Flourocarbon leader questions?

[sacalaitman]

you get what you pay for when it comes to flouro lines. there is only a handful of decent priced flouro line out there. I spool the whole reel up with flouro lines and I admit, it does take some time getting used to, but after that I love it. my all time favorite is p-line halo. great line, but it will break the bank at 22 dollars a spool. also, I have found that the cabelas house brand flouro is pretty amazing and its only 12 a spool. I use that for most of my leaders. I fish with all 3 lines, mono, braid, and flouro, and hands down, flouro will catch the most fish. the only thing i dont use it for is topwater and fishing a cork because it sinks.

[Rainman337]

trilene 100% flurocarbon 10lbs with a swivel and 12 inch leader for specks and reds. last year my biggest speck was 5 lbs and biggest red was 9 lbs on the exact same rod , reel and bait. just don't try to muscle them and you should be ok. I don't have to re tie unless i get real frayed, which doesn't happen much. I also use uni knots all the way around and don't have to worry about breaking off.

[MathGeek]

Originally Posted by Rainman337

trilene 100% flurocarbon 10lbs with a swivel and 12 inch leader for specks and reds. last year my biggest speck was 5 lbs and biggest red was 9 lbs on the exact same rod , reel and bait. just don't try to muscle them and you should be ok. I don't have to re tie unless i get real frayed, which doesn't happen much. I also use uni knots all the way around and don't have to worry about breaking off.

Uni knots are good stuff with both fluorocarbon and braid.

[drftwd]

I use 20lb PowerPro with Pline 20lb floroclear for specks and reds on arties when fishing Big lake or any area like that. When i fish the marsh its straight braid ....no leader ...when them reds want it they gonna take it!

When i tie the braid to mono i tie a 3wrap surgeon's knot! It wont brake!

[coastalobsession]

Go with Fins wind tamer in 40lb then tie on a piece of 25lb seguar Flouro or 20lb mono with a Albright knot. Make the leader about 6 feet then tie on a tony clip.

[jpeff31787]

Originally Posted by MathGeek

I could see heavier leaders when the odds of a bull red are high and youdo't want to break off, but if trout are the only thing on the menu, I really prefer 15 lb fluorocarbon. I often use a 6' leader so the visibility of the braid is far away and the impact on the action is minimal.

how do you tie your leaders? I've tried and they've failed everytime. Is it because I usually only tie about a 2ft leader and the shock is causing it to fail? I used 12#flouro to 20#flouroleader and I think it was a uni to uni knot.

[cmdrost]

Originally Posted by drftwd

I use 20lb PowerPro with Pline 20lb floroclear for specks and reds on arties when fishing Big lake or any area like that. When i fish the marsh its straight braid ....no leader ...when them reds want it they gonna take it!

When i tie the braid to mono i tie a 3wrap surgeon's knot! It wont brake!

I have same philosophy. Braid & Leader for trout. Straight braid for reds.

Same size as you except I tie double uni knot. I keep leader shorter...usually around 3 ft or less. You don't want your leader knot going back and forth through the eye of your reel and the less guides of your rod it has to travel through the better imho.

[PaulMyers]

Originally Posted by cmdrost

I have same philosophy. Braid & Leader for trout. Straight braid for reds.

Same size as you except I tie double uni knot. I keep leader shorter...usually around 3 ft or less. You don't want your leader knot going back and forth through the eye of your reel and the less guides of your rod it has to travel through the better imho.

Ding Ding Ding, We have a winner! 2 to 3 ft leader so the eyes in the guides don't get knocked loose from the line knot passing through them.

[MathGeek]

Originally Posted by jpeff31787

how do you tie your leaders? I've tried and they've failed everytime. Is it because I usually only tie about a 2ft leader and the shock is causing it to fail? I used 12#flouro to 20#flouroleader and I think it was a uni to uni knot.

I tried uni to uni knots which work OK most of the time, but occasionally fail. I've gone to trying a snap on the braid (uni knot) and a swivel on the leader to connect to the snap. This works very well, although I replace leaders at least daily when fishing inshore in Louisiana. A six foot leader requires more care in both casting and landing, but it works so well that I put up with it.

I fish with bait almost exclusively, and I do not set the hook, so my leaders don't experience much shock. If a rod is in a rod holder, I set the drag really loose so if a big fish hits, he'll run and often swallow the bait rather than loading the pole and pulling out or loading the pole and breaking off. When fishing crab or 6-12" bait fish, I'll give the rod a 6 count before even picking it up. (Of course, I usually have a 60-80 lb leader when bottom fishing crab or big bait fish.)

If the rod is in my hand, I am more likely working structure, so I'll gently but rather quickly increase the pressure to keep the fish out of the structure, but without ever really making a jerking motion. I usually only have a 15-20 lb leader when fishing live shrimp relatively shallow (under a cork) in clear water. In this case, the leader is 18-24" long, but still tied to a swivel connected to the braid via the snap on the braid. Working birds or baitfish away from structure, I will gently apply pressure and reel the fish in without a hook set.

[SaltERedneck]

20lb super slick braid with 15lb seagar fluoro... uni to uni knots... no memory no problems. knot holds well. I have caught specs on 1 ft leader after multiple trips. I mostly keep 3ft leader for breakoffs or reties. I dont like that knot hitting all of the eyes on my rod either. I am a little more conservative on my fluorocarbon.

[justwant2fish]

Braid to a small barrell swivel then to a 14 inch,14lb cajun line leader. No memory cajun line holds up really well. I like mono def over floro. I believe you need the mono for stretch on trout so it doesnt pull hook from mouth

[jpeff31787]

Originally Posted by sacalaitman

you get what you pay for when it comes to flouro lines. there is only a handful of decent priced flouro line out there. I spool the whole reel up with flouro lines and I admit, it does take some time getting used to, but after that I love it. my all time favorite is p-line halo. great line, but it will break the bank at 22 dollars a spool. also, I have found that the cabelas house brand flouro is pretty amazing and its only 12 a spool. I use that for most of my leaders. I fish with all 3 lines, mono, braid, and flouro, and hands down, flouro will catch the most fish. the only thing i dont use it for is topwater and fishing a cork because it sinks.

Pretty much took the words out my mouth.. Halo is the shizznitt and if your fishing rigs offshore and you are using Flouro you will have a big advantage over the rest of your crew if they are using braid or mono, because your jig will be hitting bottom way before theres!

[ElectricChicken]

Originally Posted by MathGeek

I was a dedicated Seaguar angler for many years, but I kept having unexplained break offs and I began to doubt whether it really lived up to its rating, especially with knots. Under my oversight, some students did scientific testing and found that Seaguar can be as low as 69% of its rated strength when using a recommended knot. Ande came in at 116% of its rated strength even when a knot is tied. See the report at: http://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1202/1202.5260.pdf

I've been buying Ande exclusively since the testing, but I still have a bunch of the other brands to use up. Seaguar catches fish, but I recommend buying about 50% higher rating than you think you need, because that is a realistic estimate at where the stuff really breaks.

That is a great report! Thanks.