Micropatterns - Tying and Fishing the Small Fry (Paperback, New edition)

This innovative book is surely the most thorough and detailed investigation of the use of the small fly yet written. Selective trout, in part created by the advanced sophistication of anglers and the increased popularity of tailwaters and stillwater fisheries, have made the use of small patterns - size 18 and under - a growing necessity for successful fly fishing. Darrel Martin explores every facet of this demanding "sport within a sport."Chapters detail aquatic insects significant to the angler; the best tying materials, tying methods, and patterns; hook choice; tackle; and the casting tactics, presentations, and methods of playing hooked fish that the use of tiny flies demands. Martin's extensive use of laboratory testing has yielded surprising and important information about the strength, reliability, and performance of various small hooks. And he offers directions for making "dubbing brush" patterns and for designing "furled leaders" - leaders that represent a quantum leap in the soft presentation of small fly patterns.Few fly-fishing texts can match Micropatterns for depth, originality, and usefulness. Although this important book will benefit all fly fishers, it is also indispensable for tyers and anglers who wish to improve their success when large and difficult trout are taking the smallest flies.As Dick Talleur says, "This is truly an excellent work - well-researched, comprehensive, authoritative. The typical angler will learn much from it, and we who work in the fly-fishing field will use it for constant reference." (81/2 X 11, 352 pages, color photos, b&w photos, illustrations, diagrams, charts, graphs)