of Surrey, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement: —
This invention relates to fishing floats, its object being to effect such a con-
struction of float as may be readily detached from or attached to a fishing line,
and capable of easy adjustment as to its position on the line, which it will main-
tain with certainty after adjustment.
According to this invention I construct the float preferably approximately
egg-shaped as is usual and having a longitudinal slot into which the line may
be inserted. The slot is such that the line is gripped by the sides of the slot
and a hook or similar device is provided on the top of the float close to the upper
extremity of the slot so as to prevent the accidental displacement of the line
from the slot; there is another hook or similar device close to the lower end
of the slot for the same purpose. The slot extends preferably slightly beyond
the centre line or axis of the float and may be contracted in width at or near the
centre of the float so as to grip lines of differing sizes securely. An alternative
construction of float according to this invention is one in which the longitudinal
slot may be a shallow groove which does not extend far into the body of the
float towards the centre, so that it may not unduly weaken floats which are not
constructed of so strong a material as wood, say cork floats for instance. More-
over a shallow groove can, unlike a deep one, be easily formed in cork; this
shallow groove is not of necessity contracted, but as it is essential that it should,
like the contracted deep groove, frictionally grip the cord, it must when not
contracted have a surface of such a nature as to set up the necessary friction;
in a cork float the surface of this shallow groove will be left unvarnished in order
that the cork thus left exposed may afford the necessary grip which it does by
reason of the natural roughness of the material. Where the groove is not con-
tracted and the natural surface of the material is not such as to afford the re-
quired frictional grip, that grip may be obtained by roughening or otherwise
treating that surface. In the accompanying drawings:-
Figure 1 is an elevation, and
Figure 2a plan (enlarged) of one construction of float according to this
invention;
Figure 3 is a plan of a float such as is shown in Figure 1, but having a form
of slot different from that which is described with reference to Figures 1 and 2.
Figure 4 is a perspective elevation, and
Figure 5 a vertical central section of an alternative construction of float
according to this invention.
Like letters indicate like parts throughout the drawings.
With reference first to Figures 1 and 2, the float A is provided with a longi-
tudinal slot B extending with parallel sides (see Figure 2) nearly to the centre
of the float. At or about the centre of the float the sides of the slot cease to be
parallel, and converge to a point as at B', the sides thus forming a V-shaped
bottom or termination to the slot. At the top of the float is a hook or loop C
inserted into the material of which the float is made (in the example illustrated
in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings the material is wood) sufficient space being
left between the point C¹ of the hook and the surface of the float to allow the

page_text: line to be slipped therethrough. The opening at C between the point of the
hook and the body of the float for the insertion of the line should
not be on the same radius of the float as is the slot but should be
presented towards the side of the float opposite to that upon which the slot
opens, so that the line is prevented from getting out accidentally from the slot.
At the bottom of the float is a hook C similar to the top hook C.
In order to attach the float to a line at any point all that is necessary is to
slip the line under the point of each of the hooks and draw it into the
slot B, care being taken to cause the line to be gripped by the convergent walls
or contracted portion at the bottom of the slot. The float may thus be attached
to any part of the line that is accessible without the necessity of handling
either end of the line.
In the alternative construction shown in Figure 3 the slot B is provided
from about the centre of the float to its termination with a narrower extension B³,
the sides of which are parallel in contra-distinction to the convergent sides shown
at B in the slot B of Figure 2. The line is shown at D in position at the
bottom of the slot, passing behind the hook C, which thus, as will be readily
understood, serves to retain it in the slot against accidental removal.
Although the float hereinbefore described and illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 3
of the accompanying drawings is referred to as being made of wood, it may
obviously, without departure from the spirit of this invention, be made of any
suitable material such as cork. Or it may be made of a material which is in
itself of greater specific gravity than water, in which case however the float
must be of hollow construction, and the sides of the slot suitably walled to pre-
vent access of water to the hollow interior.
Figures 4 and 5 illustrate a cork float wherein the longitudinal slot B is a
shallow groove which without weakening the body A enables the cord D to
lie (see Fig. 5) just within the convex contour of the float, and is easy to form;
the convexity of the float body helps to increase the frictional grip in the groove.
In place of the hook C various other devices may if preferred, be employed
to keep the cord 1) and float body A in line, such for example as the right-
angled hook E at the top end of the float shown in Figures 4 and 5 or a ring
secured to the end of the float and split at one part of its circumference to per-
mit of the introduction of the line into its embrace, or a spring clip, or other
equivalent retaining device may obviously be employed without departing from
the spirit of this invention. Where the body of the float is of a material
which will not afford a good hold for the stem of a hook C or other device afore-
said it may be plugged with a plug of wood such as F, Figure 5, into which
the stem can be screwed.
It is to be clearly understood that the retaining devices previously referred
to are of such form that the line will not accidentally engage or entangle with
them. Moreover it is an important feature of this invention that these retain-
ing devices are situated terminally at top and bottom of the float and not at
points intermediate of its ends for the reason that when they are thus terminally
arranged the line proceeds up and down from the extreme ends of the float
without affording any angle between it and the float body which would be liable
as in floats hitherto constructed to accidentally catch and retain the free end
or other portions of the line in such a manner as to produce entanglement.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. A fishing float having a slot contracted at the bottom to frictionally grip
lines of differing sizes with or without a plug such as F.
2. In a fishing float the combination with a slot such as 13 of one or more
hooks or other retaining devices such as C or E arranged substantially as de-
scribed in relation to the slot.

page_text: 3. In a fishing float the combination with the body of hooks or other retain-
ing devices such as described situated terminally at top and bottom of the float.
4. A fishing float having a shallow groove in a convex body to frictionally
grip the line.
5. The fishing float substantially as described or illustrated in Figure 1 and 2
or in Figure 3 or in Figures 4 and 5 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 15th day of June 1899.
DAVID MEFFORD MEFFORD,
Boult & Wade,
Agents for the Applicant.