Good morning all! I am also new here and thought I’d ask some of the resident fly anglers about my first fly rod I just purchased. It’s single action, not to fancy. So my questions for the fly anglers here. How much line would you recommend to go on the reel? Backing fly line and, leader. Also, what is the loop at, the end of the leader for? and, what is tippet? I will be mostly concentrating on reservoirs for Hybrid Striper and, Crappie. any help is appreciated.
Terry
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Tags: fly anglers, Fly Fishing, Fly Line, Fly Rod, Hybrid Striper
I am sure the instructions and paperwork that came with your reel should tell you what the capacity of backing and fly line are. If not, go to their website and check there for your reel model. Anyway, the loop at the end of the leader, if at thick end is for attaching it to the fly line, that will also require a loop too. This is for a loop to loop connection.
A Tippet is usually a finer mono line you tie onto the end of your leader, usually 18″ or so, to which you tie the fly to. As the tippet gets shorter from changing flies, you change it, saving the length of the leader. Usually fly line comes in 30 yard loops. Since you are going after stripers and crappie, might I suggest you use a 8 weight line. Now, since you are probably going to be ’stripping’ minnow baits, Might I suggest a weight forward sinking tip line. This let you ‘heave’ a wind resistant minnow of larger size, and the tip the last 10 feet will sink, giving you a level presentation. The loop has already been discussed; but if you put a metal cinch loop in your fly line, make sure you use a waterproof adhesive as this will degrade your line. If you are gonna really fish, learn how to tie the blood knot. Especially since you are going after two fish that will give you different lure sizes and presentations. It is easy, and all you need are three to four small loops of line. You can buy the chemically tapered leaders, and when conditions change, tie on extra tippet from your own stock. If you break the tippet, simply tie on more.
The backing should be 30lb test; I prefer a braided line because it is easy to handle, and is cheap. Not spiderwire, simple braided line. There should be enough backing on the reel so it and the fly line fills the entire reel- when you run your palm against the open part of the reel, the fly line should be almost level with the sides of the reel.
What it does is simple. It ‘translates’ the force of your fly line to the lure, causing the lure to ’straighten out’ in front of the line. It also keeps the fly line away from the fish, as this would spook them. Tippets graduate in diameter from large where you tie it to the fly line, to small where you tie it to the hook. Think about this way- it looks like a bullwhip. you generate a loop with force at one end, and since it tapers in direction to the smaller other end, the force speeds the loop up as it travels to the small end.
In your discussion, the leader and the tippet are the same, the leader being the end that is secured to the fly line, the tippet being the other.
Good luck and welcome to the club
Some very simple tips that are easy to remember is to tie the backing on the fly line with a nail knot and load it on the reel. Okay, the loop at the end of the leader is a quick way to connect the fly line. You’ll need to get a loop for the fly line. It just slides over the end of the line. They’re a little hard to get on but well worth the time you save changing leaders later. The “Tippet” is the line that goes from your leader to the fly. Connect them with a blood knot or a double surgeons knot. If you have a fly shop near you they’ll be glad to get you started. The leaders and tippet will vary depending on the size of the fly you are using. Tippet material comes on small spools. The higher the number the lighter the tippet. We fish a lot of small flies here and use 7X ( about 2 pound test). You have to match the leader and tippet to the fly you are using so you can cast it. If you know someone who fly fishes you can go with them one time and learn more than you can reading several articles on fly fishing. It sounds complicated but once you try it you’ll see how much fun it is. Good luck fishing.