Sorry for pun couldnt help myself, I am rather new to very lightweight rods having recently adopted a 2# 6' 6" from a fellow forumite ,I find casting the thing a joy but am having some difficulty converting takes into solid hook ups ,it feels like my hooks are suddenly blunt, I understand the physics at play but other then get the hook hone out I cant think of a solution,perhaps some of you with more experience in this field could shed some light so to speak?

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When you can see without being seen,strike without knowing why,and guess correctly where the best fish lie,they have taught you all they can.
(T.C. KINGSMILL MOORE)

It's a common problem in the beginning with ultra lights. The hook set can be slower for many reasons. Fishing very light can case some basic errors in technique to become 'highlighted"
Try and maintain contact. ie. eliminate as much slack between rod tip and fly as possible at all times.
Time the strike quicker... this "G0d save the
Try and fish closer. Don't bother with the long casts until you are confident that you can acheive a well timed hook set.

There are other things, but these should stad you in good stead for now.
Good luck, let us know how it goes.

You didn't mention your hook size, dropping down to 16 - 18 proper barbless hooks makes hook ups easier as they tend to be sharper.

Try also to visulize the fish movement, i.e. on a slow glide, picture it leisurely coming up and taking the fly and only striking when it has finished turning back down, for faster water, speed the strike up accordingly.

My trion is medium soft in action and the straighter the rod towards the fish on the strike the better hook up i tend to get, but don't make it too straight otherwise you will end up snapping the tippet. Try pulling the line to set the hook, with only a 2 to 3 foot lift of the tip of the rod from the surface and when you know you have a good hook up, raise the rod further.

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Just My Tuppenceworth!!

Hi Paddy,

I assume your fishing a small stream for wild trout? WBT are extremely quick on taking the fly! Fast water = lightning strike. Calm Water I use the word (YES) as I'm tightening in to the take! But if these fish are pure WBT and your using Barb-less hooks? your hook-up rate will be about 30, to 40% of takes! It will all fall in to place when you get used to the new rod.

Thanks for the help lads ,I suppose it is a matter of getting to know the limitations of the setup aswell as the advantages ,I must admit that the issue doesnt overly iritate me as the stream is very much a nursery so everything will be released anyway. Gratefully yours PJ

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When you can see without being seen,strike without knowing why,and guess correctly where the best fish lie,they have taught you all they can.
(T.C. KINGSMILL MOORE)

Ahh thats interesting, so the fish are very small. Ok, if so you need a different tactic, and perhaps a different fly. Small fish cannot "suck" the fly in, as their mouth cavity is too small to allow water to flow into it when they open the mouth, drawing the fly in. Small fish also have the tendancy sometimes to push the fly away from the mouth when trying to eat it. Try going for a smaller fly with very sparse hackles, and preferably one that will sit in the film or just under. These have less tendancy to be pushed away by the surface tension layer when a fish tries to eat it.

Good point Andreb , so far however I have been nymphing with PTN and HE's in sixteen eighteen range although mainly a nursery there are some nice holes holding the odd larger resident , the little rod is a marvel for executing precise little roll casts ,I do see now that because of its length I will have to take more trouble with my line control through the drift, and perhaps strike more deliberately . PJ

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When you can see without being seen,strike without knowing why,and guess correctly where the best fish lie,they have taught you all they can.
(T.C. KINGSMILL MOORE)

I had difficulty keeping small brook trout on the line a few days ago. I was using a 6'6" #4 Cult Fiber rod. I have thought about this before and I think the fish are so light they offer little resistance and it is resistance that is needed to put the point of the hook into the fish! If you couple that with a light line and soft short rod it becomes more difficult to drive the hook home. The point hardly enters the fish. It wiggles and of it comes. If you strike hard you may send them flying out of the water! I have done that back a ways.
Find some 10" - 12" fish and it will be different until you come on to a fish 20"+ and then it becomes difficult again as they have teeth and hard bone; it is difficult to get a good hook up.
On one summer night I had a big brown in the 27" class rising at my feet. I could see his dorsal fish as he rose which helped me figure the size of the fish. I put a light wire #12 dry fly on him. He took. I set and the the rod, a 7 1/2ft #5 Hardy Boo, bounced when I set and the hook came out. The fish continued to feed as if nothing happened! It moved up the pool in the dark and I lost sight of him. It happens and it has happened to others I know most of the time you feel the tick, tick, tick of the hook on the teeth and that is it.
When we move to the extremes of fly gear you get what you deserve. Had I used a standard light weight dry fly hook instead of the supper light wire Orvis hook I would have had a better chance to sink the steel into him. Keep in mind the weight of the fly line helps set the hook or you have to set as a spinning guy sets or close to it. I was using a 14ft leader at the time and the fish was at my feet so the fly line was barely out the tip top. It was my own fault for that fish getting an undeserved pass.

Bobby

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"Tight lines from Vermont where the winters are long the fish are wild and the women are good looking."

I found the same problems with hook ups but hopefully i have got it sorted now

Andy

I use a 6' cane for my small stream trips and have too experienced the same problems as described above. When both dry fly fishing and downstream wet, the fish take positively, I strike and have them on for no more than a few seconds.

My loss rate is considerably greater on the cane than my other carbon rods. So I'll take all the above advice into consideration on my next trip and hopefully the catch rate will increase

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Life is like a box of choclates. Ya never know what ya gonna get.

Forrest Gump 1994