tippet piling up on water

[Joey W]

doesn't happen all the time, but sometimes when i cast the flyline and leader straighten out nicely on the water, but the tippet section bunches up and ends up in a pile..can't figure out why.

[BigCliff]

This happens when the cast does not have enough power to completely turn over, most likely caused by too large of a casting loop.

Thing is, you don't change how much power a cast has by putting more oomph/power/muscle into it. You need to change the timing of your forward and backward strokes so that all of the line has finished its trip one direction before you start moving your hand the opposite direction. This will shrink your loop and it will fly through the air more like a golf ball and less like a whiffle ball.

[Braunbear66]

what kind of leader do you use? I had the same problem some time's. I was reading about Joni making her own Furled leaders. and ordered some Furled leaders. (To me there kind of like a miniature bull whip) BlueSky Furled Tapered leader's are the one's I purchased. I received them the day I got back from Thanksgiving in Yosemite. I put them on and wow what a difference.There soft, no memory. I cast it in my living room just with my hand and it laid out perfectly straight. with the tippet attached. I will never use a tapered orvis leader again. You just give it a stretch when you first take it out of the package no coils. I love it.

[FrankB2]

Originally Posted by BigCliff

This happens when the cast does not have enough power to completely turn over, most likely caused by too large of a casting loop.

Thing is, you don't change how much power a cast has by putting more oomph/power/muscle into it. You need to change the timing of your forward and backward strokes so that all of the line has finished its trip one direction before you start moving your hand the opposite direction. This will shrink your loop and it will fly through the air more like a golf ball and less like a whiffle ball.

Quoted for emphasis! I've been trying to teach my wife to let the rod do the work for years. It's just now beginning to settle in! Less effort,
greater results. A decent leader helps, but if you're getting good results
with your current set-up, focus on the casting stroke.

[randyflycaster]

I agree with Big Cliff's post. There are many reasons a cast might be underpowered, the most common is that you have too much line out.

A trick you might use is to have just the amount of line off the reel that you want to cast. That way, when the line unrolls it will gently pull against the reel and the tension will help the tippet turn over. If you're not sure about having the right amount of line off the reel, you could allow the unrolling fly line to slide through your fingers and then "catch" it just before the loop unrolls.

Finally, try aiming your presentation cast slightly downward.

Randy