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Waving White Lines at River Trout


Vagabond

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Where can I get hold of a DT 3 or DT4 floating fly line of NEUTRAL colour ?

ie soft green or light brown

 

Most floating fly lines are either in very light colours - white, peach , yellow etc, or in

some hideous fluorescent orange or red.

 

Sellers of white line claim it is the least visible against the sky - so a predatory fish looking up

cannot see it - ie good camouflage, like the underbelly of a prey fish.

Well, that sounds a clever debating point, but if I have put my LINE directly over a rising trout

, then I have spooked it whatever the colour of my line.

 

What needs putting over the trout is the FLY, and as little leader as possible. Once the line is

on the water, it should not be visible to the fish - so in that sense line colour does not matter.

 

What DOES matter about line colour is what the trout sees at the EDGE of its "window" when

the line is in the air.

 

Out on open water, the trout's "window" is all sky, the line is seen against the sky, so a light

colour is fine for reservoir fishing from a boat. In any case, in open water a long leader is used, so line colour is less important.

 

By contrast, when fly-fishing small streams, the trout's "window" includes the banks and

overhanging foliage - against which a moving white line is VERY obvious. The angler is fishing

at very short range, and leaders for this type of fishing need to be relatively short - so the line

is that much nearer to the fish.

 

There is little point in stalking a trout by creeping on hands and knees through nettles and

brambles (stacks of those on my Wealden streams) only to wave a glossy white line in the air

to let it know someone is fishing for it - you might just as well stand up and wave a white flag!

 

So - I can understand why lines of 5-weight and above designed for ressy fishing are white

- but not why manufacturers persist in white lines for short-range low-weight floating lines

meant for dry-fly and upstream nymph fishing - it's a handicap I could do without.

 

If nobody can suggest a maker who offers neutral colours in DT3/DT4 - can anyone suggest a

way of dying polymer-coated white fly lines - the chemistry of these polymers is designed to

repel water, and therefore they also repel water-soluble dyes, and of course anything

drastic used as a mordant might destroy the coating.

 

All shades of neutral greens and browns are offered for sinking lines - PLEASE could the

tackle trade offer similar shades for DT3 or 4 floating lines.

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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Hi Vagabond,

An interesting post, you are voicing concerns regarding fly line colour that I’ve had for a number of years.

 

Air-cell have their original floating line in Pale Green and I’ve used that line for a number of years however the lightest line is a DT4 and as I steadily progressed to fish lighter tackle the need for a lighter wt line became apparent.

I now solely use Lee Wulff Triangle Taper lines; the floating lines are available in an very nice low visual impact olive shade and in the wt range TT2 upwards to TT8.

 

A quick word on the weighting system that Wulff’s use, typically a TT3F line has the first 30’ loading the rod as a 3wt but when you areialise the full 40’ head the rod loads as a 4wt. The continuous taper give smooth turnover at short to medium range whilst the thin running line reduces friction for longer casts. IMO a great line and definitely worth a try.

 

Cheers

Duncan

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Cheers Duncan, I'll have a look at a Wulff TT3.

 

The narrow, twisting, overgrown brooks I sometimes fish mean the

fishing is at very short range, and a delicate presentation is essential.

 

Hence my need for a light outfit weight-wise but a neutral one colour-wise.

 

As you say, the old Aircel was pale green (still too bright though IMHO)

and not made in DT3

 

Thanks for the comment and advice

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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Here for floating lines with a slate-gray option available in either a weight forward or a double taper. Down to 3wt.

 

And one Here that has a 15ft "clear" section at the end going to green after that. Only down to 4wt though but maybe worth a look.

" My choices in life were either to be a piano player in a whore house or a politician. And to tell the truth, there's hardly any difference!" - Harry Truman, 33rd US President

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Surely any fly line will look "black" against the sky unless it is truly transparent.

Stick your head under the surface of the bath water and look up at a bit of line on the surface. :)

 

Sorry for poking my nose in the flyfishing forum but I am bored :D:D

 

Den

"When through the woods and forest glades I wanderAnd hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur,And hear the brook, and feel the breeze;and see the waves crash on the shore,Then sings my soul..................

for all you Spodders. https://youtu.be/XYxsY-FbSic

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What's your problem?? if you don't like the colour of your fly line dye it a solution of double strength Dylon to whatever colour rocks your personal boat!!

 

No this is not my original thinking it was a tip from the late and much lamented Richard Walker..and it works...well!!

"Political correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical

minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which

holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd

by the clean end"

Cheers

Alan

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Originally posted by poledark:

[

 

Surely any fly line will look "black" against the sky unless it is truly transparent.

Stick your head under the surface of the bath water and look up at a bit of line on the surface. :)

 

Sure, Poledark, thats what I implied - once the line is actually on the water, colour doesn't matter (if you put the line over the trout he's spooked anyway ie "lined") - its the fly that needs to be over the trout! - but when fishing overgrown streams the problem is that aerialised white line against the darker background of bank and overhanging trees can spook fish.

 

Yes, Dick was against white lines and white clothing - even used a khaki handkerchief - remember the exchange in verse on that subject in AT?

 

Thanks |Alan Roe - I have dyed nylon mono in the past, but had chickened out of dying fly lines as I read somewhere it adversely affected the polymer coating - but I'll experiment with an old line first.

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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Vagabond,

Cortland, Scientific Anglers, Orvis, all do neutral color floating lines. I have a cortland floating multi-tip in slate grey which has 4 different tips,(floating, neutral boyant clear, med. sink and fast sink)

The slate is perfect because it blends into most backgrounds.

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I feel the subtlety of the colour in a flyline is paramount in fish stalking. Wild fish of any species, certainly trout, spook from flashes in the sky. Didn`t they have to run from the kingfisher and heron to survive. The fish that grow from fry are the elite, literally one in a thousand and their other brothers and sisters didn`t heed the flash. I have dyed my lines as discribed above for years because I believe it makes the greatest difference. Fish will feed more confidently and take a wider variety of flies on thicker tippet `if` they have no idea you are there.

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quote:


Originally posted by Nightwing:

[QB]

Cortland, Scientific Anglers, Orvis, all do neutral color floating lines.


Sure they do Nightwing, but (at least in the catalogues I have) not in DT floating two and three weight. I've ordered a TT2 Le Wulff in olive shade, and on my visit to Colorado in May will see what the local tackle shops have - thats one place I'm sure will have a demand for ultra-light gear.

 

Thanks everyone for useful replies. It looks as if several people dye their white lines - but my point is if fly-line makers were all on the ball, they wouldn't have to - if Wulff can offer a choice of three shades, why can't the others?

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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