The flyline [Versión en español]

The first thing I would like to talk about is the taper of the flyline. Believe it or not this is why I have introduced the AFTM system. All will become clear.

Flylines come in different profiles. There is the Double Taper, the Weight Forward and the Shooting Head.

I use a WF for virtually all my fishing. It has the advantage that the running line is thinner than the DT, and yet not so thin that it tangles as in the case of the SH.

Not all WF profiles are the same. Most importantly some are longer than others. The traditional length, however, is 10 yrds. Aerialise much more than this ten yards and the line hinges and collapses (there are advanced techniques allowing you to aerialise the shooting line, but this is lesson 2…!).

Not only will you find the overhead cast difficult if you go into this thin line, but the roll cast is extremely hard.

DT lines have a following. It's a bit of a cult thing. They are pretty good if you want to make long roll casts, or if you are trying to make fancy slack line casts at long range. They also can be reversed when one end wears out, or so I'm told.

SH are great for long distance casts. If you are hoping to cast 50 yrds plus then this is going to be the line for you.

As well as different profiles they also come in different densities. Some float, others sink. For now we are using floaters. They are easier, you can see your mistakes, and for practising the last thing you need is a line that disappears beneath the surface the moment it touches down.