pre manufactured tapered leaders

[edleigh7]

I hadn't been fly fishing for a while, til the other weekend, so i went to the tackle shop and got one of these "No Knots" (not for me!!LOL) tapered leaders that clip on your fly line. I didn't catch any fish on it (probably due to my lack of form!), just wondering what everyone thinks about them?

Are they just for lazy fisherman or are they any good?

Thanks in advance

Ed

[wessel]

If it is a knotted joint then no problem in my opinion.
If it is a loop to loop connection then you are entering grounds of personal preference - Personally I dont like the idea but do use them purely because you can get it off and changed quickly especially when you are fishing on premade rigs with wire at the tip. Toothy critter bites through, and instead of tying on a new wire, you just slip it off and slip on another premade setup. Fly back in the water where the action is in no time at all.

If it is a physical clip that is in the line, then my opinion is no. It creates a perfect hinge point and can be a bastard to turn in windy conditions.

Wessel

[edleigh7]

Thanks for that Wessel......its not knotted at all. You put like a clip, about 2mm to your actual flyline and you have you leader that tapers down to your tippet....in this case 10lb tippet, there are no joins or knots at all. It all tapers down smoothly...one continuous line....and if you get busted off or from too many times tieing flies on to the line and you end up back into your leader....or in my case too many knotts ...you simply unclip it from your fly line and clip on a new one ready to go

What do you fish for in Qatar?

Ed

[flyfisho]

Ed,
It sounds to me like you have a tapered leader however I have never heard of this connection to your flyline , not to say its not good I have just never seen one, I would test it and see if doesn't break lower than your tippet, I am also under the impression that most tapered leaders are around 9 foot long and you still have to put a tippet on the end , I have only used them for bonefish and don't have that much experience with them .
I think that if the clip doesn't hinge it would be good for transferring the energy of the cast to your fly , I assume thats what Wessel is saying about loop to loop connections and I tend to agree, although I do use a braided loop on the end of my fly line for easy changes and so that it doesnt encroach on the head of my line , but this is the only loop in my leader setup I opt for a two peice leader in nearly all situations from Barra to bream. but if your learning a tapered leader is great for turning over flys and if you do knot it an opposing nail knot is meant to be the best for transfering the energy of the cast , I use a triple surgeon its quick easy and about %90 in fluorocarbon
mate I hope this helps