Strike Indicators

[sagefisher]

Over the years I have tried many different strike indicators.

The little sticky foam type--makes a mess on the leader and not easy to adjust.

The poly yarn type--way too much air resistance and they sink low in the water, and the O Ring causes big kinks in the leader as you adjust the depth.

The foam/O Ring indicators--way too much air resistance and the O Ring causes big kinks in the leader as you adjust the depth.

The foam type with the slit down the side and a rubber insert that you twist your leader around--they come off all the time I don't care how much you twist, which also can cause kinks in the leader.

Biostrike type paste--too messy for me, gets all over everything.

Short pieces of hollow line with bright colors--not enough floatation for the western river stonefly nymphs and multi fly type rigs.

Any type of indicator that uses a toothpick to crimp down on the leader--my tippet can catch that toothpick and cause a heck of a mess, no matter how close you trim the toothpick, yet you have to grab the toothpick to adjust the depth.

Balloons--OMG, give me a break. I used them once when the guide said they were great and he had already rigged it. The O Ring causes big kinks in the leader as you adjust the depth and they will loose air. I took it off and handed him my preferred brand to use the rest of the day.

Hard Plastic balloons--again, OMG, give me a break. I had one guide tell me that they were far more sensitive than other types and he had already rigged my line so I gave it a try. Again, the bad kink in the leader (which you should be able to tell my now, really bugs me) and they were not any more sensitive than my preferred brand. I took it off after half a day and went to my brand.

So what do I use? My preferred strike indicator is the Frog Hair brand. Either the one time use type or the reusable type, they both work great. No kinks in the leader. You can very easily adjust the depth within seconds. They come in different sizes, so pick the one you want to use that day and it will work all day long. The only drawback is they sometimes will slide around on a leader that is too small for the size you are using. The simple solution for that is to tie in a knot at the lowest point on the leader that you know you will use that day. Then it will only slide that far. Not really much of a problem as you have to bring your rig in every so often anyway to check the hooks for trash and damage.

In my humble opinion, Frog Hair has all the others beat, hands down.

Larry ---sagefisher---