[bronjuan]

So after reading Coho K's thread, I got to thinking...

I find indicators a pain to cast...perhaps mine are too big (the typical dime sized round foam jobs I use for chironomids in lakes).

Either way, I was fishing a few weeks back with a floating line, 9 foot leader with some putty at 10 and 15 inches up my leader, no indicator.
I would just mend and take up small bits of slack, which allowed me to feel the hit (and I'm guessing still allow ample dead drift). I was also watching my line tip as it's own "indicator"

So my question is, is this a reliable method or was I just getting lucky? I'm just beginning to fish streams more and still learning the ropes.
As a side note, I was more successful without the indicator than with. (Which may just show that I had no clue what to do with the indicator...)


Cheers,

 

[sarg]

Nothing wrong with fishing without and indicator and some people prefer it. I believe the term used is "fishing naked" when you fish chironomids or "nymphing" without an indicator. I find it a lot harder to fish without indicators in these situations because I miss a lot of hits. I am not sure of the brand that I use but they are fairly large and if you open your loop up a bit (with some practice) it becomes easier to cast.

If you enjoy fishing without indicators then stick with that...one less thing to go wrong.

 

[HOOK]

I also use the round foamy quick release ones however i use smaller ones on the river than i do for chronies. it does tangle when you have float, fly, and a bit of lead. the problem is you just get lazy with a cast and bang tangle :wallbash: if with a nice open loop it still happens which can get very annoying sometimes. i agree with Srethy if fishing naked is what you prefer stick with it. I tried it for a bit and got one fish but i find using the indicator alot easier to pick up the strikes.

 

[professori]

Nothing wrong with naked nymphing, but according to Gary Borger, an angler fishing naked will miss 70% of the takes, an angler fishing an indicator will miss 30% of the takes. I know some flyfishers who seem to be very successful fishing with no indicator, but I know I am not one of them. I find that strike putty or yarn indicators are much easier to cast than corkie types, but if you want to use the corkies, get the smallest ones you can find.

 

[HOOK]

Prof- do you ever find the rubber ring on the yarn indicators damages the line? i have looked at using these but thought they might be bad. Is the putty really good as i know you mentioned you use this primarily? I looked at couldnt find any of this at M&Y though

 

[sarg]

M&Y in vancouver has some.

 

[professori]

Prof- do you ever find the rubber ring on the yarn indicators damages the line?

Nope.

 

[dryflyguy]

I like the Loon Outdoors putty - easy on, easy off and floats like a cork. I've used the same small container for years now, and just keep reusing the putty. I find it doesn't slow the line down with wind resistance, but it does cause some hinging, as it is a little heavy. I used to use corkies but got frustrated because I like to tie up my own leaders and found slipping the corkie over the larger knots was a problem. The other problem was anytime I wanted to add a corkie, I had to remove the fly, slip the corkie on and re-tie the fly on. I'm not patient enough for that...

I like fishing "naked", but I do cut my line back to remove the forward taper. The larger the diameter of the floating section, the higher the line floats. I have one line I use for nymphing like this. It's not the smoothest landing line, but I generally don't find that a problem nymphing. I don't use split shot with this style - only bead-heads or weighted flies, as I find the additional weight pulls the line down into the water and then I can't spot those micro-strikes.

dryflyguy

 

[flyfisherB]

For old guys like me, a larger indicator is easier to see, but... often a pain to cast. I agree with others that say you don't really need to get a long cast out anyway, but that can be half the fun of flyfishn. I've not yet tried the small sized corkies, but think it will be worth the experiment.
:2cents:

 

[stone]

The rubber o-ring on the yarn (Antron) indicators don't damage the line...I've used them down to 6x fishing southern spring creeks and small rivers. But...I don't much like using them either. They absorb water too much and you have to keep gooping them with floatant to get them to float. I guess prior to using them you could always treat them permanently with water repellent...but I have yet to find one that really works.

I just put up with the round quick release indicators, or use a straight line method when fishing really deep water with my Type VI uniform sink line.

 

[HOOK]

i also use the round ones. does anyone else find you get tangles because of them, periodically. i've been fishing the Skaggie lately and get a few each time out and its quite annoying when they are so bad you have to re-tie sometimes :wallbash:

 

[sarg]

I have not found them to cause more problems than any other indicator I have used.

 

[patagonia]

In smaller streams like the skagit, birkinhead ect... I usually fish no more than a 7.5 foot leader for both nymphs and dries... you really dont need to cast all that far and it makes it a little easier. I do find the indicator a pain to cast still but with the shorter leader you do get less of a mess.