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Unlike other types of fishing, fly fishing casts a line instead of a lure. For this reason, the weight, shape, and finish of a fly line are critical to its intended use.

The weight number refers to the actual weight, within a specific range, of the first 30 feet of fly line minus the tip. This designation makes it easy for the flyfisher to select a rod, reel, and line best suited for the type of fishing intended. Matching line and rod to the same weight number insures the best performance of the rod.

Within each weight category, the line may be shaped differently. The taper of a fly line describes how the line diameter changes over its length. In describing the fly line over its length, we use the terms tip section, belly, running line. The belly is that section of line with a diameter larger than the rest of the line. The tip is the smaller diameter portion on the front end that the monofilament leader is connected to. The running line is the smaller diameter portion on the back end that connects to the backing.

The five types of tapers and their AFTMA standard designation are: Level (L), Double Taper (DT), Weight Forward (WF), Triangle Taper (TT), and Shooting Head (SH).

Level lines have a constant diameter belly over the entire length (no tip, no running line). They do not cast or present as well as other flylines, and so many fly shops do not sell them.

Double Tapers have a tip and running line of equal length, and a long belly that has its greatest diameter at the midpoint. DT lines are excellent for rollcasting and for making delicate presentations.

Weight Forwards have a short tip, a short belly, and a long running line. The belly of a WF is larger in diameter than that of a DT of the same weight. By adjusting the length of the tip and the length of the belly, manufacturers of WF lines can create variations of these lines that are ideal to certain situations. The most popular of these special WF tapers are:

• Bass bug taper. Short, thick belly and very short tip help to carry more energy closer to the leader, making it easier to propel and turnover large wind-resistant flies such as poppers and hair bugs.

• Bonefish taper. Usually identical to the bass taper, except maybe for a slightly longer tip for a more delicate presentation. The real difference has to with the core, not the taper. The bonefish core is stiffer and more heat resistant.

• Steelhead taper. Long bellies for allowing lots of line to be worked in the false casts before the line is released. Allows casts of 100+ feet using 10 foot rods.

Triangle Tapers have a combination tip-belly: the fly line increases in diameter evenly to 40 feet, then drops off immediately into the running line. Under 40 feet, the TT line is like a Double Taper, excellent for rollcasting. But when nearly all of the 40 foot tip-belly is out, it also acts like a WF Steelhead taper and can shoot 80-90 feet of line. The only drawback, TT lines do not cast large flies very well.

Shooting heads look like a DT line cut in half - and thats the way some flyfishers make their own SH lines. The running line is usually 60 to 100 feet, consisting of either braided monofilament or very fine PVC line. SH lines are used to make extremely long casts with a minimum of line out, and give room on the reel for a lot more backing. Very popular for saltwater offshore fly-fishing.

Fly line types are described as either floating (F), intermediate (I), sink-tip (F/S) or full sinking (S).

Floating lines are by far the most widely used lines, and beginning fly fishers are urged to go with floating lines. Floating lines can be fished with both floating and sinking flies. They also are easiest to fish with, since only the surface tension of the line must be broken before a backcast can be made.

Sink-tips allow the tip section to sink, while the belly and running line float. They are therefore easier to cast than full sinking lines, which must be retrieved until nearly all of the line is out of the water before they can be cast.

Sinking lines used to be assigned a number for sink rate, but today you'll see designations such as Q/S (for quick sink) or S3.5 (for sinks at 3.5 inches per second). If you must go with a full sinking line, use the actual sink rate in inches per second rather than any designation, and consider that if the bottom is less than 10 feet, a sink tip line, with a little more patience, will probably work with equal success.

Intermediate lines are probably the most popular non-floating lines used in Louisiana waters today. They sink at a very slow rate. For surf fishermen, they negate the effects of wave action when fishing clousers for specks. For marsh fishermen, intermediate lines keep popular spoon flies from riding to the surface, yet sink slow enough to avoid dragging in the shallow bottom.