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How do you set up your nymph, indicator when using a switch rod..

Spey 
7K views 34 replies 24 participants last post by  surfnfish 
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#1 ·
Curious to see what lines you all use when doing indicator/nymph fishing with the switch or spey? I mostly swing but want to try a few bugs on the little guy...I imagine a scandi head would work fine with a mono leader....Do you tie your own for this or just use a store bought and add tippet, swivel, split ?

Also while i'm at it..how do you tie on your droppers? saw a cool way yesterday by running the line through the fly, come back and double surgeons knot...bring it semi tight to the fly and you have one on the loop and line for a dropper..pretty cool...can put a split shot on the secondary line if you can only fish one fly...and it will tic tic tic along pulling your fly down..
 
#2 ·
i use a elixir head and a 10' floating poly on my switch when i feel the need to indy fish. i tie on 2 feet on flourocarbon tippet to the poly leader with a indicator 3 feet up from the tippet knot. I usually tie a larger point fly size 8 or 10 to the 2 feet of flouro tippet then tie 12" of flouro to the point fly's hook bend and then tie on a smaller fly( sz 12 or 14) to the end of the 12" section of tippet. the amount of split shot depends on the speed of the water i'm fishing but normally i have one size AB shot directly below a 1/2" thingamabobber (this helps aid in casting) and 4 size bb shots starting 6" above the point fly, each size bb shot spaced about 2" apart.
 
#4 ·
I use a scandi head with a long hand tied leader. I typically do not use shot as my flies are tied with wire and not thread. I only use the indicator about half the time. A thingamabober or a large corkie pegged to the leader will work well. As far as setting up a dropper I tie a palomar knot and leave the tag end long to tie on another fly.

Good luck!!!
 
#6 ·
Rather than messing with lines that are meant to be swung with, I use Rio's Salmon/Steelhead taper fly line. On my 10'6" 7wt Beulah I use a 10wt Salmon/Steelhead line. That line will turn over a brick and we regularly shoot line with our roll casts. Cutting my teeth on Oregon coastal waters, we drifted flies a lot. Now that I'm up here, though, the two-hander is getting a lot of use! It just depends on what type of water your fishing and what your personal preference is...
 
#35 ·
jmwfish is right on the money..I'm one of those Oregon coastal fly guys, and the Rio Salmon/Steelhead line is a great line for nymph work. It was originally designed as a one handed spey line, and has proven to be a great GP line for switch rods as well..I use an Echo 10107 SR with a 9 wt. rio S/S, (the fly shop only had a 9 wt. in, otherwise would have gotten the 10 wt.) and it will roll cast a nymph set up just fine. Ands a great line for DH overhead casting as well...
 
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#10 ·
So chuck if that's how you fish for trout then why are you on a fly website?

I'm sure all of you only use dry flies as well...god forbid you ever use a chironomid... and I'm sure you only swing on the Yak and have some long days..So burn your balls.....of line and bust out your pins...

A spey rod or switch is still a flyrod...there are multiple ways to cast and fish them..swinging size 14-16+ bugs just doesn't do jack shit..under an indicator?

Thanks though...
 
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#17 ·
So chuck if that's how you fish for trout then why are you on a fly website?

I'm sure all of you only use dry flies as well...god forbid you ever use a chironomid... and I'm sure you only swing on the Yak and have some long days..So burn your balls.....of line and bust out your pins...

A spey rod or switch is still a flyrod...there are multiple ways to cast and fish them..swinging size 14-16+ bugs just doesn't do jack shit..under an indicator?

Thanks though...
EASY bro.... wait this isn't piscatorial pursuits???? damn wrong site
 
#11 ·
Don't get you paties all up in a bunch. I'm just having some fun here.

In truth, I really don't do a whole lot of trout fishing. The trout fishing I do, does not require any lead. I don't nymph at all. I'd rather drink beer on the bank than nymph.

I have started to fish with gear in the salt the last couple of years. It can be fun between pulling up crab pots. I may try to chase silvers this year with the single hander.

I see my smartass respose got you one helpful post. I'd do what jmwfish224 does.

Go Sox,
cds
 
#13 ·
GOLFMAN-

im a dirt bag and indicators, beads, yarnies, jigs, and worms have a place right beside my intruders, string leeches, gay wings and skaters. im a fishermen first and i havent caught near enough fish to limit my approach to catching them. certain water just plain ol needs a bobber ran through it. and im the man for the job. couple things:

1) nymph taper lines overlined work. they roll cast great and turn over bobbers and shot and mend really well. but they do not spey cast.
2) scandi heads spey cast, but not the big rigs. you dont fish scandi's with t14 and intruders. what makes you think it works with 4 BB split shot and 2 nymphs. id love to see it look pretty.
3) skagit heads dont work, too stiff for the finesse required to mend.

hmmmm...... one solution is to wait for the airflo speydicator line which is tailor made for the cause. spey casts all that junk, low stretch for actually setting on an 80' drift and has a rad name.

another which i stole from mr matney last winter requires some splicing but it works really well! i'll pm you the recipe.

having said all that i prefer to nymph a single hander at this point. most of the time im nymphing is from a boat where a switch rod is impractical, and would be become heavy and obnoxious doing it all day. most wade nymphing i do is done within 30' (mostly less) of me and then run downtream. and with my 896 XP (also have a 796 RPL for summers) i can control and run a money drift as far downtream of me as i feel like once i get the drift setup. its light in hand and my shoulder still works after doing it for hours. switch and spey rods extend the possibilities by allowing you to be able to mend and control a bobber further out from you and actually get a good hookset when that bobber goes down waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay below you.

i like nymphing. it catches fish, is challenging (if you think nymphin is brainless easy you cant nymph) and has a set of conditions where it dominates. but for me there is a point where it isnt fun anymore and id rather move on and find different water. and water that requires nymphing a 2 hander is that point for me. but im buying a speydicator when it drops. just to see if it changes my mind!
 
#31 ·
GOLFMAN-

im a dirt bag and indicators, beads, yarnies, jigs, and worms have a place right beside my intruders, string leeches, gay wings and skaters. im a fishermen first and i havent caught near enough fish to limit my approach to catching them. certain water just plain ol needs a bobber ran through it. and im the man for the job. couple things:

Well put.
 
#14 ·
Get a Sage indicator taper. Best nymph line out there and designed for a switch rod. They are $30 on sierra trading post.

The Speydicator needs a lot of work... I was really disappointed with the 6 and 8 weight demos. Hopefully they redesign the rear taper.
 
#20 ·
I use both the Sage indicator 320grn line and the Rio AFS 5/6 on my 7110 switch. I prefer the AFS for its verisitility. The AFS can toss a thingamabob, lead and flies no problem.

As far as set up, for steelhead I like to use a hand tied leader - 4' of 20# / 3' o 15# / 18" of 10# / triple surgeon knot an addional 18" of 10# or 8# leaving a long tag (3") end on terminal side to add an upper fly. I imagine for trout I'd just use lighter test lines in the same set up.
 
#23 ·
Paul,

You and I have discussed this topic numerous times over the past months ...

In truth you can use any correctly matched floating Scandi head for indy nymph presentation with the short two handed rod, and I have sent you an ideal line for this with the recently sent rod.

This line will swing fish as well as it will indy fish <> If that is what you'll wish to do with it.

... But if you wish to indy fish this line <> You do not use Poly Leaders: You use conventional tapered mono leaders.

If you indy nymph with a single handed fly rod you'd not use Poly Leaders <> So why would you use them with a two handed rod ?

If you are having problems with delivering Poly leaders with this rod/line you are probably using Poly Leaders that are too heavy and/or too long for the line to carry.

The line sent is of the correct length and perfectly grain matched for the rod, and for your swing fishing; you can use Poly Leaders of floating all the way to extra fast sink, but it would be best to use Poly Leaders under 10' in length and under 65 grains in weight.

Meiz
 
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#24 ·
Yeah, Yup gotta cha....polyleaders are new to me as odd as that sounds..have used t-6 and 8 so long....The line is fantastic bob..and you know me so to say that it is a sweet match...I'm thinking though maybe my indicators are two big?
(handed rod over for pic only)
 
#26 ·
Thanks G-man! Always there with the eye-candy~

I'll second the Ambush - it's a great line for throwing heavy bugs and indicators, poly tips, etc. Very good lenght for light switch rods.

I used an 8wt Ambush and 10' fast sinking poly on the TFO 11' switch for big pinks in the Skagit last summer and it rocked.

The line is a cross between Scandi and Skagit - tapered like a Skandi but with a heavier tip to enable throwing big bulky indicators, weighed flies, etc with ease.

.02,

Brian
 
#27 ·
Indicators w/ a spey rig??? I have to agree w/ Sean, my meat pole is a single hand 8 weight XP.
 
#30 ·
I use an Elkhorn switch rod (11' 5/6) http://www.elkhornflyrodandreel.com/flyrods/spey.cfm with a Beulah elixir 5/6, 295 gr line, and I take off the 10 ft floating poly leader when indicator fishing replacing it w/ a 3 ft butt section of 20 # Maxima leader to which I attach 10 pound Vanish flurocarbon (6 to 8 ft) to #4 DB Stonefly then attach to the bend of the #4 hook 18 inches of 8 or 6 pound Vanish flurocarbon and tie on a smaller nymph. I use the 3/4" Thingamabobber on the Maxima section. I use the uni-knot or Duncan Loop knot (same knot) to each fly, leaving a loop so the fly freely swings during the drift. Everyone has their favorite tippet material, but I have used Berkley Vanish for years. It is inexpensive and hasn't failed me any more than other 'premium' leader materials I have tried.
 
#33 ·
What I dont get (and please fill me in Matney, or anyone) is how it is possible to effectively fish a bobber out 40 or 50 feet in front of you..... I can understand mending and controlling at a distance DOWNSTREAM of you, But I cant think of a situation I have fished where it made sense to throw that much line across the currents. Seems like there is just too much going on to get an effective drift. That said, I fish my switch rod with a oversized rio nymph line. Seems to work well in close, but if you have a drift in mind that you want to reach way out to, Id consider something else (spey dicator ect).
 
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