Getting Down

If I want to add a b or bb to get my nymph down , where on the tippet should I put it? Down next to the eye or a few inches away?

squeeze it on about a foot above the fly.

Try adding a piece of tippet (I like 12-18")and use that knot to hold the shot in place.

Peter

The closer your shot is to the nymph, the closer it will ride to the bottom. I generally wouldn't put closer than 4" or farther than 14" from the nymph.

The advice above about using a knot to hold it in place is a good one. It also allows you to not clamp the shot down on the tippet as hard. Clamping the shot down hard damages the tippet and thus decreases its breaking strength.

MWebb,

Where you place the split shot will effect how the fly moves in the water. There is no 'wrong' or 'right' place to put it.

Right at the eye of the fly: gives your fly a 'jigging' action. This placement will eliminate the 'tangles' common to using a shot placed above the fly. Drops nose first quickly between strips, and will drift in the current with a more nose down attitude. And drag or pull on the line will lift the fly upwards, and it will 'dive' once this presure is relaxed.

Moveing the shot up the leader lessens this effect, but you still get the dive/rise for the first six to ten inches.

From about a foot to two feet above the fly, the shot will get you more depth but have less impact on how the fly moves. The leader between the shot and the fly deadens the effect of the shot, but the fly will still 'follow' the shot through the water. It's more 'subtle' of an action.

Another consideration at this point is 'hingeing' of the leader during casting. With one heavy shot the leader can fold back on itself during the cast, and the fly can foul the line above the shot. Consider using a 'spread' of 3 smaller shot spaced about three to four inches apart rather than one large one to counteract this.

You can also place a large shot at the junction of the fly line and leader. This has the least effect on how the fly moves, it just adds depth. Not as much as on the lower portion of the leader, but enough to give you a few extra inches. This location has the least effect on the cast.

Up to you which will work best for your application.

Good Luck!

Buddy



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The subject of this thread brings up a good topic that I have wondered about. Of all the methods for adding weight to your line when nymphing, which do you guys prefer. My first experience was to add split shot above my tippet knot but I would often get broke off due to the stress that the shot put on the line. Guess I squeezing it too hard?
I then started to use the putty weight that's on the market, it doesn't put the stress on the line that the split shots do, but it seems to not stay on too well in faster water. Am I putting it on wrong by rolling a little ball of it on my leader/tippet?
Next I was introduced to the twist on weight that looks like a match book. That seems to work ok for me, at least better than the previous two methods. every once in a while I have to retighten/twist the weight, but it seems to have fewer disadvantages then the other methods. Any other tricks/techniques out there. The other day I tried a method I read in a mag to add split shot to the tag end of a tippet. if you add a knot at the end of the tag your shot wont slip off. I did have a few tangling problems with this method due to the extra swinging tippet so I went back to the twist on. what are the rest of you guys using?