I AM THROUGH WITH LEAD WIRING

[iso18 0]

Reasons.Smaller flies,hard to get that natural shape you want on a nymph.No way to adjust it,once its on its on to stay.A few more also.But here is my ?What is the best type of weight ,besides small shot,for weighting nymphs on your leader-tippet?.I have read about moldable lead,twist on lead,lead substitutes and so on.Can some of you give me your experiences with weighting your leaders,pros-cons etc.?Also,I have one brand new .20 lead wire and one barely used .20 lead wire,I would be willing to swap for some or one of these substitutes i have spoken of.Thank you and good day as steelie would say.

shane aka iso18

God bless

[Firetiger 0]

For aesthetic reasons I dislike lead on leader; instead I tie a heavy sacrificial fly (tungsten beadhead, heavy CZ nymph) on a dropper. Works the same way and I feel like I am fly fishing

[Hairstacker 0]

Reasons.Smaller flies,hard to get that natural shape you want on a nymph.No way to adjust it,once its on its on to stay.A few more also.But here is my ?What is the best type of weight ,besides small shot,for weighting nymphs on your leader-tippet?.I have read about moldable lead,twist on lead,lead substitutes and so on.Can some of you give me your experiences with weighting your leaders,pros-cons etc.?Also,I have one brand new .20 lead wire and one barely used .20 lead wire,I would be willing to swap for some or one of these substitutes i have spoken of.Thank you and good day as steelie would say.

shane aka iso18

God bless

 

Shane, you do know lead wire comes in various diameters (typically from .010 to .035), right? Thus, you can scale down the diameter of the lead wire to match the hooks on smaller flies and maintain the same overall appearance as your larger nymphs.

 

In any case, many do believe the unweighted fly is more lively in the water column and offers you the option to fish it in the surface film. Anyway, I always thought a split shot above the tippet knot was the most effective, trouble-free way to do it. I've heard some prefer to put the shot on a small tag left on the tippet knot -- that way if the shot snags, you don't lost the fly.

 

-- Mike

[Guest]

Sinking line, no lead on the fly= more fish, by the way shane I'll be posting a few of the travel benches for a reduced price tomorrow, they are from my first batch and are very nice but I have since made a few cosmetic changes and want to get rid of the older ones. I know you were interested in one they are going to be 40.00 plus shipping, let me know if you'd like one. Eric

[iso18 0]

Reasons.Smaller flies,hard to get that natural shape you want on a nymph.No way to adjust it,once its on its on to stay.A few more also.But here is my ?What is the best type of weight ,besides small shot,for weighting nymphs on your leader-tippet?.I have read about moldable lead,twist on lead,lead substitutes and so on.Can some of you give me your experiences with weighting your leaders,pros-cons etc.?Also,I have one brand new .20 lead wire and one barely used .20 lead wire,I would be willing to swap for some or one of these substitutes i have spoken of.Thank you and good day as steelie would say.

shane aka iso18

God bless

 

Shane, you do know lead wire comes in various diameters (typically from .010 to .035), right? Thus, you can scale down the diameter of the lead wire to match the hooks on smaller flies and maintain the same overall appearance as your larger nymphs.

 

In any case, many do believe the unweighted fly is more lively in the water column and offers you the option to fish it in the surface film. Anyway, I always thought a split shot above the tippet knot was the most effective, trouble-free way to do it. I've heard some prefer to put the shot on a small tag left on the tippet knot -- that way if the shot snags, you don't lost the fly.

 

-- Mike

 

Yes i am aware of the sizes available, wire that is.I am through with it.............Mainly like you said,i dont like the fact that it is there and i cant remove it.And even the smaller wire ,you have to adjust your tying a bit to get the right porportions.Also,I just read "midge magic "and i think that is what gave me the final push.Any suggestions on super small shot and where i can get it.I'm talking like a size #7 shot pellet.

shane

 

[NoVaTyer 0]

Also,I just read "midge magic "

shane

 

Shane,

 

Midge Magic is a great read. There are some really good patterns in the book that are very productive. I try make a trip to the breeches every year and will always throw a couple of the Ed's patterns.

 

Victor

 

[Old Hat 0]

Like Saw cat said. Unweighted fly...I don't even use beads (except for steelhead). Use different materials in the fly to promote sinking rate. The material and the profile of the fly can make a big difference. There is also Xink, a gel to help your fly sink. Then purchase a 5' or 7.5' sinking leader assortment and some flourocarbon tippet to run off of the leader. Other than that, the most productive way is the ol' lead shot.

 

If all else fails...give the nymphs up and take up fishing soft hackles, flymphs and spiders. You'll be happy you did.

[Horseshoes 0]

In my river you are not allowed to use lead weighted flies. That solves my problem.

[mark2olson 0]

In my river you are not allowed to use lead weighted flies. That solves my problem.

 

I made the switch several years ago. I use Hareline's Lead Free Wire for weighted patterns. The smallest size, however, is .015. For patterns that require a smaller diameter wire, I use copper wire as the weight. On the stream, I use tin split shot.

[DrVette 0]

In my river you are not allowed to use lead weighted flies. That solves my problem.

I always thought that these rules were the reason for hiding the lead in the fly??? Who the heck is going to cut up your fly to check? I know that isn't the propper way of looking at it, but thought it was the reason behind it???

[the saltydog 0]

In my river you are not allowed to use lead weighted flies. That solves my problem.

I always thought that these rules were the reason for hiding the lead in the fly??? Who the heck is going to cut up your fly to check? I know that isn't the propper way of looking at it, but thought it was the reason behind it???

 

WV dude, you are missing out on a great opportunity..... lead and tungsten wire comes in various sizes.... this means you have the opportunity to tie more flies and use different sizes of lead inside the flies. I use a color code by using different colors of thread to match up with different amounts of weight in a fly... black is heavy, brown is medium heavy and olive is not so heavy.

 

i hate using weight on my leader since it casts like poo, especially roll casts in those tiny appalachian streams.

 

its all good. :yahoo:

[JSzymczyk 0]

If you want the best way to build the shape you want AND have(almost)the mass of lead, this is how: Use very fine copper wire, such as a strand separated from 12 or 14 AWG electrical wire, and wrap layers of it into the taper you want on your hook shank. Saturate it with a few small drops of liquid flux, and flow lead solder into it using a soldering iron and good technique. If you are careful you won't heat the hook enough to bother the temper of the steel.

[iso18 0]

In my river you are not allowed to use lead weighted flies. That solves my problem.

I always thought that these rules were the reason for hiding the lead in the fly??? Who the heck is going to cut up your fly to check? I know that isn't the propper way of looking at it, but thought it was the reason behind it???

 

WV dude, you are missing out on a great opportunity..... lead and tungsten wire comes in various sizes.... this means you have the opportunity to tie more flies and use different sizes of lead inside the flies. I use a color code by using different colors of thread to match up with different amounts of weight in a fly... black is heavy, brown is medium heavy and olive is not so heavy.

 

i hate using weight on my leader since it casts like poo, especially roll casts in those tiny appalachian streams.

 

its all good. :yahoo:

The river i fish the most is probably 100 feet wide or wider in some stretches.I dont know what you mean by missing out,but i assure u i am doing no such thing.As to tungsten and wire,I have used the lot of them,with success.You have to understand,my favorite holes in the river i fish r usually after something very small and less weight and smaller flies,I believe,will lead to more fish.Sure I can catch 5-10 trout in these holes at these times,with ant,beetles,hopper patterns.But i would rather be catching 15-20 of these trout using a bug that they r keyed in on,that could mean anything in sizes #16-32.Made 7 weekend trips to my camp in 08 and caught 74 trout.All on flies I tied and all were either on the surface or a foot or 2 below the surface,so the weight i require is very minimal,I am just looking 4 alternatives for smaller weight, as a means to an end. guess you could say I am evolving into a fly fishing river bum that is going to probably never use a fly any larger than a size 16 maybe 18 ,haven't decided yet.To each his own.

 

Not much feedback on different types of weight ,I probably should of just googled this and had more luck.

shane aka iso18

God bless

[iso18 0]

In my river you are not allowed to use lead weighted flies. That solves my problem.

 

There is lead wire in the "reservation whore-hobo",just to let you know.So u don't get in any trouble.

shane

 

[iso18 0]

JStochard has exactly what im looking for,TUNGSTEN TACKY WEIGHT.says you can even apply to your tying thread for tying smaller flies.Any one ever use this for weighting a leader or applying 2 tying thread?

shane