Dry rigs

An 8-foot dry fly leader built on the simple 50-25-25 rule: half the length in a stiff butt, a quarter in the middle and a quarter in tippet. It steps from 48 inches of 30 lb mono to 24 inches of 20 lb and 24 inches of 10 lb, joined with double uni knots. The heavy tippet and short, punchy taper make it a leader for big dries such as hoppers, stoneflies and foam bugs.

A 9-foot leader built to turn over and hit a target, the way tournament accuracy and distance casting demand. It runs 44 inches of .024 inch mono, 28 inches of .020, 17 inches of .017 and 8 inches of .015 to an 11 inch tip of .012 inch, with most of its weight in the long butt. It straightens fully at the end of the cast and drops the fly where it was aimed.

A 9 foot 2 inch dry fly leader that ends in 4X and is built to land a fly with a little slack for drag-free drifts. It starts with 20 inches of 15 lb and 20 inches of 12 lb Maxima Chameleon, steps through 8 inches of 8 lb Maxima and 8 inches of 8 lb Stren Gold, then 12 inches each of 2X, 3X and 4X, and finishes with an 18 inch 4X tippet. Every join is a triple surgeon's knot.

A 9.5-foot trout leader with a heavy butt, built to turn over big, wind-resistant dries on 5-7 wt rods. Nearly half its length is a 48 inch .026 inch butt, which then steps through 18 inches of .019, 10 of .017, 8 of .015, 6 of .013 and 6 of 1X (.010 inch) to an 18 inch 3X tippet. It pushes hoppers, stoneflies and big attractors out in the wind and lays them down straight.

An 8-foot (96 inch) three-piece dry fly leader built from the 25-15-10 formula: 36 inches of 25 lb mono, 36 inches of 15 lb and 24 inches of 10 lb. It is quick to tie from three spools and turns over big, wind-resistant dries such as hoppers, stoneflies, large foam flies and bass bugs.

A mono rig set up to fish a dry fly: 288 inches of 20 lb Maxima Chameleon, 24 inches of 12 lb Maxima HV, 12 inches of 12 lb red sighter mono and 12 inches of 2X Gold Label with a Backing Barrel marker, to a 4 mm tippet ring. Below the ring a short dry-fly taper runs 10 inches of 2X, 6 inches of 3X and 20 inches of 4X to the fly. It lets a nymph angler fish a dry without changing to a fly line leader.

A 15-foot dry-fly leader for flat, clear water and wary trout. A 72 inch RIO Powerflex butt runs to a 4 mm tippet ring, then 36 inches of .013 and 24 inches of 2X copolymer and a 12 inch step of 4X to a second 4 mm ring, with 36 inches of 5X RIO Suppleflex at the fly. The long, fine tip lets a small dry drift without drag.

George Harvey's 11.5-foot dry fly leader, finished in 5X. It starts with a soft .015" butt and steps down .002" at a time through four 18" sections (.015", .013", .011", .009"), then 15" of 3X, 15" of 4X and a long 36" tippet of 5X, for 11' 6" in all. The soft butt and long, fine tippet land the fly with slack so it floats drag-free over slow, clear water. It suits a 5 wt rod.

George Harvey's 10-foot dry fly leader, finished in 4X. It starts with a soft .015" butt and steps down .002" at a time through four 18" sections (.015", .013", .011", .009"), then 15" of 3X and a long 36" tippet of 4X, for 10' 3" in all. The soft butt and long tippet are meant to land the fly with slack in the tippet, so it floats drag-free over mixed currents. It suits a 5 wt rod.

Gary Borger's leader formula built as an all-round 9-foot trout leader: 51" of .020" butt, 13" of .013", 26" of 2X (.009") and an 18" tip of 4X (.007"). Borger's idea is a heavy butt that carries the cast and a quick step down to the tippet, so the leader turns over the fly with energy to spare. It suits dry flies and nymphs on 4-6 wt rods.

A 4-foot fine tippet section to rebuild a dry fly leader that has been cut back to 3X. It steps 12" of 3X fluorocarbon to 12" of 4X, then 24" of 6X at .005" to the fly, joined with triple surgeon's knots. It is for small dries and midges over selective trout on slow, clear water.

A 4-foot tippet section to rebuild a dry fly leader that has been cut back to 2X. It steps 12" of 2X fluorocarbon to 12" of 3X, then 24" of 4X at .007" to the fly, joined with triple surgeon's knots. It restores a fine, supple tip without buying a new leader.

A 9' 10" dry fly leader for light 3-4 wt rods. A 29" butt of .020" Maxima Clear steps down through .017", .015" and .012", then RIO Powerflex at .010", .008" and .007" to 5X at .006". The last two pieces, 8" and 22" of 5X, make a 30" tippet that lands small dries softly on quiet water.

A 10' 2" tapered trout leader that does a bit of everything on a 5-6 wt rod. A 48" butt of .022" Maxima Chameleon steps through .017", .015", .010" and .009" to a 14" tip of 4X at .007". It turns over a dry fly, a small nymph or a light streamer without a change of leader.

Gary Borger's dead-drift dry fly leader in three sections: a stiff .013" butt, a short .010" step and a long .007" tippet, or .006" (5X) for smaller flies. Quick to tie, quick to repair on the water, and it turns a dry fly over without fuss.

An 18' 6" leader for fishing a single fly on a floating line in stillwater. It starts with a 30" butt of .017" and 28" of .013", then steps down through 1X, 2X, 3X and 4X sections to 82" of 5X (.006") tippet. The heavier butt carries the cast off a 4-6 wt line, and the long fine tip lets small flies land softly and sink naturally in calm water.

A 6-foot (72 inch) tapered dry fly leader for brushy small streams where casts are short and branches are close. It steps from a 30 inch .017 butt to .013, .011 and .009, then 14 inches of 4X tippet at .007. The stout butt and short length turn over a dry fly on tight casts and keep the leader out of the trees.

A 7.5-foot (90 inch) tapered dry fly leader for small streams. It steps evenly from a 36 inch .017 butt through .015, .013, .011 and .009 to 14 inches of 4X tippet at .007. It is short enough to control under branches and fine enough at the tip to float a small dry naturally.

A 7.5-foot, 5X leader built on a smooth taper from .017" butt to .006" tip. It's designed to turn over small, light flies cleanly and land panfish without excess splash or disturbance. The formula suits 3 to 5 weight rods and works well where stealth and delicate presentation matter.

A 15-foot dry fly leader with a long, heavy butt: 84" of .017", 12" of .012", 36" of 2X, 36" of 4X and 12" of 5X. The stout butt carries the cast and turns over larger dries in wind, while the long finer sections still let the fly land softly. It is built for 3-5 wt rods on bigger water. There's also a 6X variation; see the questions below.

An 8-foot-8-inch dry-fly leader tapered from 30 lb butt to 2X tippet, built to turn over grasshopper imitations and other larger terrestrial patterns. The stout butt handles the weight and air resistance of bigger flies while the fine 2X tip provides the delicacy needed for drag-free presentation on selective trout.

A 9' 10" tapered dry fly leader for trout on a 5-6 wt rod. It runs from a stiff .022" butt of Maxima Clear down through four more Maxima steps, then RIO Powerflex at .010" and .008" to a 24" tip of 4X at .007". The even taper turns over dry flies from #12 to #16 and lays the long tippet down with a little slack for a natural drift.

A 15-foot tapered dry-fly leader built to turn over gracefully and land softly on the water. The long taper and gradual step-downs from .017" butt to .006" tip make it well-suited for 3-5 weight rods, working especially well with smaller dry flies where a delicate presentation matters. There's also a 6X variation; see the questions below.

A 6-foot (72 inch) tapered leader for panfish on a 4-6 wt rod, built to turn over small poppers and float small dries. It steps from a 22 inch .019 butt through .017, .015, .012 and .010 to 15 inches of 3X tippet at .008. The stout butt handles the air resistance of a popper, and 3X is strong enough for bluegill and crappie around weeds.