I use smaller flies on Putah.  There are a select few who hammer fish on larger flies, but I'm not one of them. 

Sometimes a new pattern or variant tie of a creek standard that has not gone over the fish a thousand times may work. I was below the bridge watching a fellow pound that first run with no success on a three dropper rig using a PT, caddis pupa and midge pupa. I asked if he had anything unusual in his box and he came up with a micromay pattern variant size 18 tied with a little flashabou. He tied it on the top and had three fish almost immediately before I left. I have good success with streamers, but they are not your everyday off the shelf patterns.

As a general rule, for the size you think the fly is, go one smaller. If you think a bug is a 16, tie on an 18. I don't know why, but this seems to work.

AB

Memebop, there are two popular versions of the PT nymph.  The English version (Sawyer PT) is tied with only pheasant tail and copper wire; it has no legs and is usually quite slender in profile.  The American version has a body made of pheasant tail, a thorax made of pea****, and legs made of pheasant tail.  This version is usually a bit more robust in profile than the English version.  Thus, when someone tells you that he is having success with a "PT nymph", he could be using either version.  I have used both versions at Putah and have success with both. 

-- Edited by Nohackle at 21:41, 2008-10-06

size 16 mm quickly became my fly of the summer after mx19 posted success with a jumbo micromay #16. I still tied a slim version but using a size 16 hook was the jumbo part for me. I had been using size 18-24's for quite a few seasons and most of the time I was drifting a #20 with a #22 dropper. I swore by that set-up. But this year I changed and went big and boy did I go big. Right on mx19 and someday we need to compare those micromays. Blend them together and I bet we go even bigger.

That aint no secret.  I know what that 22 is too!