Myth busters

[VGB]

Apparently not Vince as everyone seems to use them as some sort of presentation cast
I'm quite happy to see tls in beginners, it means that they are at least casting a loop and all we have to do is sort out stroke length and/or power application.

I'd agree with Bernd that a crumpled leader is more likely to knot or tangle than a normal tailing loop. Mind you, you can put some spectacular knots in the fly line itself if you try hard enough.

Mike

I'm not sure this learning to cast thing is such a great idea as it reduces your ability to make presentation casts. I used to have a consistent, overpowered curve where the fly would land exactly where I wanted it. It was caused by the rod tip describing a small C as I power snapped. It was a great cast, it put slack in and gave me great presentation. In the last 2 years, I have lost this cast and now my tailing loop, I'll probably never catch a fish again

Part of the discussion on tails that I was involved with Lasse was about being able to remove the classically defined tail by opening the loop so it didn't cross. Which could mask a power application problem rather than cure it. Perhaps with presentation casts in the equation perhaps I should be saying control the power application and it isn't a problem?

I cannot see what the fuss is about putting knots in lines, that's easy

regards

Vince

[Mike Heritage]

How about this one then; The loop accelerates as it propagates.

Mike

[Dirk le Roux]

Hi Mike

Gordy's "Measured Fly Velocity" post under the technical section seems to confirm at least sometimes the fly, and thus the loop, does accelerate as it propagates.

Best regards,
Dirk

[VGB]

Depends if you are using a level line or not

[Mike Heritage]

Why would a fly line be pretty much the only thing to defy physics and keep accelerating after a force had stopped being applied??

Mike

[Graeme H]

It's tapered. The mass per unit length decreases over its length. To conserve momentum with less mass, the line must move faster.

At least, that's what someone once wrote around here somewhere …

[gordonjudd]

Why would a fly line be pretty much the only thing to defy physics and keep accelerating after a force had stopped being applied??

Mike,
Loop propagation is an example of a variable mass problem. Anayzing problems where the amount of mass is changing is much more involved than the simple F=ma type of relationship that we use to analyze fixed mass problems.

There is an external force on the line coming from the rod tip, so momentum is far from being conserved as the moving mass in the rod leg gets smaller as the loop rolls out. There are some details in the technical section (especially the old board) if you are interested.

Line taper is has only a small effect ion the mass change, but makes the problem much more difficult to analyze as you can see in the Gatti-Bono paper.
Gordy

[VGB]

It's tapered. The mass per unit length decreases over its length. To conserve momentum with less mass, the line must move faster.

At least, that's what someone once wrote around here somewhere …

If my tapered lines got faster as I cast them I would chuck them in the bin or ask for my money back. I want my dry flies alighting on the water as light as a virgins kiss and not in a haze of smoke as they burst into flames.

[andrewparkeruk]

Vince, I was struggling to catch trout yesterday on a dead flat section of river. There was a Mayfly (Ephemera Danica) thing going on: lots and lots of half-interest to my Mayfly Dun pattern followed by refusals. My conclusion was my dead drift was too "dead" and lifeless. I think I may have had a wee bit more fishy interest if my line had delivered option b): what brand of line are you recommending for this?

Andrew

If my tapered lines got faster as I cast them I would chuck them in the bin or ask for my money back. I want my dry flies alighting on the water as light as a virgins kiss and not in a haze of smoke as they burst into flames.

[VGB]

Andrew

I could see how a burning mayfly would count as matching the hatch against the backdrop of Manchester on a Saturday night, but to be fair that is a local deviation. Assuming that wading in your clogs did not drive a wake that had the duns reaching for their surfboards, or that the trout were not mistaking your home tied dun for a ball of knitting and decided to eat emergers instead, then it is possible that you need to consider your presentation

If you are aware of Drag Free Drift Presentation Techniques, it is always worth pulling the fly erratically if there is a strong breeze as the naturals may be skating and tumbling across the surface. Alternatively, they may not have switched on to them yet and are still a bit scared of such a big bug. As a last resort, you could use a more traditional approach: