hi everyone,
last week i caught my first fish on the fly,this little beauty
,

it wasnt what i was fishing for but i am well chuffed with it especially as it was on a light tippet,
i have been back to the small river twice since to try and catch the dace,chubb and perch,the only fly i can seem to catch or get a take on are small lure type flies like tadpoles,
i have had 1 chubb and lost a couple (to the pike)
i managed to land another pike about the same size as above but i have bitten off 4 times,
i didnt know there was that many pike in there and i have fished it for 2 years on the stickfloat,
not only is it costing me a fortune in fly's but i don't like the thought of pike swimming round with hooks in them although i do crush my barbs so in effect they are barbless
what i am asking is what tippet to use as i dont want to go down the wire trace route as i believe this will limit my chances of anything else,would a braid tippet be wise,or should i just move away from the area where the pike seem to have congragated
any thoughts and comments appreciated

paul

Paul, a few years ago when I was lure fishing a lot using braided line (50lb bs power cable for pike, 20lb for lighter outfits) I went down the route of wondering if wire was really neccesary as I thought a wire trace next to the lure would be very off putting to the chub and perch I liked to target on a light outfit in a small river I was fishing at the time. It too contained pike as well as perch and chub. So I tried an experiment. I bought or borrowed small samples of most braids that were around at the time and headed up to a large reservoir where I could count on seeing pike in the margins from the elevated dam. I used an avon rod and fixed spool reel, tied lobworms onto the end of the braid (no hooks) and freelined the worms onto the pikes noses. I had literally dozens of fish take the baits on various braids (wee tip there for anyone keen on pike, the worms were very rarely if at all refused ) and every braid was bitten through immediately. Nylon and fluorocarbon are useless and will not stand up to a pikes teeth either. If there is a chance of a pike mate, use a fine, supple wire. It is the only material a pike will not bite through and fairest on the fish. Some of the braided wires around these days are soft and thin for their breaking strain. You will probably get people on here telling you that they have fished for pike for years with x, y or z instead of wire and never been bitten off . For peace of mind and respect to the fish , use wire. The only problem with fishing where the pike are not is that they tend to be where the perch, chub etc are Paul. Catch 22 mate. Good luck with whatever you decide and if you are keen on pike on the fly, have a look here for some really good advice www.pffa.co.uk
All the best,
Andy.

__________________
The trout in yonder wimpling burn
That glides, a silver dart,
And, safe beneath the shady thorn,
Defies the anglers art

R.Burns

Use wire - it will not prevent you from catching trout , chub and perch (for example) but it will stop you losing pike.It's as simple as that.

cheers andrew and grayson,when you say fine wire,do you mean the standard wire traces that most tackle shops supply or is there a specific type i would be better of using,as chubb and perch are my main quarry with it being winter and by what i have experienced in the last couple of outings no doubt there will be more pike to come,

paul

Three that work for me Paul are power pro pro leader, Drennan soft strand and ET 49 strand. They are all reliable wires and are available here www.thefriendlyfisherman.co.uk
I like the power pro best,
Hope this helps,
Andy.

__________________
The trout in yonder wimpling burn
That glides, a silver dart,
And, safe beneath the shady thorn,
Defies the anglers art

R.Burns

As Andrew says, Drennan soft strand wire is really nice and fine.
If you use this in the lightest strain it is not much different to 6/7lb maxima in diameter.
The trouble with the lightest (10lb I think) is that it can start to fray with repeated fly casting, so check it regularly, especially where it's knotted to the fly.
This is worse with bigger flies but may not be too bad with the small tadpoles you are using. If you want to sart throwing big pike flies around though use the heavier strains, you can still knot this but it is much stiffer.
The 10lb shouldn't put the chub/perch off but I think I'd target those pike if I were you, sounds like you'll get better sport.
Dee

i have a question will normal wire traces work ? the ones for lure fishing etc

20LB ones

i would target the pike but my setup isnt really man enough for them,6/7# and i dont really want to become a single species fisherman again i did 10 years of just barbel fishing and i feel i missed out on all the other fish that have swam passed me,i dont mind catching them if they are there but i would like to keep my options as open as possible,
i think what you mention about the drennan soft strand will do this,so i will get some tomorrow and give it ago
its only recently that the pike have turned up,my daughter goes swimming there in the summer months,but after i showed her a photo of the one above with its mouth wide open i dont think she'll be going again

cheers paul

take two rods a 4/5 wt for chub perch and 7/8 for pike

then you get best of both

Guys anyone new to pike fly fishing try, pro logic savagegear softflex wire in 30Ib. It crimps well doesnt kink and has very little memory. ET and drennean 7 or 49 strand is ****, it kinks too easy and has far too much memory. Keep it simple.

Nylon or fluoro is a big NO NO.

__________________
I HATE BUNGS.........