Leader Set-Up

[Chefben4 0]

First off Merry Christmas everyone! Hope everyone is having a good time and spreading christmas cheer. I got some new fly line that im super excited about (Chard's custom Grand Slam by SA)..

 

In any case, the question. Whats an easy leader set up for specks and redfish. I tend to overkill, so I figured Id check with my resident experts.

[agn54 0]

First off Merry Christmas everyone! Hope everyone is having a good time and spreading christmas cheer. I got some new fly line that im super excited about (Chard's custom Grand Slam by SA)..

 

In any case, the question. Whats an easy leader set up for specks and redfish. I tend to overkill, so I figured Id check with my resident experts.

 

For both I use about a 9ft leader of 4 1/2 ft 40#, 2 1/2 ft 30#, and 2 1/2 ft 20 # with a 20-30 # flouro tippet. For lighter flies and rods, I'll use the same set up but with 40#, 20#, 12#.

[P.G. Beckett 0]

First off Merry Christmas everyone! Hope everyone is having a good time and spreading christmas cheer. I got some new fly line that im super excited about (Chard's custom Grand Slam by SA)..

 

In any case, the question. Whats an easy leader set up for specks and redfish. I tend to overkill, so I figured Id check with my resident experts.

 

For both I use about a 9ft leader of 4 1/2 ft 40#, 2 1/2 ft 30#, and 2 1/2 ft 20 # with a 20-30 # flouro tippet. For lighter flies and rods, I'll use the same set up but with 40#, 20#, 12#.

I tie my leaders almost identical preferring the #12 if I am not fishing near too many mangroves, but I only use the flouro tippet when snook are readily available. Reds and specks are not usually leader shy, like the snook are.

[iFly 0]

Same as agn. But in the winter when the water gets really clear I sometimes use 10-15# flouro for the bite tippet; for the spooky fish. Depends on where you are and time of year but agn's set up is perfect.

[spider4 0]

Merry Christmas everyone! For ME I use a 9" leader 4' for 40lb, 2' od 30lb and 3' of 20lb flouro. Hope this helps.

[KayakerStan 0]

I have tied my own leaders for many years and have found they are not as good as store bought ones. If I fished a very calm water area I used a store bought instead of a homemade. Then I happened to find this video on Youtube and have used these ever since. These work amazing as you can customize them to your liking for fresh or saltwater fish.

 

 

By the way Merry Christmas to you all!

[Capt Bob LeMay 0]

For day to day backcountry leaders where snook and tarpon aren't expected I'm still using a "poor boy" system. Start with a permanent butt section spliced directly to the fly line with a seven turn nail knot (for a full intermediate line use two nail knots in a row- intermdediate lines will allow a single nail knot to slip under pressure...). Leader butts for me are always Ande clear mono , in the following strengths and lengths.... for a 7wt, 30lb, 3.5 to 4' long - for an 8 or 9wt, 40lb, 4 to 4.5' long - for a 10wt, 50lb, 4.5 to 5' long, for 11wts and above I only use 60lb and it will be 5 to 6' in length... Every butt section ends with a surgeon's loop big enough to pass your fly (or popping bug) through. Being a bit old fashioned all of my nail knot to fly line connections are coated with Pliobond...

 

The "poor boy" part of the leader setup is just 20lb fluoro (occasionally 30lb if we're working heavy cover or there's snook around, but I'll also go down to 15lb for really clear shallow conditions if necessary) with a surgeon's loop in one end and the fly on the other. Here's the trick... the fluoro is at least one foot longer than the butt section, and many times two feet longer -these dimensions will allow you to turn over any fly without difficulty and still allow you to trim the bitter end back as it frays up from fish bites. If you do without the shock tippet (or more properly the bite tippet) you've got to be very careful to cut back to clean leader or you'll lose fish... We've even taken baby tarpon (five to fifteen pounds) and the occasional good sized snook - but you're going to lose an occasional fish without a bite tippet... We're trading the ability to get more bites for the certainty that the bite tippet allows.

 

That's the Poor Boy.... the beauty of this system is that yhou can loop to loop a heavier fly leader with shock tippet at any time if big fish are on the horizon while having just what's needed for everything else where a shock tippet is a hindrance...

 

Tight lines

Bob LeMay

(954)435-5666

 

p.s. Here's a few pics from our last trips into the Park. I'll be back on the water tomorrow and hope to do a few more before year's end. If anyone wonders what the difference is between pompano and permit.... the permit is the rounder fish in profile.

[agn54 0]

I should add that I also attach a 40# butt section of 1 foot to my fly line with a nail knot and then attach my leaders to it using a loop to loop connection with perfection loops. I also attach my shock tippet the same way so I can change out tippets without shortening the leader. Similarly, I can change leaders without shortening the fly line. It also makes changing leaders or tippets very quick and easy on the water.

 

Beautiful pics, Capt Bob. The trout has really nice coloring, I assume it was in darkish or brackish water in the back country or on the gulf coast? In my experience the East coast trout tend to be a lot more silver and less dark, same with the reds. We had a serious flush of fresh water up my way this past year and the fish were near black with beautiful orange mouths. Even the jack were almost all yellow like a pinfish.

[Chefben4 0]

Thanks everyone, much appreciated! Sounds like I have a good idea what I need to do!

 

Just to clarify.. I just got new fly line. You guys are saying its best to cut off the loop and splice my line and butt section together with a nail knot?

[agn54 0]

Ben, when a new line comes with the loop built in, I just loop to loop it to the butt section of the leader and don't use a nail knot.

[Capt Bob LeMay 0]

I second that with one proviso... after you loop to loop your butt section, take the fly line in one hand, the leader in the other (two wraps around each hand) then pull slowly across your chest until the line is hurting your hands... If the loop that comes with your new fly line survives this extreme stress test... you're ready to fish. Wish I had a nickel for every loop on a new fly line that I've seen fail (and right up there with them are those nicely rigged splices done just for your trip by your local fly shop.... You'll never know the knot is weak with fish under 10lbs. With fish over 100lbs you'll find out the hard way.... so that's how I test my angler's gear at the start of each day (until I know it's been done right....).

 

Lots and lots of ways to set up any leader... make sure of your connections and you'll be ready for whatever is on the other end of the line. Long ago (and not so far away) as a rookie mate on a charterman out of Miami Beach I was lucky enough to work for a really tough captain who insisted that every leader, every bait, every hook and swivel... was right -or it was not going to be in the water. He also taught me to treat every fish as though it were the only one we'd see that day.... Nothing like a day when you're struggling a bit to remember the basics.

[FlyFishin'Jam 0]

I just wanted to second the double nail knot idea, gives a little extra security and is the method i use for all my lines. Not so trustworthy of the welded loops as i have seen a couple fall apart.

 

With saltwater i will often loop a butt section on to which i can attach leaders, also on shooting heads to avoid 'hinging' and a big mess.

 

My backing ends get the co-ax treatment as i have seen GSP backing slice right through fly line, yeouch!

 

[Peterjay 0]

Just to add my $.02 worth: nearly all of the NE saltwater crowd I fish with use a locked Albright knot to attach the permanent butt section to the line. It's slightly offset, but once the knot is coated, it doesn't matter. I've never had one fail, and I've never seen anybody else's fail either. I use thinned Goop to coat the knot so it'll slide easily through the guides, other guys use Pliobond - either works.

[Chefben4 0]

Thanks everyone!

 

Ill make sure to test the loop! After some horror stories Ive read Im not real confident in the loop. Maybe Ill try the locked albright that PJ mentioned. Hmm.. decisions decisions.

[Kirk Dietrich 0]

I make my own loop in the end of my fly line. Of course, I'm not going after anything larger than bull redfish and the loop I put in the flyline has survived them.

 

Kirk