Success with Flouro Leaders?

[rugbyfish]

I've been debating this offseason whether or not to use a 3-4ft flourocarbon leader when trolling for stripers. This past season I tied almost everything directly to the braid, with good results. There were times where I had better success with lures tied directly to braid than the person I was fishing with, who was using a flourocarbon leader. In addition to reduced line visibility, flourocarbon certainly adds some abrasion resistance compared with braid, so you wouldn't need to re-tie as frequently. However, having to re-tie a leader after a break off or after several lure changes takes time, and a leader-to-braid knot is another possible point of failure. With that being said, does it just come down to personal preference? Have any of you seen significantly better results when using a leader?

[brianisoutside]

I use a leader. I prefer to have the Floro break and not the braid. Tying a leader is pretty easy, try a surgeons knot.
http://www.berkley-fishing.com/Berkl...eons-knot.html


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[Slobber Bob]

I'd say it's preference. You can certainly get away with tying directly to braid as you experienced. I prefer to use about 3 ft of leader though. I like having it for abrasion resistance, like you mentioned, but also as something to grab when I'm landing a fish. Braid cuts skin. Especially when your handling the leader with wet and/or slimy hands from being on the water all day and possibly a big azz fish or stingray.

I've never found the justification to spend the extra money on flurocarbon to use as a leader for stripers. Plain monofilament is more than sufficient as stripers are far from leader shy fish. If your going after spadefish or sheepshead you might want fluro, but generally it's not required for most of the fish you'll target in the bay.

I like to connect the two with an alberto knot and add a TA clip to the end for changing lures in a snap. It's been rock solid for all my fishing applications so far. Learn a connection knot you can tie well and you shouldn't have any problems re-tying on the water if needed. Which isn't that often anyway. Or use a barrel swivel. The only problem with the swivel connection is it doesn't pass through the guides like a knot will.

[rugbyfish]

The only problem with the swivel connection is it doesn't pass through the guides like a knot will.

When I've used a leader in the past, I've used a double uni knot, which worked well. The TA clips are very handy, and it makes sense that you wouldn't be re-tying very often. Do you have any issues with the knot catching the guides when casting?

[yakscientist]

For me, and I honestly can't tell you which technique improved my success the most, but I only started catching fish using my preferred method (trolling) when I made the following changes: using a fluoro leader tied to my braid (uni to uni knot), tying a loop knot to whichever lure I'm trolling (usually plastics), and using z-mans. One of those changes, maybe all 3, brought me from catching 0 fish trolling, to catching at least 5 fish (typically over 20 in the summer) trolling each trip. I have never had a problem catching fish while bottom fishing with bait, but like I said, once I switched to those new knots, baits, and leader, I started catching a ton of fish trolling. Could've been complete coincidence, and maybe due to seasonal changes, paddling speed or whatever, but for now, I would like to think it was those other 3 things.

[mike o]

I use a fluorocarbon leader usually with a uni to uni knot, I have been experimenting with another knot, called a jd knot I think. I have never had a uni to uni fail. Sometimes a leader makes a difference especially in clear water.

[J.A. Veil]

There are several good suggestions given already. While you do not absolutely need a leader for trolling, the leader does help in pulling the fish in the final few feet. For fishing in the Chesapeake, you do not really need fluorocarbon -- I use mono (20 or 25 lb). If you are fishing somewhere with really clear water, like Florida, the fluoro is a better choice.

When I switched to a loop knot about 5 years ago, my catching success picked up noticeably -- it does allow the lure to swim more naturally. It is easy to tie a loop knot in mono or fluro. I never tried it with braid, but it might not work as well.

[Jman]

I use mono and I did notice a difference when I started using a leader compared to tying the lure directly on the line. I lost less lures to snags and less fish within five feet of my kayak. I've been reading about the loop knot that John mentioned and I want to learn how to tie that this season.

[Slobber Bob]

When I've used a leader in the past, I've used a double uni knot, which worked well. The TA clips are very handy, and it makes sense that you wouldn't be re-tying very often. Do you have any issues with the knot catching the guides when casting?

Depends. When I fish light tackle and only have a 15# mono leader, no. When I am fishing heavier leader for big fish, like 50# mono, then yes, you will feel it knock as it passes through the guides if you don't clip it tight with nail clippers or really close with good scissors. If you trim the tag end as close as possible, then no issues with heavier leader.

[Mark]

...I've been reading about the loop knot that John mentioned and I want to learn how to tie that this season.

This is how I tie it.

http://www.fishing-khaolak.com/knots...oop_steps.html

There are other ways to tie it that some find easier. But I like the above method.

For leaders, I've used flouro and mono here in the Bay for trolling and casting and honestly I could not tell a difference between the two in effectiveness.

[J.A. Veil]

The diagram Mark shows is the same knot I tie. After fishing with Walleye Pete and my kayak guide in Florida, who both use the loop knot, I decided I wanted to learn how to tie it. I got a spool of mono in the garage and tied the knot 10-15 times in a row to learn it. Now I don't need to think about it -- it is memorized.

The loop knot has only a single strand of line passing through the tie-on eye for the lure. As such, it is not quite as strong as other knots I have used, like the Palomar knot (double strand of line through the eye). But a non-snugged attachment does allow the lure to "swim" more realistically.

If I am tying to a lure with a split ring already attached to the eye (like many crankbaits), I do not feel that using the loop adds any extra motion. In that case, I go with the Palomar or Clinch knot.

[On the fly]

When tying fluorocarbon to braid I use FG knot. Very strong, and very slim. You can find many animations and videos with search on google.

[Backdoc]

I fish the Susquehanna a lot. It can be gin clear. I have to use a leader. I usually use a 10lb fluoro and will use a 20lb for certain times of the year. I use a double uni knot. I have tried the Alberto knot and lost a $30 custom mahogany plug on the second cast. There is a use for an Alberto but not when casting and pulling the knot through the eyes. I have also played around with the FG and the slim beauty but the double uni is very strong and fairly easy to tie.

[Backdoc]

When tying fluorocarbon to braid I use FG knot. Very strong, and very slim. You can find many animations and videos with search on google.

www.netknots.com has the best animation I have seen.

[summersoff]

I always have a swivel between my braid and mono leader, polamar for both ends. I will have to try that loop knot,.