Fly Fishing - Split Shot Weight

jeremy · Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 11:59 pm Post subject: Split Shot Weight - Tin Or Lead?

I know there are alot of steelhead nymph fisherman here and trout nymph fisherman too. Curious how everyone else is rolling these days .. A few years ago they outlawed tackle and fly shops from buying lead, so I switched from using lead split shots to tin. At first it felt kinda wierd because even though I use very little weight and indicator fish, the small lead splitshots were obviously so much more dense than the tin .. but now, i really like the tin .. it seems to get hung up less (mabe because it's not as soft?) ... i also find that i like the green colored tin and not the bright silver ... although the green stuff is more expensive .. ps.. someone told me if you put the tin in a bottle of coca cola it will fade from bright silver to a darker color .. have yet to try it .... also, i like the tin without the little wings on it .. you know just a circular ball with no little wings for opening the shot back up .... ...... what is everyone else using these days for steelhead and trout nymphing? .. tin or lead splitshot?

joey · Posted: Sat Apr 05, 2008 11:05 am Post subject:

I use the greenies when fishing for trout, I think they look like rocks or moss cruising down the river. This is good for clear water. The past couple years for steelheading I have used the same type of weights but in black. This year I am going to try tungsten putty, we used this on my last trip and it works really well. It didn't get hung up in the rocks like some shots often do.

Steelie · Newbie Joined: Sep 24, 2006 Posts: 81 Location: Erie, PA

It's still legal in PeeYay, so I'm using lead. I think the brand is water gremlin, or something like that. It's OK stuff; cheap, dull color, grips the line pretty well without much line damage. I generally don't fish with weighted flies, because It seems like unweighted flies look more natural bobbing up and down.

Mike

Hunter · Newbie Joined: Dec 06, 2006 Posts: 39

Jeremy-

You should be able to oxidize the tin in any acidic liquid, more so if it's got any iron or magnesium mixed with the tin. Lemon or lime juice would work better, but if you've got an extra bottle of coke laying around it'll do. Bleach would also work. Then again, I don't worry about the color of shot much, just as long as it's not shinier than my nymphs.

jinxed247 · Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2008 10:49 am Post subject:

Man I miss the density of lead. Seems like the choices up here are pretty slim in pickings. I will try that coke idea because I really hate how shiny they are. I also hate using a lot of split shot when I am nymphing but it seems that you almost have to add an extra one just to get the fly down. I've adjusted by flipping further upstream to get to the drift depth that I want. Oh well.

twocan · Newbie Joined: Dec 03, 2006 Posts: 16

My current choice for shot is dinsmore. it comes in the small sizes i use and is soft so I can remove it and it is also a color i like (dark green).