A guy at our weekly fly tying class gave me a Stimulator pattern and a little nymph to use as a dropper off the back (attached via a piece of tippet tied to the bend of the hook of the Stimulator). The nymph is about a size 16, little black glass bead and dubbed body, really tied nicely. What other little nymphs do you put on the dropper that are effective? What is the best way to tie on the dropper? Is there a special knot for this to keep it from slipping?
I have never used this type of setup before but apparently it is highly effective on brookies.
…is a small 16-18 copper john or brown and black (B&B special) with a tiny tungsten bead. Every once in a blue moon I will tie on a size 14 olive with black hackle wooly as a dropper just to see what the fish are eating LOL! Usually according to depth of water on the length of the dropper. Always use 5x flouro on the dropper and prefer the UNI knot for just about all my knots. It’s quick , simple and uses a small amount of tippet up. I can literally tie it with my eyes closed. I use it for everything. The only other knots I tie are blood knots, perfection loops, albrights for line to backing and a few specialized knots for Saltwater. But the UNI knot is my go to knot for tying on all tackle.
I’ll use whatever nymph or wet (or small dry, for that matter) I think will work, provided it is neither too big nor too heavy to sink the Stimulator. I usually use a stiff tippet material to tie the dropper on because it doesn’t seem to want to tangle as bad as a softer one. I also use a clinch knot to tie it to the bend of the indicator fly because when I catch a rock or a tree I would rather have that knot break and only lose one fly!
Joe
The clinch knot is what I use for the dropper also. Sounds like he gave you a Poison Tongue to drop off it which is a good all around choice IMO. I use them by themselves occasionally. A good stimulator is usually pretty buoyant so I’d say you can go a little bigger with the dropper if you want, a mildly weighted size 14 or 12 may not be out of the question like a San Juan Worm with a tiny bead or a baby bugger (one of my personal favorites).