Streamer Lines

[jaredoconnor]

I currently have an Airflo Streamer Max Long, but I don’t enjoy using it; I fish exclusively on foot and find the intermediate running line to be more hassle than it is worth.

I’ll be mostly fishing cascades freestones. Streamer Max Short seems like the obvious choice, but I’m curious what else is out there. Does anyone have suggestions?

 

[Creatch’r]

I also do quite a bit of streamer fishing locally by foot and have sorta settled on 3 lines for different situations with 5 and 6wt rods. The streamer max short is a great line but pretty aggressive, I like it with larger (3” plus) or heavy flies. I prefer the Rio 24’ sink tip for smaller streamers like wooly buggers and the like. It lays down lighter and is less clumsy than a shooting head and the 150gr is perfect on a 5wt. It gets down enough for me without being too much. I’ve thought about getting another one of those lines with an even shorter integrated tip because I like it so much. Might be killer on smaller water. The other line I still use a fair bit is the SA speylite integrated. I made a few sink tips and also use poly leaders with that. It’s great for swinging and stripping but the fly has to be just right to make it enjoyable to cast, especially with spey techniques and it won’t get down like the longer sinking heads which can be just fine sometimes.

I’ve also caught a lot of fish with a nymph taper floating line and a weighted streamer, but I’m guessing that’s where you would use a euro rig.

 

[clarkman]

Totally agree with the above. If you're after something less aggressive (than streamer max short) and doesn't sink quite as fast (as the 24' sink tips), look at Cortland sink 10 or sink 15 in type 6.

 

[Shad]

I used a Streamer Max short on a 6-wt. on the Green recently. It was very functional as a casting and stripping tool. I got skunked on streamers (partly because I suck but mostly because my patience for fishing streamers goes bye-bye when dries and nymphs are catching fish), but I don't think the line was to blame LOL. It's easy to shoot, it gets you down, and it keeps you there pretty well.

I normally use a floating line and weighted streamers locally, and it works well in the mostly smaller water I fish. In bigger water, that seems to be less effective, and I guess (though I can't personally confirm) that's where these integrated and sink tip lines come in. So far, I've caught more fish on dead-drifted, unweighted wooly buggers (lead fly in a drop shot rig) in that kind of water than with any "typical" streamer presentation, so my advice on streamer lines is worth about what you're paying....

 

[jaredoconnor]

You raise a good point, @Creatch’r; I use my streamer rod exclusively on larger pools. Within 25-30 feet, I’m always fishing my euro pole.

One other thing… I’ve become a big fan of ultra short heads. There is often limited casting space, so getting a 30-40ft head out of the rod tip is a non-starter.

I would use a Skagit setup, but I find the junctions too irritating. An integrated head might work, but I’ll still never pull the tip past the rod tip and that ends the retrieve with a good 10ft of line out.

 

[Long_Rod_Silvers]

I've been a big fan of the rio predator. 34' head. Casts so much better than the streamer max.
I'm using the type 3 and supplement with fast or extra fast sink 5' poly leaders if I want to get deeper.

If you don't like the streamer max, I'd suggest stay away from the rio big nasty. It's even more clunky to cast than the streamer max.

 

[jaredoconnor]

I've been a big fan of the rio predator. 34' head. Casts so much better than the streamer max.
I'm using the type 3 and supplement with fast or extra fast sink 5' poly leaders if I want to get deeper.

If you don't like the streamer max, I'd suggest stay away from the rio big nasty. It's even more clunky to cast than the streamer max.

Something I don’t really understand is how the lengths of different densities relate to river conditions. I never really had to think about this, with the Streamer Max Long; the head is long and the entire thing sinks at the same rate.

Can you (or someone else) dumb this down for me? It’s hard to find info about this.

With my (floating) Skagit head, I find that I have to be a lot more conscious of my position and where the head lands. At worst, I can get myself in a situation where the tip swings independently of the head and I have zero contact. That sort of thing seems to happen a lot less, with the Streamer Max.

Maybe I should fully embrace the darkness and just carry a spin rod with me, instead. Some of my euro streamers are heavy enough to cast on an ultralight.

 

[Matt B]

The type 6 integrated 15’ sink tip line from RIO has been my go-to for 6 weight streamer swinging and stripping for a while.

 

[Porter2]

For years I used and had no problems with SA ultra 3/4 sink tips …15 foot type 3. Now so many variations it’s a bit mind boggling. You feel some lines are built for certain rods and versa. I’ve become more of the student that finds a good floater fly line for your rod and add sink poly leaders as needed. It use to be simple with so few choices now it’s so many line choices ???? And $$$$

 

[Long_Rod_Silvers]

Something I don’t really understand is how the lengths of different densities relate to river conditions. I never really had to think about this, with the Streamer Max Long; the head is long and the entire thing sinks at the same rate.

Can you (or someone else) dumb this down for me? It’s hard to find info about this.

With my (floating) Skagit head, I find that I have to be a lot more conscious of my position and where the head lands. At worst, I can get myself in a situation where the tip swings independently of the head and I have zero contact. That sort of thing seems to happen a lot less, with the Streamer Max.

Maybe I should fully embrace the darkness and just carry a spin rod with me, instead. Some of my euro streamers are heavy enough to cast on an ultralight.

Good question, not sure I really ever put a whole lot of thought into it....

My opinion: the longer the sinking portion the less control you'll have, e.g. the longer the sinking portion of line, the more difficult it is to mend and control your business end. Also, the longer the sinking head, there should be a relative gain in depth, getting the line under the surface quicker and avoiding surface drag. If I was just casting and stripping, a 30' sink tip would be fine - get's down a little bit deeper than a 15' tip, and loss of ability to mend doesn't matter that much. If I'm swinging, a shorter sink section can be nice, as there's more ability to mend and control the swing.

I could be off on some of this, but that's how I look at it.

So not sure it so much relates to river conditions, but instead how you're going to be presenting the fly.

 

[mcswny]

While if I over thought this, I could probably get different streamer lines for different tactics, but then I'd have 8 lines and always forget when Im supposed to use which. I've found the Streamer Max Short works for me, so I just stick with it and have it in 6-8wts and am very happy with it.