Posts Tagged ‘fly fishing gear’
Fly Fishing
Friday, June 17th, 2011
Fly Fishing Lines – What’s Important?
Fly lines are an extremely key piece in your fly fishing set-up. Choosing a good fly line should be just as important as choosing your rod, if want to be able to learn to fly Fish quickly. After all it is your fly line that actually does most of the fishing (your rod only gets your line onto the water!). The good news is there are only a few things you need to get right when selecting a fly line. The key features of a fly line that you need to consider are highlighted in this article.
Fly Line Weight
Fly line weight technically refers to how heavy the first 30 foot of the fly line is, in grams. Luckily a few of the manufacturers got together, a number of years back, and decided on a simple weighting system (similar to rods) that ranges from 1-15. A rule of thumb is that you should match your fly line to your rod weight, so if you are using a 5 weight rod, a 5 weight line should suit that rod nicely. Of course you can always ‘over-line’ your rod by putting a 1 weight heavier line on it (put a 6 weight line no a 5 weight rod). This will assist with loading the rod and will help you to generate line speed quicker, a key factor in learning how to fly fish.
Fly Line Taper
Fly line taper is a slightly more confusing feature for beginners to understand. The easiest way to think of taper is to think of it as the profile of the fly line, how it looks when viewing it end to end. There are a number of different tapers, the four key ones are level taper, double taper, weight forward taper and shooting taper. Each of these tapers is designed to assist with casting the line and achieving the desired casting result in some way, for example: generate faster line speed, allow for a more delicate presentation. The most popular taper is the weight forward taper. These line have a little more weight and width in the first section of the fly line, for most anglers these lines will be the easiest to cast well.
Fly Line Density
Essentially, fly lines either float on top of the water, or sink in the water – this is a nice way to look at density. To look at this in more detail, fly lines are generally broken down into the following densities: floating, sink tip, intermediate, sinking, fast sinking. This is where you really need to consider the type of fishing you’ll be doing and what type of fly line is suitable for that type of fishing. The floating fly line, for example, is used for dry fly and nymph fishing, where it is paramount that the fly line floats on the water. A sinking line, on the other hand, is designed to sink in the water you are fishing – taking with it your flies which are attached to the end of the fly line.
Fly Line Colour
Fly line colour is probably the least important of the features to get right. Fly lines tend to come in all sorts of colours and often it comes down to personal preference. Some people think that buying a ‘camouflage’ fly line is important (especially in clear conditions with spooky fish) while others believe that the fish will see the line no matter what colour it is. As a rule of thumb, generally buy dark coloured sinking line and floating lines of earthy colours – provided you can still see them on the water.
The above ‘criteria’ are the things you need to be aware of when selecting a fly line. The types of fish, water and areas you are fishing will determine the combination of fly line features that you need. Check out the resource below for more details on how you might select the right fly line for different situations.
About the Author
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Fly Editor is an experienced fly fisherman and the editor of an informational fly fishing website:
StartFlyfishingnow.com is a resource for anyone interested in learning to fly fish or someone looking for information on fly fishing. Check my site for other articles and much more.
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Rivers Edge Fishing Rod Fly Swatter $5.50 The Rivers Edge Fishing Rod Fly Swatter g raphite shaft, EVA foam handle with trigger grip make smashing those pesky flies as easy as fishin’! Great item to keep handy on your porch or deck. Fun and practical…. |
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Fishing Lure Wall Plaque With Hooks – Style 35135 $6.19 Fishing lure wall plaque with hooks. Wood and metal. 13” x 1 3/4” x 6 3/8” high…. |
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The BIG Catch FLY Fishing Pole Photo Picture Holder Frame Themed Decor $18.95 Hand painted poly-resin fishing pole with 3 frames for photos Hanging signs stating: “The Big Catch” Holds a 3 1/2″ X 5″ photo measuring: 4 1/4″H X 4 1/4″W 25″ Wide Holds a 3″ X 3″ photo measuring: 3 3/4″H X 4 1/4″W Holds a 2 1/2″ X 2 1/2″ photo measuring: 3 3/4″H X 3 3/4″W…. |
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Under Great White Northern Lights (CD & DVD) $38.77 Under Great White Northern Lights features a CD of the first-ever live album from The White Stripes and a DVD of the film by Emmett Malloy. Disc 1: The Film “In Under Great White Northern Lights, Emmett Malloy has captured and crafted a magical, compelling, and perfectly musical document. Having never played extensively in Canada, in 2007 in support of their album Icky Thump, The White Stripes em… |
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Hooked on Hookin’ Up $14.94 A satisfying mixture of blues, country, rock and folk, “Hooked on Hookin’ Up” celebrates the spirit, passion and fun of one of America’s most treasured pastimes-fishing. With songs like “Tellin’ Lies and Tyin” Flies”, “Big Boss Bass”, and “Barracuda Blues”,”Hooked on Hookin’ Up” is the perfect companion for that early morning trip to the lake, river, bay or ocean. A great listen for those who unde… |
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Fly Fishing For Bass & Panfish $9.99 Studio: Victor Multimedia-05 Release Date: 07/07/2009 Run time: 60 minutes… |
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Fishing the Dry Fly [VHS] $24.75 … |
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Hooked On Fly Tying, HJB2 Saltwater Fly Tying Secrets – Joe Butorac [VHS] $19.90 Professional fly tyer and avid angler, Joe Butorac shares with you his trade secrets to tying saltwater flies effectively and painlessly. Joe even tries his flies out in the bathtub to see how they float, sink, look wet, etc. ••• Electric Minnow Krystal Fish Tube Fly Flashy Lady Sassy Shrimp Tarpon Marabou Bonefish Tutu … |
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Fly Fishing Video Magazine, Vol. 18 Mexico’s Bonefish & Dorado [VHS] $19.95 Fly fishing for bonefish, permit and tarpon in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula in Ascension Bay and thee lagoons near Boca Paila. Also, fly fishing for dorado in Baja California. Jan Isley… Florida Keys flats guide who now guides from the Yucatan’s newest and smallest lodge… The “Ascension Bay Bonefish Club” Melia Pez Maya… The oldest and largest fishing camp in the Yucatan where service, cui… |
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Gerber Epic Knife $38.95 Its a compact, multi-use, fixed-blade knifeits the Gerber Epic Knife. The name speaks to the impact this little knife will have on your camping or backpacking experience. A deep thumb and finger notch between the blade and handle makes multiple uses and holding techniques possible. Gerber even made the end of the handle a bottle opener and the sheath converts to a tip-up or tipdown carry for even … |
