Tippet Rings, are they any good...

We at Cutthroat Leader Co purchase 1000’s of rings per month.  With that said, we have been sent rings from just about every supplier out there.  I can tell you there is a big difference between various tippet rings available.  There are multiple distributors pushing rings on ebay / amazon that look decent in photos, but when you get them they are very thin…  Thin rings equal cut tippets. 

Such as in many aspects of life, you often get what you pay for.  Sure, you can find cheaper rings out there, but when one ring can / will last many trips out if not dozens, what is a few cents more per ring…?

Not pushing just our rings as there are other rings on the market available that are well made. Just make sure the cross section of the ring is equal to the thickness of the ring..  Think a piece of pipe being bent into a circle.   Having this same cross section all the way around the ring eliminates any weak points in the tippet knot / ring connection.   Jewelry rings WILL NOT hold up over time or on decent fish.  Also, Jewelry rings tend to be larger than 2mm in Dia.   I have been sent more than a few emails from fishers that have had bad experiences with jewelry type rings over the years.  

I use tippet rings on some of my personal Furled Leaders, but I also use the shorb loop often.  On my Hi-Vis Nymph leaders, I use the rings as the leaders are much stronger than Dry Fly Leaders so I do not worry about pulling the ring loose.  On my Dry Fly leaders, I use loops.  For one, the loop is stronger than the ring connection. It adds about 1 lb. of strength to the dry fly leader.  

On my streamers leaders, (for chucking meat), I use a swivel.  

I tell fishers to use the same knot they tie on a fly with to attach tippet to the ring.  I sometimes use an improved clinch on the ring and a standard clinch on the fly.  I honestly have not noticed any breaking strength difference between the improved or the simple clinch.  As with any fishing knot, having moisture on the tippet before the knot is pulled tight is EXTREMELY important. 

If you have any questions at all, please fee free to email me at mike's email

Link to Cutthroat Leader Mico Tippet Rings