Sink Tip Line

[Kyle]

My father got me a new Orvis Battenkill BBS3 for with christmas and had it equiped with sink tip line. I have never used sink tip and was looking for a little instruction. I have seen guys at Bennett tearing them up riping some sort of fly under the water and assume they had sink tip.

So I guess my questions are:

What flies are to be used with sink tip?

What kind of water? fast/slow?

What size leader/tippit and strength?

Anyone that could answer these questions for me would be doing me a great favor.

Thanks

Kyle

[jjtroutbum]

What flies are to be used with sink tip?

Craclebacks,Woolbuggers ,leaches, streamers of all sorts. greens, olives, blacks, browns, white,any color that is used in jigs could all work well(ie black and yellow).

What kind of water? fast/slow?

Really this has more to do with were the fish are holding and feeding on and getting to them. A sinking tip line or other wise has the ability to allow you to use an unweighted fly that will look more natural in its drift or swing by not needing a weight added to it.

What size leader/tippet and strength?

A two or thee foot section of mono/florocarbon only. I like to use mono four to eight lb depending on water clarity and or the size of flies that I am using.

Just my limited but productive experiences with tip and full sinking lines.

Good luck and tight lines.

ps I really have enjoyed throwing a classic feather winged streamers in the mornings and having them tear'em up. At the parks. lol

[Yakfly]

I use a sink tip to fish streamers deep. Like big woolly buggers and sculpin patterns. I don't rig with a tapered leader with a sink line setup. I usually just tie on a short (6 feet) section of straight flourocarbon "leader" - like 6lb test Vanish which is about 2X in diameter. Then a #6 olive/black woolly. You can really dredge some deep water with that setup, no need to ad lead to get your fly down.

[John Berry]

I hope this helps.

SINK TIP

BY JOHN BERRY

If you only have one fly line it should be a weight forward floating line. If you buy a second line it should be a sink tip.

The sink tip is basically the combination of a floating line (on the rear of the line) and a sinking line (on the front of the line). The major advantage of the sink tip is that it will be easier to cast than a sinking line and still be able to deliver a fly deep into the depths of the body of water you are fishing. A sink tip will get a fly down deeper and faster than a floating line with weight on the leader.

The sinking section can be various lengths (from four to thirty feet). Generally the longer the sinking section the deeper it will sink. When you buy a sink tip the package will indicate the length of the sinking section. There are also a variety of sink rates, Type I to Type VI, (it is also assigned a sink rate in inches per second). The higher the sink rate the faster it will sink.

This all sounds great but what sink tip should you buy? The sink tip that I have found the most useful is the ten foot Type VI. This is the one I use when I dredge the deeper holes on the White River or the Spring River. In fact this is the only sink tip I buy. If I need a shorter sink tip to use on lower water, just cut down an old line to have a five or seven foot sinking section. This is what I do with old damaged sink tips.

When I buy a sink tip or other line I also buy a new spool for my reel. That way, when I want to change lines, I just change the spool. When I fish a sink tip, I always carry an additional spool with a floating line in the event that I happen upon a decent hatch and want to fish dry flies or soft hackles.

One of the things you will notice is that a sink tip will occupy less space on the reel than a weight forward line. The sinking section is a smaller diameter than the corresponding section of a floating line. As a result, you will be able to put more backing on your reel. This is a major advantage when that trophy brown hits your fly and heads downstream at a great rate of speed.

I always attach a loop to end of my line. To rig a fly I take a section of 3X or 4X tippet about three and a half feet long, I tie a surgeon’s loop knot on one end and attach it to the fly line with a loop to loop connection. I tie the fly on and I am ready to fish. I rig this way because if I used a normal leader the fly would tend to rise and that would defeat the purpose of using a sink tip.

I prefer a stiff rod to handle a sink tip; one that has plenty of back bone. My personal favorite is an old Sage RPL nine foot six weight. To cast a sink tip, the trick is to strip the line in till you only have twenty to twenty-five feet of line out. Put your rod tip down on the surface of the water. Execute your back cast with authority and make sure that you have a crisp stop on the back. Let your line straighten out and make a forward cast with a crisp stop on the front. Shoot as much line as you need. The heavily weighted section of the sink tip will cause it to cast like a bullet.

To fish the sink tip, I cast it downstream at a 45degree angle to the bank. I let the line swing in the current until it is directly below me. As it swings, I will mend the line up stream to allow the fly to sink better. I will mend any bow in the line up stream to allow the fly to sink deeper. At the end of the swing, I strip the fly back toward me. I generally use short strips (a couple of inches) and vary the speed of the retrieve until I figure out what the fish want. It is usually easy to detect a strike. In fact, a good trout can almost jerk the rod out of your hand. I generally use woolly buggers and other streamers (I especially like to fish sculpins or crayfish imitations). This is also a great tool to fish for small mouth bass when they are deep.

So the next time you are out on the river and you want to add some depth to your fishing, think sink tip.

John Berry is a fly fishing guide in Cotter and has been fishing our local streams for over twenty five years.

[brittsnbirds]

When I use full sink line I notice that I have to hit the Ibuprofen bottle pretty hard. It takes a toll on my ole shoulder. However it is a very effective technique especially when the sun gets high on a clear day.

Another set-up that I have used is connect straight fluorocarbon about 3 foot to your line, add a small swivel then another 3 foot of fluorocarbon or tippet. It definitely keeps the twists out of the line!

It is also a great technique when the wind is blowing hard!

[Kyle]

Hey, guys thanks for all of the tips. I will definately give them a try next time I am on the water. Kinda hoping it will warm a little again so I can hit Meramec. (I am kinda a fair weather fisherman)

Kyle