Ribbing Wire

[SMClark]

What (if any) is the rule of thumb for sizing ribbing wire to hook size? From what I can gather, Ultra-Wire is sized as

X-Small: 0.008" (~32 gauge);
Small: 0.011" (~29 ga);
Medium: 0.014" (~27ga); and
Brassie: "larger than small, perfect for size 18 - 22 Brassies" ( . . . so is "Medium" ? )

I see recipes for size 18 - 22 nymphs that use Small/Medium; recipes for size 12 wets that use Small/Medium; and recipes for size 4 streamers that use Small. Are these all using one and the same definition for "Small"?

And what about type of wire? Some recipes say gold, silver; others, copper, stainless. I would think size "Small" gold wire would weigh approx the same as ~29 ga lead, whereas size "Small" silver would weigh quite a bit less (as would copper and ss, not to mention those that say wire or mono).

I?ve seen a rule of thumb for lead wire that simply said the diameter of the lead wire should approximate the diameter of the hook shank, but have been unable to find anything similar on ribbing wire. My wife?s not here . . . will someone please tell me what I think ?

Any insight appreciated !
- smc -

[okflyfisher]

Iam not sure of the guages but Bra is smaller than medium

[Ron Eagle Elk]

SMC,

I can only speak for myself, but I use ribbing wire for the "look", not the weight, and to strengthen the parts being ribbed. Some wire or tinsel sizes just don't look right on a certain fly size. Mono ribbing is , for me at least, only for adding strength to parts being ribbed.

Will the world fall apart at the seams if you tie a Brassie with the wrong wire size? Nope. Use what you have available. If it looks odd, buy something else.

REE

[Buddy Sanders]

SM,

There is no 'rule' as such.

Fly recipes aren't hard and fast, and what one tyer calls 'small' wire, might actually be large to another.

If there are any 'rules' they would be these:

First rule: Use what you HAVE. It's only ribbing on a fly, the fish probably won't notice the difference between copper and gold, nor a gauge size or two either way. Don't skip tying a fly that you want to tie because you only have gold colored brassie size wire and the 'recipe' calls for small copper....

Second rule: Use what looks good to YOU. Size and proportion are the personal choices that separate and define both the style and the skills of artists. If you don't like how it looks, change it until you do.

Third rule: Ask yourself the 'purpose' of the ribbing. Why is it even there? For strength? To provide segmentation? Just because? If you can't see a reason for it then all the size/color stuff is just purely decorative and it's not critical.

Basic caveat of ribbing the 'Buddy' way: Copper wire from electrical wiring is the default for ALL wire ribbing unless I can see a definitive reason to use something else.

Have fun, it's just fly tying and it won't really matter which ever you choose.

Buddy

[DG]

Other than on small nymphs such as copper johns or brassie-types, my wire ribs are for flash and for structure to hold materials together, not for weight. I normally use whatever is handy, without worrying too much about size. The only time I am concerned about size is on real small flies where weight does become a factor. I use XX fine Lagartun wire for ribbing on midges, for instance, and for a #24 dry you need very fine wire.

[Flyguy5910]

for most of my ribbing i use mono unless you make copper johns or such, its easier on the scissors and cheap!!!!!!

[Eight Thumbs]

Hi SMC,

I think that Buddy has the right idea on ribbing. I use small or brassie size wire for pretty much all my ribbing tasks including big buggers. Flash and durability, not weight are my primary reasons for ribbing in the first place. If I want additional weight, I lead wrap the shank or use a bead/cone head. 8T

[SMClark]

Good, everybody seems to agree that ribbing wire isn?t selected to help manipulate the rate of descent, so I?m just over-thinking the problem.

Didn?t mean to imply that Brassie was larger than Medium, in fact, I kinda suspected it probably wasn?t. My hiccup was, Small is 0.011? and Medium is 0.014?, so Medium is obviously larger than Small, and JStockard?s definition that ?Brassie is larger than small size wire? tells me next to nothing as to what size wire Brassie is. Then again, if there?s really only 0.003? difference between Small and Medium, Brassie must be on the order of 0.0125?, so there?s precious little difference between Medium and Brassie, or Small and Brassie. It would take a pair of really close tolerance fingertips to distinguish the difference if the labels come off the spools

I think I?ll just go with chopping up the extension cords, too. If I need larger wire, two or more strands can?t be ?furled? together, right ?

Thanks, everybody
-smc-

[DG]

Like Buddy said, there aren't any rules to this game. Which is the way I like it. Experiment, see what works for you.

As for color, most wire you use, regardless of color, is going to be copper, although I do own some brass wire. I doubt you will find any gold involved except maybe as electroplating. My silver wire does seem to be silver but the whole spool of it doesn't weigh enough to notice.

I use whatever color provides me the look I want. On tan buggers, I like copper wire, on green ones I like green or black. Ribbing on midges is silver wire over black thread...

[Clay]

Talk about breaking the rules, check this monster out from Orvis. It is a heavyweight stonefly. Note, in Wis we don't have stones like this, these are out west some where, but I am going to tie these up for my carp fishing. Unless the fish are on a specific hatch, sometimes it is just more important to offer something that looks buggy and this fly trips my trigger.