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Dry fly · Rainbow Trout

Mono Rig Leader for Dry Flies

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.

BBy BarblessOctober 15, 2026

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20 lb.017"
Maxima Chameleon
12 lb.013"
Maxima HV
12 lb.013"
10 lb.012"
Stren Gold Stren
~9.5 lb2X.009"
~8 lb3X.008"
~6.5 lb4X.007"
BUTT · 24 FT
TAPER · 24"
TAPER · 12"
TAPER · 12"
TAPER · 10"
TAPER · 6"
TIPPET · 20"
Total length31' 0"
Flies1
Knots6
WaterFreestone river, Tailwater

Drag the drawing to pan. Tap a fly for what it does, a knot for how to tie it.

Build your leader

31' 0" of line · 7 pieces · Butt to tip

Butt 20 lb234564X

Tie it

0 of 7 done

These are the finished lengths. Leave extra for tying each knot.

How to tie it

  1. Build the tapered leader

    Join the 24 ft maxima Chameleon to the 24" maxima HV with a triple surgeon's knot. Add 12" of 12 lb with a triple surgeon's knot. Add 12" of 10 lb with a triple surgeon's knot. Add a backing Barrel with tag onto the 12" gold Stren, 42" above the fly.

    Tie a triple surgeon's knot

  2. Add the tippet ring - heavy

    Tie the tippet ring - heavy to the 12" gold Stren. Tie 10" of 2X to its other eye. Add 6" of 3X with a triple surgeon's knot. Add 20" of 4X with a triple surgeon's knot.

    Tie a triple surgeon's knot

  3. Tie on the fly

    Tie the fly to the 20" nylon tippet with an improved clinch knot.

    Tie an improved clinch knot

The knots

  • Triple surgeon's knot · 3 turns×5
    1. Lay the new line alongside the end of the leader so they overlap about six inches, the ends pointing opposite ways.
    2. Holding the two lines as one, tie an overhand knot, passing the whole new piece through the loop.
    3. Pass the same ends through the loop twice more, three times in all.
    4. Wet it and pull all four ends evenly to seat the knot. Trim the tags.
    The triple surgeon's knot, step by step
  • Improved clinch knot · 5 turns×1
    1. Pass the tippet through the hook eye and pull about five inches through.
    2. Wrap the tag around the standing line five to seven times.
    3. Pass the tag through the small loop just above the eye, then back through the large loop you just made.
    4. Wet it and pull the standing line so the wraps snug down against the eye. Trim the tag.
    The improved clinch knot, step by step

When and how to fish it

Use it in pocket water, riffles and seams when trout look up. Cast upstream on a short line, lift the rod so the Chameleon butt stays off the water, and follow the dry with the rod tip so only the fly and the 4X touch the surface. Set with a lift of the rod when the fly disappears. To switch back to nymphing, cut the dry taper off the ring and tie on a nymph tippet.

If the dry falls short or the leader piles up, the cast is too long or too fast for an unweighted fly. Shorten the cast, open the loop and lob the fly out.

Common questions

  • Why fish a dry on a mono rig?

    Holding thin mono off the water keeps drag off the fly in broken current, and you can switch between dry and nymph rigs at the tippet ring without changing leaders.

  • What is the Backing Barrel for?

    It is a small marker on the 2X piece above the ring, an extra visual reference just above the tippet.

  • How far can I cast it?

    Not far. An unweighted dry cannot pull thin mono a long way, so it fishes best within a rod length or two.

  • What size dry does it suit?

    Small to medium dries that 4X turns over cleanly. Very large, wind-resistant flies will twist the tippet.

Rainbow TroutBrown TroutCutthroat TroutDryEuroFreestoneTailwater

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