midge fishing

[flipnfly]

ok its almost tying season and as soon as the steelhead get frozen over ill by tying like crazy and this upcomming year i plan on learning more on fishing midges so im going to need a good source of info on them and any of you local guys who fish midges please chime in as well as ill need some common local patterns to practice tying and fishing i plan on using these from here to spring creek and north

thanks in advance

 

[jayL]

http://www.paflyfish.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=16270&forum=2

 

[troutslammer]

zebra midge and griffiths nat , in sizes 20-32

 

[WildTigerTrout]

I have never seen a size 32 hook. Who manufactures them? The smallest I have seen is 28.

 

[dryflyguy]

Tiemco makes a #32 hook.
I had some doubt that I could actually catch fish on a hook that small when I first bought them. But they do work

 

[osprey]

Flipnfly.............I have a box of Mustad 28's but i've never seen 32's i have heard they are out there though. I came to love midge fishing over time from observing the trout and noticing that often the largest and sometimes most actively feeding trout , usually browns , were feeding on something so small or just under the surface that it was "invisible". Upon closer inspection , quite often there were midges present in the air , and in your eyes , ears , nose , mouth and .............well you know what i mean. Sometimes these "no see ums" are black flies , which are small but when they bite feel like monsters , they are present everywhere in PA and their bite makes their presence known not to mention the constant buzzing around your eyes , did you ever get a black fly in the eye? My favorite midge pattern is the Griffiths' Gnat in sizes from 20-24 it looks like a bug and seems to imitate a wide spectrum of insects , midging trout are usually in slack water and feed actively , you oserve midging trout long enough you will recognize this riseform instantly and from a distance. Also you'll need to cut back on the tippet strenghth , thickness as far as you can stand it , they have a long time to look your fly over , usually a dead drift is best but not always. Midge fishing can be one of the most rewarding and frustrating ways to fish , i say often that midge fishing is for the obsessed. One of the best ways to figure them out is to just sit and watch/observe. I love midge fishing , if you ask specific questions i'll try and answer them , GOOD LUCK , HAVE FUN , GET SOME MAGNIFICATION.

 

[Dale49]

DryFlyGuy is correct, Tiemco sells 32s, #518. The gaps are quite large for the small hook but hold fish very well. The tie can be very simple, thread and CDC or snowshoe rabbit for the wings. When tying, less is more.

I will tie a split wing using snowshoe and angle it backwards. I will use the CDC to tie a thorax wigns, a split wing similar to a spinner wing or angle the feather over the eye to represent an emerging pupa. The pupa fished in the film behind a small dry can be very deadly. I also use very fine tippet, 10 to 12x by Varivas. This is my go to pattern during the winter months along with small BWO nymphs and micro caddis pupa.

Dale

 

[osprey]

Dale........have you ever landed a nice one on the 32's? It's amazing isn't it? How important do you think it is to cut back as far as possible on the tippet strength/diameter? I must admit i've never gone under 10x which is one lb. test in Maxima , but i can keep from breaking them off pretty good and have landed some really nice trout on some really little flies and really light tippet , you will get more takes and you WILL catch more trout.......bottom line.

 

[dryflyguy]

Osprey -

I don't fish #32's very often. It's usually a last resort when the fish have refused everything else. But there are times and places where they do make a difference IMO
I've never gone lighter than 7X with them, and did fine.
And have caught fish up to about 16 inches on them

 

[osprey]

dryflyguy..........you are one of the few that believe me when i tell them to go as light as you can. It makes a big difference at times doesn't it? I caught a nice brown on a 28 once at Yellow Creek in Bedford county there were a bunch of guys down at the end of the fly section by the wall , i was on the other side of the creek. There were fish rising all over but no one was having any luck. It felt good to do that with an audience LOL.

 

[Fishidiot]

I have some #32 hooks but don't use 'em much and can't remember the brand name (probably Tiemco). They're short shank but the gap is about the same as a #24. They've caught some decent sized fish. I think you're much more likely to break 6X tippet long before bending/breaking these hooks. I think very small hooks these days are much better quality than 20 years ago.

Flip,
Perhaps the most important advice I can give you is get some very fine thread before you tackle midge tying. Ask the fly shop for some "midge thread." If you're using regular 6/0 thread you'll get a very sloppy and bulky fly on a #24 hook.

 

[Dale49]

Osprey,

I've been fortunate to land 6 fish over 20" on size 32s, five of them on the Elk river in WV and one on Spring creek using 10 and 11x tippet. I usually re-tie the tippet after several fish. I use a 14/0 thread that I purchase a FlyFishermansParadise in State College. I have a 8 foot, 4 wt fiberglass rod that is full-flex that protects the light tippet.

When fishing on top, I use a double rig, the first fly is usually a 28 dry and follow with a 32 pupa fished in the film. I've found that the Dry Fly Magic by Tiemco is great on CDC and snowshoe.

I fish the Gunpowder in MD alot now and use the light rigs during the colder months and during April and May.

Dale

 

[barbless]

How much of a problem is it to hook fish, with a hook that small? Are you just relying on them to hook themselves?

Also- I associate that sort of fishing with having a lot of slack in the leader, and wonder how much of a difference that makes as far as hooking fish.

 

[Dale49]

Many times the fish will hook themselves. The Tiemco 518, size 32 is a wide gap hook. I open the gaps of all my small hooks (except the 518s) while in the vise by bending up slighly and off to the side. Have to be a little careful. I also de-barb all the small hooks, I find they penetrate better. Trying to remove a small barbed hook (even with forcepts) from the side jaw can be difficult. I will say that I have a fair amount of "quick releases" with a barbless hook, but that's OK with me, I fooled the fish. Rarely do I use a net.

Also, when fishing the small stuff, I use two full flex rods. I feel they help protect a light tippet and one can "hook" the fish (slight rise of the rod) without constantly breaking off. It takes some experience but a full flex rod helps.

Dale