With the growth of European style nymphing here in the USA, these indicators (a.k.a. Sighters) have exploded in popularity. They are super sensitive and very easy to see, detecting even the slightest strike. There are two ways to use sighters. You can run them straight off the end of your fly line with a loop-to-loop connection followed by the leader, or you can build them into your own simple leader system. Here's one example (see illustration): Connect 36" of 20lb mono to 18" or 15lb mono with a uni-jam knot, then tie a small perfection loop at each end of the leader butt-section that you just created. Next, attach the Sighter loop-to-loop to the 15lb end of the butt-section, and attach your tipper (up to 4-feet) to the loop at the other end of the Sighter. You can find lots of different formulas online for Czech, Spanish, and French leaders. I like to keep the overall length of the leader a little bit shorter than the rod I am using. Sighters are 12" long. Every one hand made right here in Saint Louis.
