Tippet Rings- What Are They and How Are They Used?

Sleep, breakfast, triple checking your gear, refueling (beer) and driving to the water are all things that need to be accomplished before the fishing even starts. 

The anticipation and excitement of what's to come can often cause us to overlook what needs to be done and make mistakes. Time is money and our currency is fish. With problems come solutions, right? Welp, we have the answer, tippet rings. 

Tippet rings are small (metal) circular rings that are attached to the end of your leader, used for quick change of flies and to prolong the life of your leader. The average angler loses/changes flies constantly throughout the day and that takes inches, possibly feet from your leader. A 9 FT leader at 8 am can be a 5 FT leader by 4 pm, excluding the added tippet. The typical tapered leader life can be short winded without tippet rings. Below are the options on the market: 

Other options include Airflo, Cortland and various companies on Amazon. All have similar specifications and sell for around $10.

Sam (HOF CEO/Head Honcho) asked us: “Why would you use them? Why not a blood knot?”

Josiah (fly shop grunt): *clearly passionate about the positive use of tippet rings* “Well, I never have to lose any length on my leader. I can have the same leader for weeks, which saves me time and money. I put a fresh leader on the night before, tie my tippet ring to the end of it, pre-rig a couple different setups and am ready to fish the second I get to the water. Unlike my counterpart, Shakes McGee, looking like he just came out of an arctic blizzard. Finally, about five minutes later, the blood knot is finished. Now on to the flies.....”Dear god. I’ll see you downstream.” Counterpart to remain nameless.

Noah (fly shop grunt): *has never used tippet rings* “I don’t know, I tie knots”

Tippet rings are not a necessity. However, in certain circumstances, they can increase the time you spend on the water. Spend less time tying knots and more time fishing. It is a multi-functional tool in your fly arsenal. It increases the life of your leader, saves time and serves as the perfect stopper for your split shot.

To attach the tippet ring, simply tie it to the end of your leader with a clinch knot, fisherman's knot, etc. Next, tie your tippet onto the opposite side of the ring, attach the fly of your choice and BOOM! Fish away.

When tying, make sure to leave ring attached to swivel in packaging swivel or hold with hemostats/clamps to ensure no rings are lost.

For even faster means of getting on the water, use tippet rings in tandem with a Loon (or any foam really) leader keeper. The night before a trip, rig all possible combinations of flies and store them on the leader keeper. Combination of the two will save time and effort in the long run.

Overall, tying knots is not a difficult task but why KNOT when you could use tippet rings.

 @fishsaycheese