Hey, I just tied my first (more or less) good blood knot and I could use some guidance on leaders for this place. Any help gratefully appriciated ( sp.) And Happy New Year folks.
P.S. I'm really proud of that sluggy little knot!
-- Edited by mudhen on Friday 1st of January 2016 06:08:29 PM
I personally like using 7.5' or 9' tapered knotless leaders at Putah. There is so much plant growth in the water that all those extra knots will pick up bits and pieces of the weeds, etc. I don't like stopping to clean off my rig all the time....
3' of 20lb braid>p-line swivel>4-5' straight floro tippet>18"dropper. This setup stops leader twist and saves money from the pre made tapered leaders. I use this in all rivers.
Here is a leader formula that was suggested by Greg Schuerger (a former PC guide). Use a 20 lb. short butt section attached to your fly line. To the end of this butt section attach a poly yarn indicator. Tie a 4X tippet to the butt section (I presume he used an improved clinch knot). Tie a 5X section to the 4X section using a triple surgeon's knot. The lengths of the 4X and 5X section will vary depending upon how deep you are fishing. This is the leader he used in his Flyfish TV video on Putah Creek. I haven't used this leader formula myself, but I knew Greg when he was a guide for Sweeney's Sports in Napa and I was impressed by his flyfishing knowledge.
when going from 20lb to 4x you need a bobber, metal O ring or swivel. I use a bobber and cut or add near the bobber. So for Greg's setup which is old style with a yarn indicator you tie the 20 lb to the indicator. You can either tie the 4x above the 20lb or tie the 4x to indicator. Same with the setup ross uses. heavy line to one side of the swivel, lighter line to the other side of the swivel. There is some guy named Jordan that has a fairly new video that explains some of the best leader setups for Putah. Since this is not his site you will just have to look for it.
Dr Dan- I create a loop with the fly line end and tie a nail knot with the braid on top of the looped fly line. When the nail knot is tight I cut the fly line tag that's created when you cinch the nail knot at the tip of the loop. The double over fly line gives it more to grab. I used an improved clinch knot to the swivel. You don't need a huge swivel. I use one that's rated for 20lbs. It's really small. I learned this rig from a well known truckee guide. Only nypmh rig I use now. It's great for indicators or tight lining.
Do you tie a fly to the dropper and then a bottom one at the end of the tippet? Or is the dropper tied at an angle to the floro and the split shot at the end kinda like a steelhead setup?
Not understanding what you meant. The braid goes to the swivel then I tie floro to the fish fly and tie the dropper fly off the hook bend of the first fly. I usually put split shot 10-18" above the first fly. I put my indicator on the braid. 3' of braided line is more than enough to adjust depth. The braid doesn't kink after adjusting the indicator all day.
Ok, I understand what you are talking about. I wasn't sure if you tied the second fly to the first or to a separate dropper that was tied off somewhere along the tippet. Does anybody ever use the method where you have both flies tied on separate lines coming off of the main leader with the split shot at the bottom of the main line? Or is that too hard to cast?
Ok, I understand what you are talking about. I wasn't sure if you tied the second fly to the first or to a separate dropper that was tied off somewhere along the tippet. Does anybody ever use the method where you have both flies tied on separate lines coming off of the main leader with the split shot at the bottom of the main line? Or is that too hard to cast?
Like tying your flys to long tag ends of a blood knot? Seems like roll casting wouldn't be that big of a deal.
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Winter eats heat the way darkness swallows light. The terrors of failed power and frozen stems are stymied with fire, smoke and white ash.
Drop shoting isn't illegal. It's putting a weight directly below a hook. Used for snagging. Drop shoting is used in bass tournaments. It wouldn't be a legal catch if drop shoting was illegal. Just like hooking a fish no where near the mouth is not considered s legal catch in CA.
It's not really up for interpretation. The regulation is pretty specific. A weight below a book is a weight below a hook no matter what the intent is. Read number 4
-- Edited by Berryessie on Sunday 17th of January 2016 05:53:56 PM
Well if it's not up for interpretation then punching rigs and Texas rigs would be illegal on line 1. #4 says directly attached below the hook. Is that attached with line or attached to the hook bend? If drop shoting was illegal it wouldn't be allowed in tournaments. Tournaments obey state laws. Take it how you want to but as of now it's not illegal to fish drop shots.
Number four seems pretty clear on it, applying the weight onto the tag end of a polmar knot for the hook seems to meet the definition. Seems you cant trust those bass guys ;)
Tying a fly onto a tag end of the top knot such as a surgeons loop or blood knot (no matter how short) would be much like using a 3 way swivel and "not" directly in line (below) the hook.
Just my .02
that being said, with luck I can get up there and do some drop shotting next weekend out of my kayak
-- Edited by lightfoot on Monday 18th of January 2016 05:45:02 AM
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Winter eats heat the way darkness swallows light. The terrors of failed power and frozen stems are stymied with fire, smoke and white ash.
If there is anyone new to fly fishing and getting lost through the talk of leaders Leland fly fishing just put up an article about picking a fly fishing leader. Might want to give that a looksy? Makes things a little more simple....
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Nothing makes a fish seem bigger than almost being caught...
Drop shotting in rivers is illegal. I saw a guy get a ticket on the Smith for having weight below the hook. The warden up there is pretty hard core, so take it for what it is worth. Maybe it is legal in lakes, but for sure it is illegal on rivers. Again look for that video by Berryessie. I think most people that read this forum would benefit from it. Maybe even some of those rookie guides….
An effective technique I've found useful is: from the end of the line (usually has a welded loop) use a 4' piece of 20 lb fluorocarbon (which I buy in large spools at Big 5) tie a Perfection Loop to go Loop-to-loop to the fly line and then tie a Perfection Loop on the distal end as well. This 4' of flatline will enable you to move your indicator up or down depending on water depth. For the leader, I simply use about 5' to 7' of flatline fluoro, usually about 4X (no sense in using a tapered leader, which is 4-5 times as expensive as just flatline tippet, and has the thicker butt end which doesn't knife down through the water column as quickly) because if you're nymphing (High Sticking or Indicator Nymphing) you certainly don't need a tapered leader, as your casts are simply using Centrifugal Force, and you're not trying to delicately 'turn over' a dry fly. To the end of the 4X 'leader', I'll tie maybe 18-20" of 4X or 5X tippet using a Triple Surgeon's, to which the Point Fly (heavily weighted so I never need split shot) is attached using a 'Quick Tie' 16/20 knot (Using hemostats, this takes about 5 seconds). A Dropper Fly (unweighted, so small microcurrents move it realistically) can be tied off the bend of the hook of the Point fly, again using 16/20 knots. This allows me to rig very quickly and have my flies exposed to the trout in short order, remembering that "The Number of fish you catch is directly correlated with the amount of time your fly is in the water"!
