SINKANTS

It is vital to continually degrease your leaders as it helps them sink. It also helps get rid of the shine which is very important in bright conditions. There are lots of different products and the ones containing Fullers Earth and detergent seem to work the best.

FLOATANTS

Modern fly lines do not need floatants to float as they contain minute bubbles in their construction.

However when using dry flies you want your flies to float and you will need to put a floatant on them. This is vital in streamy water. Lots of makes are available but our favourite is Gink which lasts for ages from one small application. Do not put too much on, however, as you will often want the fly to sit in rather than on the surface film.

Normally you do not grease a leader but if you want to fish a fly just sub surface it is very useful to do so. In this case lightly grease the leader up to the depth you want the fly to fish at. If you want to be 6″ under the surface do not grease this last bit.