Pheasant Tails
I am very new to fly tying, and I figured I would start out tying some nymphs that work well on my home water, the Gunpowder, in Maryland...pheasant tails and hares ear. I got a video with my kit and the guy tied in some lead wire. I was a little surprised, but not sure if it was common. I looked on youtube and found a good video, and he didn't use lead. What do most of you do? No weight, some with weight some without?
Some with and some without. You can also use lead-free wire. Heavier flies sink faster and go deeper, especially on fast current. Slimmer and lighter flies land more gently on the surface and make less of a disturbance upon striking the water. (plop vs PLOP!)
Ed
I don't weight any small nymphs. Use a bead if you like. I usually fish these behind something weighted, like a copper john, etc. Or, add a split shot.
The weight that you add depends on the depth and velocity of the water. A nymph must work close to the bottom, where the real nymphs are.
For emerger situations go -better- for a wet or softhackle.
The conclusion is obvious.
Good luck.
You'll develop your own preference in time, based on the way the weighted ones fish vs. the unweighted, as well as the flies' appearance (some feel the lead wraps add too much bulk).
Myself, I figure that when I'm fishing nymphs, I add shot to the line most of the time, so why not cut down on the amount of shot I need and just tie it into the fly? Therefore, the vast majority of my nymphs incorporate lead and/or beads.
On size 14 pt's I will wrap about three turns of .15 non lead wire and tuck it under the bead. A lot of beads have two dirrerent sized holes. One faces the eye of the hook and the bigger side faces the rear of the fly. It adds a little weight and fills in the open space around the bead. Personally I wouldn't want to wrap anymore than just a couple of wraps for fear that the fly would be too bulky
Get Em!
If you do use wire, please use lead-free like this stuff here. We don't need any more lead in the fisheries. And if I recall correctly, the UK has already banned lead wire and more and more jurisdictions are following suit. It's just a matter of time before everyone's lead spools are useless.
BelAirSteve; If you are goingto use Lead Or Non Lead wire to weight your Nymphs. Make sure you don't put too much weight in the Gape area. Double up in the Thorax region if you must add more weight. Doing so in the Gape area closes the Gape and lessens the chance of a good hook up. Have Fun. Jax
If you decide to weight some and not others, or use differing amounts of weight, try tying with different colors of thread for each. ( Like tye unweighted with black thread, light weighted with yellow and heavy with red.) Makes it easier to tell them apart on the river.
One of the advantages of a PT in the first place is a slim profile. You don't want to add enough lead to ruin that profile.
The original PT got around that by using copper wire instead of tying thread, doubling the thickness at the thorax. That's still an option.
Adding a bead head (not necessarily a bright one) is another option. If you do go this route, you can add a few wraps of lead immediately behind the bead and then push it up into the hole in the bead. This not only adds weight but helps keep the bead in place.
If you don't want to add a bead head, and want to weight the fly, just keep the weight in the thorax area, as was pointed out above.
Or tie without weight and use shot on the leader.
It comes down to personal taste, but keeping a slim abdomen is key here.
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