I had my first go with a parachute fly at the weekend - a kind of klinky style thing - at my local stillwater. It was sitting nicely, and with previous advice here, was floating well (a small miracle!). The problem is that after a few casts I was starting to get overly snarled up even though there were no droppers. I realised that the the leader/tippet were getting very, very twisted, and I imagine that the parachute fly was spinning during the cast.

Is this just the nature of the beast? Or is there something I can do to minimise the spinning effect? I suspect there's nowt to be done about it and I'll just have to stop every now and again and try to get the kinks out the leader, but it is a bit of a pain getting hundreds of twists out of a 15ft leader.

Cheers,

Neil

Hi Neil,

You could try a thicker or stiffer leader but that may result in the fly being refused.
Alternately, and as you are fishing still water, try reducing the ammount of hackle. A smaller lighter footprint is more convincing.
Is you have floatation problems try applying watershed or permafloat.

John H

I also think it may be the diameter of your leader that is the problem. Try using a tippet of an x-rating that is the size of fly divided by 3. So if you are using No.12 klinks you need a 4x tippet and so on.

__________________
“There is no more lovely country than Monmouthshire in early spring. Nowhere do the larks sing quite so passionately, as if somehow inspired by the Welsh themselves. There is a blackbird on every thorn and a cock chaffinch, a twink as they call him there, on every bush...... It moved me profoundly. I had been spared to see another spring, and I thank God for it.”

Oliver Kite
“A Spring Day on the Usk”
A Fisherman’s Diary

Thanks guys - I think it's either 3x or 4x (co-polymer) I'm using at the moment for size 12/14 hooks. Will check when I get home and see if I can do anything about that. I suppose I could even revert back to the flourocarbon tippet and see if that, being a bit stiffer, helps (though there will be a trade off with keeping the flies up). Apart from that, will maybe see if I can still get the flies to float with less hackle turns. I've certainly erred on the side of too bushy to begin with (don't we all!).

Cheers,

Neil

That diameter would be OK and maybe trying a stiffish mono might be better than fluoro as I find that this sinks too much and drags the fly down although your more heavily dressed fly might be OK.

__________________
“There is no more lovely country than Monmouthshire in early spring. Nowhere do the larks sing quite so passionately, as if somehow inspired by the Welsh themselves. There is a blackbird on every thorn and a cock chaffinch, a twink as they call him there, on every bush...... It moved me profoundly. I had been spared to see another spring, and I thank God for it.”

Oliver Kite
“A Spring Day on the Usk”
A Fisherman’s Diary