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brooktrout308

Lead Wire

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A friend of mine ties almost all wet flys and he weights them with lead wire, his problem is he is running out of wire, I found him some 0.10 but he says that's way to heavy for flys under size 12

I have not been tying that long that I could argue the point with him, he does not have a computer so he asked me if I could try and find some for him. I've checked on E BAY and a couple other places with no luck, anybody have any ideas ?

 

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0.10 wire is too heavy for any fly

 

lead fly tying wire comes in .010, .015, .020, .025, .030 and .035 inches in diameter

 

any one of the following shops should have what you want plus ebay

 

1kkd6aC.jpg

 

ebay

 

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2380057.m570.l1313.TR1.TRC0.A0.H0.Xlead+wire+fly+tying.TRS0&_nkw=lead+wire+fly+tying&_sacat=0

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Au contraire... What you're saying is quite true for freshwater bugs... but not for the salt where I use .040 almost exclusively. If you only went by what fly shops sell you'd also never learn that you can get square lead wire which is what I use instead of that wimpy round lead wire. The square lead wire isn't used in the manner that the round is used - you don't wrap it around the hook at all. Instead you cut off small pieces then tie them in as keel weights (mine are usually about 1/2" long for a 1/0 or 2/0 hook, cut on the diagonal with a small pair of nippers to aid in blending in when thread wrapped into place) . Do that carefully, then over wrap with something like diamond braid and you really can't tell the fly has been weighted until you use it... In the following pics only one of these variations has a leaded keel....

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H1oZMwC.jpg

 

These are the Big Eye Bendback series (and for a few years I drew royalties on them from Umpqua). They're done on Mustad 34007 1/0 hooks that I've bent myself. Of the samples shown -only the chartreuse and white version had that 1/2" of lead along the keel. That keel effect is pretty pronounced -it not only sinks the bug but also keeps it pretty much upright (the combination of bucktail on one side of the hook and lead on the other side works pretty well... It also aids in keeping the fly pretty much weedless (or snag-less if you prefer...). For those who've never tried them, (these are just a variation of Chico Fernandez's original Bendback pattern) they work very well for everything except tarpon. I've never been able to hook a tarpon with one - and Chico warned us all about that when he first popularized the pattern almost forty years ago...

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of course you can wrap square lead wire around a hook shank.

 

you may choose to tie it in strips vs wrapping but dont tell people you dont wrap it around a hook

 

square lead wire is available in sizes .017, .027, .035, .040

 

lead fly tying wire comes in .010, .015, .020, .025, .030 and .035 inches in diameter

 

round non lead wire comes in .015, .020, .025, .030 and .035 inches in diameter

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Au contraire... What you're saying is quite true for freshwater bugs... but not for the salt where I use .040 almost exclusively.

 

 

That's still considerably smaller than 0.1.

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Assuming you are referring to .010 and not .10 wire, I use .010 a lot on all but the smallest of flies. I guess it depends on how deep and how fast you want your fly to get down. I mainly fish a big river so I want to get down deep (3 to 6') quick before the fly is washed downstream and out of the area I want to fish. Most sizes of lead wire is easily obtained. I've never had a problem finding various sizes of lead wire in any fly shop I've ever been in.

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I use 0.10 all the way down to 18 for nymphs and wets its fine enough. never in 50+ years have I seen anything less

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Another idea, I have used lead core trolling line on my wets for about 40 years, the local shop owner at the time showed me how to cut off a foot or so and tease the braided sheath off the lead, (the book I had called for .0xx fuse wire, I still have never found that, but it would be lighter per dianeter because it's a tin-lead alloy) when I asked what size lead wire it was he said "I don't know but it works fine" Ten turns is heavier than five turns and as the hook diameter increases with size so does the amount of wire used in each turn and the weight, a second layer could be added for a super heavy fly. I use usually cover about half the shank.

10 colors is a life time supply, at the time I think it cost about $3, iirc it was Mason either 18# or 27#

Maybe a local bait shop has lead core near you or you know some one that trolls or shop the places flytire suggested for real fly tying wire. Cabela's has lead wire.

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I use lead (and non-lead) wire sparingly, usually in diameters between 0.01" and 0.04". I prefer to use a heavier hook or less buoyant material to help my flies sink. Better still, a bit of weight on the tippet a foot or so above the fly. I believe too much weight in the fly tends to deaden its action.

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I use 0.10 all the way down to 18 for nymphs and wets its fine enough. never in 50+ years have I seen anything less

 

is your decimal point in the right place for inch dimensions?

 

0.10 is pretty close to 1/8 inch (.125) and i doubt you can wrap 1/8 inch diameter on a size 18 hook

 

if its milimeters then 0.10mm = 0.00393701 inches

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0.1" lead wire is solder

I believe most common solder is an alloy of lead and tin. Often with a core of rosin. Not really suitable for flytying. Especially considering its cost.

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0.1" lead wire is solder

I believe most common solder is an alloy of lead and tin. Often with a core of rosin. Not really suitable for flytying. Especially considering its cost.

 

You are correct in that it is not really suitable, but the problem is size ~3/32" or 2 1/2 mm diameter- think ball point pen ink tube or coat hanger wire size

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