As we are now well into the trout season, I wanted this week's email to be focused on getting the most from your leader setups (for both Rivers and Stillwaters) - especially when using less aerodynamic flies - typically when using any 'spent' style patterns. A previous email this month focussed on the very basic styles of leader, this one however goes a little deeper into both Furled & Tapered leaders.

Plus, we've just received a fly pattern (see the end of this email) which has been resurrected by popular demand:

TL;DR - Too Long; Didn't Read

I know that some of you are pressed for time and save our emails to read later in the day, by this time our selections are sometimes sold out (I get lots of emails from customers pointing this out to me).

I've put this section at the beginning, so you can grab your leaders & flies now - and save reading my musings for later.

This email is all about Leaders (both Furled and Tapered Camo Co-polymer). In this email, we are also re-launching our Rock Chick (Rockerka) fly pattern by popular demand - it's the most requested fly pattern we've had in the last 6 months, I'd also forgotten how good they actually are!

As you can imagine, while I am out on the river very regularly I get to use all sorts of different leaders - depending on the conditions. As I am also in contact with you (our email community) fairly regularly, I often get recommended great fly gear to try out.

This email is about two leader recommendations I received back in April:

* That's not me by the way, it's a stock image, I just love the way the leader is shown.

When thinking about leaders, I always start from the size of the fly you will be using and work backwards. It's important that the leader you decide on is balanced - by that I mean the leader must be able to transfer the energy created by the taper in the fly line all the way to your fly in the most efficient manner possible.

It's no good having a really long leader and using a large fly if the design of the leader doesn't transfer enough energy through the leader to turn the fly over - so I always start with the fly size and work backwards.

As the riverside vegetation seems to be on steroids at the moment (especially now we've had some rain), being able to turn over your fly in a very short casting arc is essential - that's just one of the areas where a furled leader excels:

The Furled Leader

Furled leaders, constructed from twisted threads of various materials including silk, nylon, or modern synthetics, offer a completely knotless alternative that many fly anglers swear by. These leaders transfer energy smoothly through their twisted construction, creating exceptional turnover characteristics while maintaining flexibility throughout their length. The furling process creates a leader that tapers naturally through the twist density rather than diameter changes, resulting in remarkably smooth energy transmission and delicate presentation capabilities.

Tight quarters demand precise presentations, and furled leaders provide exceptional accuracy at close range. Their inherent flexibility prevents the line memory problems that plague conventional leaders in confined spaces, while their energy transfer efficiency allows delicate placement of flies in pocket water and undercut banks.

We have teamed up with Marcus from The Furled Leader Co to offer some exquisite Furled Leaders, which are designed specifically for dry fly presentation of both regular and smaller fly patterns.

Q. So when should you use a Furled Leader?

A. Furled Leaders act like an extension of your fly line, they help turn a fly over when you don't have the full head of the line (usually 30ft) out of the rod tip - especially useful when fishing smaller rivers and streams where roll-casts are required.

The Dry Fly Furled Leader above is 6'6" long, to that you add between 4' and 6' of tippet to make up your overall leader length.

We have teamed up with The Furled Leader Co to offer Marcus's exquisite Furled Dry Fly Leaders - for only £10.50 each - they are stunning and will last for ever (not literally, but I do have a furled leader which was made 10 years ago and it's still as good as new).

*** Go on, You Know You Want To ***

Tapered Leaders

My email earlier this month on hand-built nylon tapered leaders elicited quite a few emails from our community urging me to try out the Snowbee Camo Tapered Leaders.

I'd never tried a "camo" leader before, but do often tie my own with Maxima Chameleon, which I assumed would be very similar (it wasn't!). 

Camo Tapered Leaders duly purchased (from Snowbee) I ventured onto the water, after a few session on the water in the heat of the mid-day sun - not ideal for fly fishing, but the only time the fly fairies would give me some time away from the office - I am a convert, especially when fishing during the day (or to very wary fish).

These Snowbee 9' leaders start with the high stretch Camo coloured section, tapering to a clear tip. Designed purposely for dry fly fishing and are especially successful when used in low water (aka spooky fish) conditions, providing maximum stretch to absorb the harshest of takes on the finest of stealthy light tippets.

Q. Why should I add tippet to the end of a tapered leader?

A. Tapered leaders have a built-in taper to them (they are thicker at one end and thinner at the other), when you change flies you will always eat away at the line - making it shorter (and in this case yo will be eating into the clear section og the leader). If you just attached your fly to the tapred leader, once you've changed flies a few times you would completely eat into the taper, so you add in a 2ft or 3ft section of tippet to the end of the tapered leader and then change this section of tippet once it gets too short. It also allows you to extend the overall leader length should you wish for a more delicate presentation with smaller flies.

Modern extruded co-polymer tapered leaders represent the latest evolution in leader technology, offering consistent tapers and reliable performance straight from the packet. These camo leaders utilise advanced materials and manufacturing techniques to create smooth, progressive tapers that rival even the best hand-tied alternatives.

Advantages:

Length	Size	Tip Diameter (mm)	B.S.
9ft	4X	0.18	6.0lb
9ft	5X	0.15	4.1lb
9ft	6X	0.13	3.2lb

 

Please Note: Each leader is only available in packs of 3, in sizes 4X, 5X & 6X or a Mixed Pack of 3 which includes 1 of each.

The Snowbee Camo 9ft Tapered Leaders are only available in packs of 3:

• Pack of 3 - 9ft - 4X | 6.0lb - only £9
• Pack of 3 - 9ft - 5X | 4.1lb - only £9
• Pack of 3 - 9ft - 6X | 3.2lb - only £9
• Mixed Pack of 3 - 1 of each 4X, 5X & 6X - only £9

We've managed to get our hands on a supply of these Snowbee Camo Tapered Leaders (which is good, as I will be using them for the rest of this season) and we are offering them to you in packs of three for only £10.50 - which includes FREE Delivery to anywhere within the UK.

*** Get yours while you can as we only have a limited number of the Camo Tapered Leaders ***

The Rock Chick (Rockerka)

This is a fly pattern which we thought we had retired about 4 years ago - only because we could not find anyone who would tie one for us - they use quite a lot of premium CdC and are very expensive to tied to this quality (and quantity). They were originally devised as specialist Grayling dry flies, but they work exceptionally well on Trout - especially in the early Summer months:

The Rock Chick, or Rockerka - Looks strange, but catches fish - in fact, catches loads of fish. We have been requested to have these flies available again, so after quite a bit of searching, here they are.

A great fly to use as a searching pattern also works really well when there are any sort of Sedge on the water. Try this fly in rougher water, the CdC body is tied long so the fly sits high on the water and can easily be seen (by both fish and humans!).

Tied with a fluffy body (It's actually the best quality CdC you can buy) it looks odd, but it really works.

We now have this pattern availablein size 14, 16 & 18, and have put this special selection of 9 flies together (3 each of sizes 14, 16 & 18):

Our Rock Chick (or Rockerka) flies are now available to buy in a selection of 9 (3 of each size) for only £14 (use the button above) or individually for only £1.75 each (use the button below).

Our Rock Chick patterns are all delivered FREE of charge to anywhere within the UK.

 

*** We've only got 40 of these Rock Chick selections available to buy - and we don't know when we will have any more as the tyers were running very short on these specific CdC feathers, so grab yours while you still can ***

 

Speedy Deliveries

As we are now at that time of year when the dry fly fishing will be nearing its peak, we do understand that when you order your flies - you want to receive them as quickly as is humanly possible.

So ... we've got you covered.

When you reach the checkout, there's the option to use our Royal Mail 1st Class Tracked service for only £2.50 - this will allow you to get your order the 'very next day', assuming you can order before 1pm and are located in mainland UK.

As with all things 'Royal Mail' we can't guarantee it will be the very next day (unless you use the Special Delivery option at checkout), but we will ship it using their 1st class service which does have a 95% success rate of delivering to addresses in mainland UK the very next day.

 

Tight lines and have fun out there, it's going to be a great weekend for fishing.