Fly Line Weight

3wt fly lines can be very versatile and can allow you to catch many different types of fish.

Fly line weight.

Today the weight of a fly line is measured in a tiny unit called grains. How does fly line weight relate to the fish i chase. If you fish freshwater you won t have much call for this line weight unless chasing the large salmon found in alaska. This weight indicates what fly line should be used for that rod.

Fly line weight 8. This is a measure of the weight of the first 30 of fly line excluding the level tip which attaches to the leader. We have listed the fly line weights as they relate to actual weight of the fly line in grains or grams. Rather helpfully the fly line manufacturers came up with a numbering system that helped how heavy or light a particular fly line is.

From there the first 50 60 of line is pretty much a consistent diameter with no taper at all and is called your running line. 6 and 7 weight line is good for bass bonefish pike stripers and trout. In my opinion the best 3 weight fly fishing line on the market today is the orvis clearwater trout series wf. Fly rod weights typically range from 2 14 weight you might see weight noted as wt the lower the weight the lighter the rod and the smaller the fish the rod can appropriately handle.

With a weight forward fly line you will have the end attached to your backing. Every fly rod is rated by a weight. Standard fly line weight charts give us parameters for specific fly line sizes. Typically the weight of the rod is determined by the line weight that is paired with the rod.

Catch small pond fish roll cast for brook trout or euro nymph for browns and bows. Fly rods range from size 0 or 1 weight which is the lightest rod to about a 15 weight which is the heaviest. Here is a fly line wt chart that shows you the average grains of weight in the first 30 ft or head of your line. This numbering system runs from 1 ultralight to 14 and beyond heavy.

A good friend of mine capt dave chouinard showed me this chart and it is a great example of how much there is to learn about fly lines. So if you are fishing for small brook trout in a remote mountain stream then a 2 weight rod would be good. The fly line weights from 8 upward are designed for very powerful very large fish saltwater and salmon species in particular. In the last 30 feet is where the taper starts and contains the bulk of the weight of the fly line called the belly.

Understanding how the grains of wt differ from line to line can help you balance your favorite rod with your favorite line and do some damage in.