Just thought I’d show this strike indicator, or spring bobber if you prefer that term. Took me about 3 minutes to make, start to finish. It is meant for panfish, but a stiffer one could be made for any species. Of course it is not as nice as my new TUC noodle, but it is another option.
How I made it..
Materials:
6″ piece of wire I had laying around. It is #3 AFW Tooth Proof Leader Wire. It is stainless steel and comes in a 30 foot coil for about $4. I suggest the next size bigger if you want a more sturdy wire.
A 6mm glow bead from my walleye spinner box.
Sewing thread
Electrical tape
Steps:
1st. I stuck the bead on the wire and wired it up. This one is made for the line to go through the bead, but if you fish outside you will want to do loop for the line and then wire the bead to the top for visibility. 
To do the loop, simply thread your bead on the line, form the loop with your fingers, then stick the end of the wire through the bead. The bead will hold it tight. Use a drop of super glue to hold it where you want it. 
2nd. I wrapped the rod with the thread similar to fly tying. Lay the thread along the blank towards the reel, start at the tip and wrap over the thread for about 1″ then back to the tip. Cut the tag end off.
3rd. I measured the length of the wire to make sure it will work okay with the small jigging spoons I use this rod for, then went ahead and wrapped the wire down. I went down the wire towards the reel, then back up to the tip. I made sure to keep the wrappings tight and adjusted the spring so it was straight on the top of the blank then cinched it down by going back down the wire and back again. Then I tied it off with two half hitch knots.
4th. I made sure everything was where I wanted it and cut small slivers of electrical tape to cover the wrapping. I did NOT want this to be permanent, in case the wire gets bent up. If you want it permanent, you can use epoxy over the thread, or use heat shrink tubing.
Now its pretty much done. String the line through and go fishing. I tested it by hooking a few small objects around the house and it didnt bend out of shape at all. But it will bend if you kink it somehow. If you wanted to really make a nice one you could do the same thing I did here, only with straight titanium wire… but that takes a little more effort and slightly different technique. If it ever gets bent up bad, I can just take off the tape, cut the wrapping and have it off in 10 seconds. Then another 3 minutes for a new one. It took about 3 times as long to make this topic than it did to make the indicator.
The only disadvantage I see is that I will need to cut the line every time I store the rod so the spring does not bend up. A loop on the end instead of going through the bead would allow for the jig to come through the spring and solve that issue, but I like it this way better since I fish inside a shanty 99% of the time if its below freezing.
