Chrome Floats

These very special floats get their name from the chrome almost "oily" finish they display. The set to the right is one of only 2 full float sets known to exist. These floats like the also very colorful snakeskin floats, seemed to have been made for the octopus jig fishing industry in northern Japan. Floats are 3" in diameter. Super Rare!

Colored Dot Marks

Typical Small Cranberry Dot Floats with Marks

UL--Asahi

UR--Oteru

LL--Yama San

LR--Maru Naka

Typical Small Blue Dot Floats with Marks

UL--Large Triangle with Clan Roof

UR--Boxed Hon

LL--Asahi

LR--Small Triangle with Clan Roof

eBay Seller Black List

The purpose of this particular entry is to list eBay sellers who are selling obviously fake floats. eBay sellers who sell acknowledged reproductions, curio floats or replicas will not be listed. If you see a seller who I have missed and you would like them "reported" on my black list, drop me a line and I will investigate. If you are a seller and feel you have been wrongly listed, email me and again I will investigate. Check back often, I will keep this updated on a regular basis.


THE BLACK LIST

west2572

caraluca300

luckyjrio

isaiah321

jenniferd4690

aries14

Personal Thoughts and Observations

Let me preface this topic with these simple words; these are my opinions and mine only. Luckily for all of us in this modern age of computers, blogs and Internet websites let us express our own thoughts and opinions and share them with more people than ever before. If any of the below information offends you, then probably you are meant to be offended.

There are several popular ways for float collectors to acquire floats; yard sales, antique shops, on-line auctions, beachcombing both in the US and abroad and directly through other collectors. Collecting is collecting either through purchases or trades, period.

Value of floats is mainly determined by the individual collector who is seeking a float. After all, it is the buyer who knows how much he is willing to pay for a certain float. Probably the number one characteristic driving value is availability of the particular float being sought. While there are many other factors involved, availability and uniqueness of a particular float are the key factors. A good example would be Jumbo Se marked rollers. 12-15 years ago this float was rarely found in collections and would sell for $1500-$2500. Now, the float is found in most serious collector’s collections and the price is somewhere around $800 for perfect examples. Float prices are ever changing and even the median value cannot be determined by prices listed in books. Statistically, median value is determined by taking total value of prices paid for a given type float and dividing that value by the number of floats included in the total value price. With that said, the only data for accurate median price can be statistically determined by sellers not by collectors. As much as I hate to say it, probably the best source of current market value is from eBay. If you want an accurate assessment of median value, gather data from eBay sales reports and you will find good market values. Of course there are always extreme highs and lows in float price sales reports however; it gives good current market values.

Accurate float history whether European or Japanese, is best collected and reported from where the floats originated from. In no way can you gather history or usage or for that matter any information at all from garage sales, antique stores or auctions. Data from those sources is usually indirect. Firsthand, direct knowledge comes from people collecting floats in those the countries where the floats originate from.

The majority of my float knowledge has been gathered from fishermen and old abandoned shacks in Japan. However, I must first give credit to the most knowledgeable person on Japanese floats, Walt Pich. If there is any one person to call an “Expert”, it would be him. Although Amos Woods did a fantastic job in the early days of collecting float information, Walt has far exceeded him in knowledge obtained. The majority of Mr Woods’ knowledge was gained from collections where Walt’s has been in the field of countries from where Asian floats originated, mainly Japan. Unfortunately for most collectors, so much of the information Walt and I have learned from field research in Japan cannot be shared. If Walt and I were to share most of the information about floats, collectors would be there in droves looking for those rare floats.

In closing, there are many misconceptions about usage and history of floats in Japan. Bottom line, the only way to get this knowledge is from active field research/collecting, talking to the fishermen who use them and actually seeing them in use. This type of knowledge cannot be obtained from yard sales, US beaches or antique shops.

Colored Dots

A favorite among float collectors are floats with a different colored sealing buttons. They too, are one of my favorite type of floats. Standard colors are cranberry and cobalt blue. There are other different colored sealing buttons such as amber and shades of green however, floats with blue and cranberry dots were not happenstance but part of the manufacturing process. Sizes of these float range from 2" to 12" in diameter. The larger floats have only been found with blue sealing buttons. Smaller floats 2" and 3" in diameter can also be found with cranberry sealing buttons.

The small floats also have marks where the large guys do not. Breaking the rule of no marks on large floats, a recent find in Japan had a 10" cobalt sealing button float with a rare Ka Tsu mark. Super rare, a one of a kind float indeed!

Small blue dot floats have been found with asahi, boxed hon and triangles with clan marks. Cranberry dot floats have oteru, yama san, asahi, and naka marks.