Tying Leaders?

[Terry Dodge]

I've always used a tapered leader but now my source is gone.

Does anyone tie up there own?

[tjtroester]

i tie a lot of my own leaders. the problem with using them in our illinois water is the the knots catch all the bits of crud floating in the surface. there are alot of formulas for leaders on the web. if you would like some contact me. timothy troester

[tjtroester]

like this: http://www.flycatcherinc.com/flyblog/?p=105

[Mike G]

Lefty Kreh and Bob Clouser do. Let me know if you want to look at their formulas.

[VanH]

I tie several types of leaders depending on the species and conditions but for smallmouth my go to leader is a Harry Murray's bright butt leader I learned to tie while out in Virginia, but if you are tossing heavy streamers a straight piece of fluoro works fine .

[Rob G]

if you are tossing heavy streamers a straight piece of fluoro works fine .

 

Tim Holschlag and another guide I spoke to, often use the same thing with 9 feet of 8 lb fluorocarbon.

[ronk]

While you can get by with a level leader casting smaller streamers at only short-medium distances in little if any wind a tapered leader is a must for ease in casting further with bigger flies.If this were not true there'd be no reason for ever using a tapered leader since there is an advantage to a thin straight leader both for streamer fishing in getting the fly down a little faster as well as reducing the affect of current drag.

[Gavin]

These hand furled leaders look intresting...havent tried them yet..but if they work for Capt. Sodie...they probably work well.

 

[Steve S.]

These hand furled leaders look intresting...havent tried them yet..but if they work for Capt. Sodie...they probably work well.

 

 

My brother tried this last summer and didn't have avoid report, though I can't remember the details.

[Terry Dodge]

I like the hand furled leaders! I'll be testing this all year long. Thanks!

[VanH]

Good point. I left that part out about not casting well for longer distances but along as you bring it back and toss it and avoid false casting it works well for shorter cast in fast water .

While you can get by with a level leader casting smaller streamers at only short-medium distances in little if any wind a tapered leader is a must for ease in casting further with bigger flies.If this were not true there'd be no reason for ever using a tapered leader since there is an advantage to a thin straight leader both for streamer fishing in getting the fly down a little faster as well as reducing the affect of current drag.

[Rob G]

Do those furled leaders tend to pick up algae any more or less than hand tied knotted leaders?

[tjtroester]

Do those furled leaders tend to pick up algae any more or less than hand tied knotted leaders?

 

they are not as bad. knots are the problem. if you use 'knot sense' it's much better. timothy

[ronk]

Furled leaders are expensive($13 Feathercraft vs $5 for non furled fluoro).Either will turn over big flies nicely.Hand tied leaders are seldom seen anymore.

[Jonn Graham]

One thing about furled leaders, while they may be expensive, they last much longer than a standard mono leader. I have tried furled leaders and regular mono leaders..............I like them both. Furled leaders do not pick up any algae/weeds. I like feather crafts streamer furled leaders as they have a very small swivel at the end. The swivel is nice for two reasons:

 

1. Easy attachment of tippet with a basic clinch knot

2. The swivel prevents leader twist...........and I do mean prevents. I have had one of their streamer leaders for two years and have never had any leader twist while using it.

[Rob G]

Someone mentioned that furled leaders resist wind knots better because they are stiffer, is that true? Not that my pure casting technique ever creates wind knots, I just want to know this for a... errr ... friend.

 

Also, if you were going to hand tie or spin one according to that video, would 6 lb fluoro be a decent line to use?

[tjtroester]

Someone mentioned that furled leaders resist wind knots better because they are stiffer, is that true? Not that my pure casting technique ever creates wind knots, I just want to know this for a errr friend.

 

 

i've gotten wind knots in furled leaders. there, i said it. don't ask me about it!

 

furled leaders are limper, no memory. tjt

[Jonn Graham]

I do feel that furled leaders seem to resist knotting. I will say, that if you do notice a knot in a furled leader, GET IT OUT IMMEDIATELY.

[Rob G]

Two questions, which might work better 4,6, or 8 lb flouro for one of these spun furled leaders for the average flies we toss and would it be logical to create the 7 foot leader such that the 4 strand would be 4 ft in length and the 2 strand portion that will attach to the tippet be 3 ft in length? I enjoy this type of thing so I'm sure I'll give it a go.

[VanH]

I would think 8lb for heavy poppers with 1 or 2x tied on and 6lb for lighter ones. Let me know how using fluoro turns out.

[Mike G]

Two questions, which might work better 4,6, or 8 lb flouro for one of these spun furled leaders for the average flies we toss and would it be logical to create the 7 foot leader such that the 4 strand would be 4 ft in length and the 2 strand portion that will attach to the tippet be 3 ft in length? I enjoy this type of thing so I'm sure I'll give it a go.

 

Flouro could be a problem with poppers since it is slightly denser than water and may sink on you. I want to try hand furling too. It was a great video.

[Mike G]

I owe you some info on leader formulas.

 

First there is the classic 4-2-1 which we often see. The numbers express proportions not necesarily length. Example 4' 30#-2' 20#-1' 12# gives you a 7' leader that you can add 2' of tippet to to get a 9' total. The long heavy butt section goes along with what Kreh and Clouser recommend for bass.

 

You can read them in their own words via the links below.

 

 

Lefty's formulas

 

Clouser,s FormulasI

[Terry Dodge]

These hand furled leaders look intresting...havent tried them yet..but if they work for Capt. Sodie...they probably work well.

 

 

 

This is a little bit more tricky when using 21 feet of line to make 7 foot butt and mid-section.

Tricky part for me is keeping the loose ends from mating. Practice, practice, practice.

[Rob G]

I was going to try and tie a few knotted leaders using Lefty's 50% formula which he states really bust the wind but.... no one around here carries mono greater than 25 lbs so will have to put in an order to Bass Pro. Maybe the central region Bassburgers can tie a bunch and test cast at some future outing.

[Terry Dodge]

That's a great idea you have there Rob G. I'd be interested in the BassBuggers findings and input.