setting up a shooting head streamer rig

[flipnfly]

im interested in setting up a streamer rig with a shooting head set up any info would be great i know nothing about t his links and such would be appriceated
thanks in advance

 

[Fishidiot]

It's a good idea. Shooting heads handle big flies well and cast like a cannon. They work very well in wind. I love 'em for salt water. I tried 'em for bass fishing and went back to the standard WF line however. The main downside is they're not accurate and can be difficult for close in casts where you have only the head outside the end of your rod. To cast SH effectively you really need to get the entire head aerialized iot load the rod. One thing to consider is your connections. Pretty much everyone uses a loop-to-loop system these days to connect your head to the running line (shooting head fly lines have two separate parts that are connected: the head and the running line) I prefer to custom splice my connections.

 

[flipnfly]

by custom splice do you mean somethinbg like a nail knot to
reduce the hinging? this is somehting i want for the yough i
would really like a shorter head no longer than 15 feet but
heavy ( or is that too short tom load the rod i was thinking
something like 350 to 400 grain and 2 casting a rig liek this is it
possible to minimize the line out behind me something like
sort of a single handed spey type cast im asking all these questions because im completely ignorant to all of this thus far

 

[sandfly]

BRIAN SIMONSETH'S LINE SPLICING INSTRUCTIONS

1) Remove 4" of coating from the Fly Line . Note from Poppy: A doubled slip loop of 20# mono pulled TIGHT will remove the coating nicely. About 1" at a time works well.
2) Feather the core of the strip fly line 1 inches

3) Using a pin vice & regular sewing needle, push the needle 1 to 1 ½ inches up the core of the fly line and out the side of it. Make sure it is TIGHT or the needle will slip.

4) Use UN-WAXED Dental floss (24 inches piece); put the ends of the floss thru the eye of the needle the same way. Then pull both strands of the floss thru the fly line, leave a loop about ¼ inches at the end of the fly line.

5) Put the core of the feathered end into the loop of the floss; then place a business card or a piece of leather on the fly line and pull the floss ends and the core will be pulled thru. Then place the feathered end in a tying vice and pull down so that both pieces are together; separate them again a put a drop of a CA glue between them and pull them together again. Another note from Poppy: If you don't have a tying vise handy, your forceps will do in a pinch. Then use a nail clipper or scissors and cut the tag end that sticks out the side of the fly line. You’re done with that splice.

 

[PennKev]

sandfly wrote:

BRIAN SIMONSETH'S LINE SPLICING INSTRUCTIONS

1) Remove 4" of coating from the Fly Line . Note from Poppy: A doubled slip loop of 20# mono pulled TIGHT will remove the coating nicely. About 1" at a time works well.
2) Feather the core of the strip fly line 1 inches

3) Using a pin vice & regular sewing needle, push the needle 1 to 1 ½ inches up the core of the fly line and out the side of it. Make sure it is TIGHT or the needle will slip.

4) Use UN-WAXED Dental floss (24 inches piece); put the ends of the floss thru the eye of the needle the same way. Then pull both strands of the floss thru the fly line, leave a loop about ¼ inches at the end of the fly line.

5) Put the core of the feathered end into the loop of the floss; then place a business card or a piece of leather on the fly line and pull the floss ends and the core will be pulled thru. Then place the feathered end in a tying vice and pull down so that both pieces are together; separate them again a put a drop of a CA glue between them and pull them together again. Another note from Poppy: If you don't have a tying vise handy, your forceps will do in a pinch. Then use a nail clipper or scissors and cut the tag end that sticks out the side of the fly line. You’re done with that splice.

Having done this a couple times. I can tell you it is a royal PITA. However, the results are good,

 

[fishngun]

A couple of things with shooting heads. I think most are around 30' in length. When casting you want the entire head out of the rod tip, plus some running line. The idea is to double haul to get your rod loaded deeply and then let 'er fly. Depending on the weight rod you are planning on putting this on 400gr may be a bit much for the rod to handle. If you're looking for a line that you can mend as well as cast, don't look at a shooting head system. The running lines are not designed to mend.

 

[sandfly]

I make heads from 5' to 45' depending on rod and what i am fishing for. 400 gr. is used on 9 wts. and larger.

 

[slumdumb]

if you are just getting into it... Go get a Rio Outbound or Outbound short

its a full line (head welded to running line)
figure out if you like it
then get into the custom tweaking

Making incorrect "customs" to start with can be time consuming, lead to failures, expensive mistakes

there are tons of choices in sink rates and head lengths in todays production lines that will get you doing what you want

 

[flipnfly]

i have the wulff ambush same thing as the rio i think but i was panning in doing this with a spare 8 wt i had laying around and spare reels just not sure about the running line i was thinking amnesia ill probably end up not making my own heads (but thanks sandfly i liked the post) im not worried about mending its going to be streamer only in bass ponds and bigger rivers never know maybe ill try for a mucky or pike with it those are what my intentions are