What Is The Best Way To Tie A Dropper

[mic]

I just can't find an indicator that I like for small stream fishing. I think I'm going to stick with dropping nymphs off a dry. Is there a quick way to tie on a dropper. Now I'm tying an improved clinch knot on a safety pin without tightening it down. I then transfer it to the primary fly. It works ok but is not very efficient. If I'm going to make the switch, I would like to find a way for quick changes.

[duckydoty]

You can try a double surgeons knot like you are tying on an extra piece of tippet. Leave a short tag to tie your indicator dry fly on, the extra tippet section will be for your dropper.

[Zach Bearden]

Duane does exactly what I do. Something to keep in mind though when you are fishing like that is to keep that tag close to the main line. If you have it too long you will not be immediately in contact. I like around 3". A lot of small stream fish will hit the fly as soon as it lands in the water because that is where a lot of food comes from. Especially in the summer months.

Another issue with this is that you have limited amounts of tippet to tie your dry fly on with. I use -what I have learned it as- a Davy Knot. Also a figure 8 knot. Really simple and if you practice it you can get it down to tying it in around 5 seconds.

[Zach Bearden]

By the way, if you use the surgeons knot use the top half of the tippet that sticks off from the knot and cut the end that is towards your nymph. Tie an overhand knot over your main line with the tag. This helps the tag hang off at around a 90 degree angle.

[Al Agnew]

If you want the dropper line coming off the bend of the hook of your dry fly, just tie an improved clinch knot around the bend of your fly. Not sure why you'd tie it loosely on a safety pin first, since if you can tie it on a pin you can tie it on the bend of your hook.

If you don't mind the line coming off the eye of your dry fly (with some dries this works, with others the fly doesn't float right), the easiest way is to tie on your dry fly with a palomar knot, leaving a very long tag end, and tie the dropper nymph to the end of the tag. I use this method exclusively when tying on a double nymph system. I'll take a length of tippet that's about 20-24 inches long, and tie it to the end of my leader. Then I'll tie my first nymph with a palomar knot, so that it is about six inches below the knot where I tied on the tippet to my leader. That knot will then be the "stop" for any split shot I attach; I'll attach the split shot just above that knot and they won't slide down to my fly. Then tie the dropper nymph to the tag end of the tippet. Gives you split shot, then first fly six inches below, then second fly about 12 inches below the first fly.

By the way, when you get your lower fly hung up and have to break it off, it almost always breaks either at the knot of the lower fly, or right at the knot of the upper fly but retaining the upper fly. I don't know why this happens...you'd think that sometimes it would break so that you also lose the upper fly. But I'm not complaining!

[Zach Bearden]

http://www.youtube.com/user/Ifightsharks?feature=mhum

Video to show you. Al also has a very good way of doing it.

[dgames]

I just cut off the length of dropper I want and tie an improved clinch knot to the bend of the hook of the dry with one end and the other end an improved clinch tied to the dropper. This is a pretty straightforward method but works well. What issues are others trying to solve by doing more complex methods?

[Zach Bearden]

The only reason I fish my dry/dropper or multi fly rig this way is because of competition regulation.

Not only that, but you're given more versatility. You can switch that dry off for a nymph no problem or just completely take it out and fish without an "indicator" fly.

[Trout Commander]

I just cut off the length of dropper I want and tie an improved clinch knot to the bend of the hook of the dry with one end and the other end an improved clinch tied to the dropper. This is a pretty straightforward method but works well. What issues are others trying to solve by doing more complex methods?

The only reason I fish my dry/dropper or multi fly rig this way is because of competition regulation.

Not only that, but you're given more versatility. You can switch that dry off for a nymph no problem or just completely take it out and fish without an "indicator" fly.

The benefit that jumps out at me is being able to switch the "top" fly without having to retie the bottom one as well. Additionally, unless they are both snagged, it would seem that the odds would be in your favor of only breaking off one fly instead of both.

[slothman]

If you want the dropper line coming off the bend of the hook of your dry fly, just tie an improved clinch knot around the bend of your fly. Not sure why you'd tie it loosely on a safety pin first, since if you can tie it on a pin you can tie it on the bend of your hook.

If you don't mind the line coming off the eye of your dry fly (with some dries this works, with others the fly doesn't float right), the easiest way is to tie on your dry fly with a palomar knot, leaving a very long tag end, and tie the dropper nymph to the end of the tag. I use this method exclusively when tying on a double nymph system. I'll take a length of tippet that's about 20-24 inches long, and tie it to the end of my leader. Then I'll tie my first nymph with a palomar knot, so that it is about six inches below the knot where I tied on the tippet to my leader. That knot will then be the "stop" for any split shot I attach; I'll attach the split shot just above that knot and they won't slide down to my fly. Then tie the dropper nymph to the tag end of the tippet. Gives you split shot, then first fly six inches below, then second fly about 12 inches below the first fly.

By the way, when you get your lower fly hung up and have to break it off, it almost always breaks either at the knot of the lower fly, or right at the knot of the upper fly but retaining the upper fly. I don't know why this happens...you'd think that sometimes it would break so that you also lose the upper fly. But I'm not complaining!

This is how I do it also.