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A 10' 5" nymphing leader built on the 60/20/20 idea: a long, stiff butt, a short taper and a fine tip. About 60 percent is butt, 49" of 30 lb and 25" of 20 lb Maxima Chameleon, 74" in all. About 20 percent is the taper, 12" each of .015" and .010" Maxima Ultragreen, 24" in all. The last 20 percent or so is the tip, 12" of 2X at .009" and 15" of 4X at .007", 27" in all. It turns over a single tungsten bead nymph and keeps contact with it in the drift.

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.

An 11.5-foot mono leader for dead-drifting flies to salmon and sea trout in rivers. It tapers in eight even steps from 35 inches of .021" down through .019", .017", .015", .013", 0X, .011" and 1X, .010" to a 27 inch tippet of 2X, .009". The long, gradual taper lands a fly softly and lets it drift at the current's speed, the way fish see natural food in low, clear water.

A 26-foot mono nymphing leader for big trout in runs and pockets, fished tight-line with no indicator. A long .014" butt steps through .012" to a 1X sighter, then 36" of 3X fluorocarbon to a tungsten jig stonefly. The heavy fly does the sinking and the sighter shows the take, so the drift stays direct from rod tip to fly.

A simple 25-foot euro nymphing leader: 211" of level .012" mono, a 42" 1X (.010") sighter and 42" of 5X (.006") fluorocarbon tippet. The thin level butt sags less than a heavy taper, so the line stays straight to a size 16 tungsten-bead nymph and small takes show on the sighter.

Ray Bergman's 12 foot leader for nymphs and wet flies. Eight 18 inch sections of mono step down from .021" at the butt to .006" (5X) at the tip, joined with blood knots in the butt and triple surgeon's knots through the 0X, 3X and 5X pieces. It is built for one fly on a 4 to 7 weight rod. There is also a 6X variation; see the questions below.

A thin, light mono rig for tight-line nymphing small streams: 480 inches of .009 Maxima Chameleon, 24 inches of white Cortland indicator mono, then an 18 inch Cortland bi-color sighter. A 2 mm tippet ring below the sighter holds 36 inches of 5X fluorocarbon to a tungsten jig nymph. The thin butt sags very little, so small, light flies stay in contact.

A tight-line mono rig for small streams: 480 inches of neon green Sunset Amnesia as the casting line, a 36 inch step of 1X Maxima Clear, then a 16 inch Cortland bi-color sighter. A 2 mm tippet ring below the sighter holds 36 inches of 5X fluorocarbon to a tungsten jig nymph. The weighted fly does the work, with no indicator and no split shot.

A long tight-line mono rig for euro nymphing small streams. It runs 480" of 12 lb Maxima Chameleon (.013"), 24" of 8 lb Maxima Clear, 12" of neon red Sufix and 12" of neon green Amnesia, then a 16" Cortland bi-color sighter, joined with blood knots. A 2 mm tippet ring below the sighter holds 36" of 5X fluorocarbon to a tungsten jig nymph. There is no indicator or split shot: the fly is the weight and the colored mono shows the take.

Ray Bergman's 8 foot nymph leader. Six 16 inch sections of mono taper from .017" at the butt to .006" (5X) at the tip, with blood knots in the butt and triple surgeon's knots through the 0X, 2X and 5X pieces. It is a short, controllable leader for one nymph on a 3 to 5 weight rod. There is also a 4X variation; see the questions below.

A 24-foot nymphing leader for fishing tight-line on a 3-5 wt. It runs 112" of .016" butt, 35" each of .014" and .012", a 35" 1X (.010") sighter, 20" of 4X (.007") and 48" of 5X (.006") tippet to a size 16 tungsten-bead nymph. The long leader keeps the heavy fly line out of the drift, so the nymph sinks and drifts with little drag.