** NOTE ** Links to each leader for sale, along with full descriptions, are listed below.
And here’s a direct link to the leader category in the Troutbitten Shop . . .
BUY: Troutbitten | Category | Leaders
On Friday, July 22 at 7:00 am, EST, all five leader varieties relaunch in the Troutbitten Shop.
About a year ago, I ran my second round of leader sales. I sold seven-hundred leaders in nine days and depleted my inventory. This time, I have a few more. Getting leaders back up was my first goal, once my spring/summer guide seasons finished. So to everyone who has reached out about leaders, thank you for your patience.
And to every angler who supports the Troutbitten Project in every way, thank you for being part of it all.
With so many leaders sold, I’ve received some great feedback about what people like best. And there are some unique features to Troutbitten leaders that make a difference . . .
These are ready.
The Spools
All Troutbitten Leaders come on a three-inch rigid plastic spool. This makes leader changes far more efficient than wrapping leaders around your hand, storing them flat and unrolling them again. Anglers avoid things that aren’t easy, so we don’t change leaders if it takes too long — especially for long Mono Rigs. This spool system makes everything easy.
WATCH: Troutbitten VIDEO | Lighting Fast Leader Changes
Small foam spools are provided with the Standard Mono Rig and the full kit, because sighter and tippet changes are part of being versatile on the water. While the narrow foam spools are not a good choice for storing full leaders, they are perfect for wrapping up tippet sections with the flies pre-rigged. Three of these foams are included with every Standard Mono Rig.
Harvey
Many anglers have never fished the Harvey design for a dry fly leader. And I’ve gotten great feedback about long, effortless drag free drifts full of s-curves. That’s what the leader is built for. Harvey leaders are truly a game changer.
Sighters and Barrels
The sighter included on the Standard Mono Rig is stiffer than most, built from Amnesia and Gold Stren. A piece of Bi-Color sighter is also included for extending the sighter if desired. But many anglers are now enjoying the benefits of a sighter built for power and turnover. (Individual sighters are also for sale.)
I’ve heard a lot of great feedback about the Backing Barrel. This once-inch tag of 20 lb Dacron backing is included on every Troutbitten sighter and Mono Rig. Anglers love the unmatched visibility and the third dimension of sensitivity.
It All Matters
In many ways and for many fly fishing systems, the leader is the most critical component to success. And since 2014, I’ve spilled a lot of words on Troutbitten over the intricacies of nylon and fluorocarbon tied together.
I’m a leader junkie. And I’m not the only one. Most fly anglers quickly learn that the leader — and how it’s modified — dictates all of our terms to the fly. It’s our connection. And a good leader, built with purpose and fished with a thorough understanding of its design is the foundation for fly fishing success.
READ: Troutbitten | Fly Fishing Leader Design
— — — — — —
The following leaders are available for purchase:
— Troutbitten Harvey Dry Leader
— Troutbitten Standard Mono Rig
— Troutbitten Micro-Thin Mono Rig
— All three Mono Rigs can be purchased together in the Full Mono Rig Kit
— Troutbitten Standard Sighters are also available
Each leader comes wrapped on a three-inch plastic spool, which is the perfect method for storing long leaders. It makes the process of changing rigs much more efficient, so you can easily swap out leaders in a minute or two.
All Troutbitten Mono Rigs include a sighter with a Backing Barrel built in, adding amazing visibility and another dimension of sensitivity to each sighter. High quality, black 1.5 mm tippet rings are included on each Mono Rig.
Because the Standard Mono Rig is designed as a versatile tool for a hybrid system, it includes the following:
— Two feet of 1X Bi-Color for extending the Standard Sighter.
— Three rigging foams for storing and swapping out tippet sections. (For example, you may store two nymphs, a pair of streamers, dry dropper, etc., tied up and ready to attach to the sighter.)
Here’s a lot more information about how these leaders are built and how to fish them . . .
READ: Troutbitten | The George Harvey Leader Design
READ: Troutbitten | Design and Function of the Troutbitten Standard Mono Rig
READ: Troutbitten | The Full Mono Rig System — All the variations, with formulas and adjustments
READ: Troutbitten | Thin and Micro-Thin Mono Rigs
Fish ‘Em
So, to all the new and long-time Troutbitten readers and supporters out there, thank you. These leaders make a great addition to the Troutbitten Shop, and I’m glad to have them in stock once again.
Fish hard, friends.
** Subscribe to Troutbitten and Follow Along (It’s Free). **
Enjoy the day
Domenick Swentosky
T R O U T B I T T E N
domenick@troutbitten.com
Dom – Did you find some bright red amnesia again?
Hi Greg,
I found and bought a dozen spools!
Nice….Were they a new batch or leftover old batches from a while ago…I guess I’m basically asking whether Kraft fixed the color problem?
Older
You must see blood knots in your dreams. Damn, Dom that is impressive.
Hi Dom are you shipping the leaders overseas or US only
I’m sorry. US only right now. I’ve tried shipping overseas, but it’s been too much trouble from customs and whatnot.
Thanks Dom no worries!
A little off topic but just a question. Does anyone fish nymphs with an indicator anymore? Troutbitten is offering a dry leader and the rest are Euro rigs. I’ve been told many times Euro-nymphing is more effective and I see why that’s possible but I can’t get my head around casting a fly without the weight of a flyline to carry the fly, indicator or whatever. On some days I have trouble loading the rod with a traditional line.
Hi Bruce,
Oh my, yes. If you dig deeper here at Troutbitten, you’ll find many resources for fishing indys. I do it much of the time. In fact, about 40 percent of my nymphing is with a suspender of some sort:
This is my favorite way:
Tight Line Nymphing With an Indicator
https://troutbitten.com/2017/02/14/tight-line-nymphing-with-an-indicator-a-mono-rig-variant/
And . . . the way we fish a Mono Rig is casting and not just lobbing weights around. Here is what I mean by that:
It’s Casting Not Lobbing
https://troutbitten.com/2019/07/07/fly-fishing-the-mono-rig-its-casting-not-lobbing/
If you give that a try, I think you’ll really enjoy it.
Lastly, here’s my favorite indy leader:
Three Parts of An Ideal Indicator Leader
https://troutbitten.com/2018/04/25/three-parts-of-an-ideal-indicator-leader/
I will likely add that to the shop soon enough.
Cheers, Bruce.
Dom
Great to see these back. One thought, which I’ve shared before. At some point it would be great to sell empty leaders spools, assuming you can get them in abundance. Many of us, like you, like to tinker with other leaders and take several options on the stream. Also like you, we find the Maxima -size spools seem to be “just right” for this purpose. Unlike you, most of us don’t often clean out a spool of Maxima and have an empty spool to repurpose. Just my 2 cents.
Hello,
I was wondering where you are getting 20lb Dacron backing that is NOT braided? Braided is all I seem to be able to find. Doesn’t work well for a backing barrel because it frays. Any help appreciated.
Thanks!
Hi. I don’t think I said that it’s not braided. It’s braided, it’s just a tighter weave. Yes, there are very few backing materials that don’t fray. Here is all the information you need.
https://troutbitten.com/2021/10/08/the-backing-barrel-might-be-the-best-sighter-ever/
Cheers.
Dom
Dom,
Thanks and cheers to you as well!
JC
Hey Dom,
I’m guessing you’ve answered this somewhere already but I’m wondering where I can find empty spools like the ones you use for your leaders? I’m sure you’re buying in bulk but do you know where I can buy just a few, maybe a 10 pack?
Thanks,
Matt