Lets talk Leaders

[Volvo]

Think this subject has been bashed about before but what the heck ??, would like to chat about it more ..
Leader rolls , mostly in the hundred meter length by variouse makers.
Flurocarbon etc.
All these worthy of paying the extra $$ for ??..
Why not a 300/500 mtr roll of Snyder , super 300 which has thinner diameter for it braking strength etc and variouse other brands i could enquire about??.
Under console dash of my Tinny i have spools of so called leader material in variouse breaking strength and also have larger spools of mono line i use for leader
and to be honest i sometimes think my larger spools of mono come up trumps more often.
Your thought folks ??..
Most my bigger catches with raspier teeth were handled better with the latter too by the way ??..

[NAGG]

Interesting subject which depends on how you look it - eg Fluorocarbon Vs Mono .... Technical benefits Vs a consumable that you are thinking of the cost (in many cases)

I use FC pretty well since it came out ( early 2000s) - there is no doubt in my mind it makes a difference in light line , shallow / clear water & finicky species ...... I wouldn't use anything but FC for my bream , bass , trout fishing (unless fishing topwater - Mono because of the difference in density) ....... The use of FC progressed to my snapper fishing - that is much about confidence than anything tangible .

When it comes to deeper fishing & bigger fish ........ I'm less convinced of the benefits - yeh would have loved back in the day to have had FC on the boat when you have 70-90kg yellow fin tuna at the back of the boat refusing all offerings.

These days we have a good selection of clear monofilament leader material available - * Now leader material is not the same as monofilament line
Leader is often a coextrusion (different polymers or additives used) - Harder & less supple - I used to sell an additive to Aust monofilament that went into their game leader to improve the abrasion resistance . Note : There are monofilament lines that a coex (two layers)

Now having said that - any impoundment barra fishoe worth their salt know the benefits of using this bad boy Barra leader.jpg

Its hard as rock (straight Pa6 nylon) with great abrasion resistance (compared to other leader FC or mono) - cheap as chips & readily available ....... the big plus is it's diameter - thick 55lb is 0.8mm - compare this to 50lb Sunline FC rock @ 0.57mm - that greater surface area means more abrasion resistance & ultimately nothing to do with the breaking strain . The impoundment barra guys have used it for 20 years or more . I do expect more than a few spools have been sold to the odd reef fishoe over the years too

What I've come to realize over the years is that leader is a personal thing .... one of those things that will be argued around a fire for years to come . You either see it as a commodity or as something crucial for your fishing .

Any way you look at it ..... this is a reasonable read

Sport Fishing Leader | Flouro VS Mono | Ocean Blue Fishing


Chris

[Barry Ehsman]

With the heading i thought it was another thread about politics lol

[Volvo]

With the heading i thought it was another thread about politics lol

Never thought o that lol ..

[NAGG]

heck -

tackle & accessories chat - politics fits perfectly

What a cracker Barry

Chris

[NAGG]

Just a point on nylon - most polyamides (nylon) absorb water ....... nylons need to absorb X amount of water to reach their "optimum state" - in a wet environment they absorb too much & start to lose their properties . In essence you don't want to keep monofillament for a long time ( years ) - there are plenty of scholastic papers written on this . Buying 10 years worth of leader ...... yeh - Nah

Chris

[tunaticer]

Light plastics I use Nitlon DFC
Hardbodies is usually Either DFC or schnieder Klear Line
Live baiting is always Schnieder Klear Line

If i am chasing Mackerel I usually get the 10x out specifically for the extra stretchiness.

[steve099]

Salt strong did an interesting video on youtube on this exact topic and the brother with the beard swears his tests proved FC was an over priced gimmick when comparing strength etc...I will see if I can dig it up, it was quite an interesting clip.

sadly i still buy FC and have started using FC rock recently. its quite nice and ties well with no breaks yet. Any snags requiring force has resulted in it breaking when the jig head it tied on with a loop knot which is exactly what i want it to do as I dislike tying leaders while on the water.

[chris69]

Gee ive used FC rock 12lb for anything light for years and still use blackmagic for heavyer leaders for live baiting for jacks,i still use Andy pink for a butt leader on a fly line chasing tuna for its stretch at the boat when landing one,theres so many different leader materials out theres day.

Has anyone used any Pandera yet ive bought a 60lb spool to try out being a hybreed mono fluro I'm curious about its sink rate.

[stevej]

i have fc rock in all sizes from 4pound to 60 in the tackle bag and never had a issue with it.

trees in the river can get quite abrasive with all the sand embedded in the wood and fc holds up better then straight mono on the few mono spooled bait-casters i have

actually thinking of going straight fluro for cod to save the hassle of tying leader knots in 1 degree temps and having to take the gloves off

[NAGG]

i have fc rock in all sizes from 4pound to 60 in the tackle bag and never had a issue with it.

trees in the river can get quite abrasive with all the sand embedded in the wood and fc holds up better then straight mono on the few mono spooled bait-casters i have

actually thinking of going straight fluro for cod to save the hassle of tying leader knots in 1 degree temps and having to take the gloves off

Hey Steve

Back to what I said earlier - leader material is not line & vice versa Fluorocarbon line is not leader material .

The FC leader is usually 100% fluorocarbon - it's stiffer more abrasion resistant than line . FC line is usually a co-polymer (blends of fluorocarbon & a polyamide - Seaguar who are probably the worlds leader (no pun intended) in fluoro lines & leader) co extrude two different FC polymers to create a better line .

FC line is certainly more abrasion resistant than mono .... but you still need leader to deal with the raspy nature of the cods mouth .
Yes you can fish FC "line" straight through ..... but it does depend on what you are fishing for & the structure being fished ........ finicky bream in clear water , trout , whiting .

Oh & another thing .... If you notice , FC line is generally only available in breaking strains of less than 20lb - if you have experience with FC you'll know why

Chris

[NAGG]

Salt strong did an interesting video on youtube on this exact topic and the brother with the beard swears his tests proved FC was an over priced gimmick when comparing strength etc...I will see if I can dig it up, it was quite an interesting clip.

sadly i still buy FC and have started using FC rock recently. its quite nice and ties well with no breaks yet. Any snags requiring force has resulted in it breaking when the jig head it tied on with a loop knot which is exactly what i want it to do as I dislike tying leaders while on the water.

I did see a couple of Salt Strongs videos ...... it was quite interesting but.
Personally I dont use FC leader for abrasion resistance - I'm more about the refractive index .

I like the FC Rock ......which I've been using for over a decade - certainly no reason to switch though sometimes it can be difficult to buy (sold out) . Daiwa J thread is ok too .... marginal difference

Chris

[stevej]

Ive got fc all the way to 60 pound for cod
and it’s mainly that gear I’m talking about as with the millers in millers I have to use fg knots and it’s a bit hard with eyes getting older and freezing weather

it’s a common thing to use for cod and the yanks use it for their bass swimbait gear as well

[NAGG]

Ive got fc all the way to 60 pound for cod
and it’s mainly that gear I’m talking about as with the millers in millers I have to use fg knots and it’s a bit hard with eyes getting older and freezing weather

it’s a common thing to use for cod and the yanks use it for their bass swimbait gear as well

What is the FC you are using ?

Chris

[stevej]

A mix of sunline fc rock and daiwa j thread