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switch10

So, why doesn't everyone just use furled leaders??

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This has sure been an interesting thread. So many opinions and it seems that much of it depends on the type of fishing each does. I am a warmwater FF. It seems that the fish are at least a part of the determining factor.

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A furled leader IS a tapered leader. It is an extension of the fly line in exactly the same way that any other tapered leader is an extension of the fly line. The business end of a 8/0 Uni-Thread furled leader is nearly as fine as 4x tippet, but is 6# test. You use a tapered leader to distance the bulky end of your fly line from the fly, and to prevent spooking the fish.

 

If you are fishing for fish that are not leader shy (bass, bream, crappie, catfish, Alaska salmon) then using a tapered leader is a waste of time and money. For most trout, however, a properly sized tapered leader is a must.

 

In use, a furled leader does display the same shock absorbing qualities of a Bimini twist, but it does much more. There is also a tendency, as noted, to wick water. This can be prevented by simply waxing the leader before use. I use hard bees wax for this, but Mucilin line dressing also works. It's not for everyone, nor every fishing situation, but I don't go trout fishing without one.

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I haven't found water spray to be much of a problem. I do coat my leader well before using it so it floats all day and doesn't hold much water. I doubt I'll go back to tapered leaders personally. A friend converted me to furled and a number of other people have been converted after I gave them a leader for a day of fishing. However, I'd be surprised if everyone used them, there aren't that many specific items that 'everyone' uses fly fishing. We have preferences whether or not they are universally better.

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Hahaha, coiled mess....someone needs some casting lessons, i can cast 10 - 12 ft of straight mono, fluoro and get it to turn over exactly the same as a furled leader, and sometimes with a huge ass intruder attached, go figure...

 

+1

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Certainly a lot here, some of which is based on faulty reasoning. Many years ago I was searching for a leader to use on my 6' brook rod. The best advice was to get a knotless tapered leader and cut it down. That meant loosing a lot of the taper. Then I found furled leaders in Darrell Martin's book. For the tight corners and technical casting I use that rod in they are, by a country mile, the best solution I have found. That said I am still looking for further improvements.

 

Some of the points that I would like to answer. You don't need a jig to make furled leaders. I make loads, must have made thousands over the years. I don't use a jig. The set up I use is far more versatile than that. Here is my furling kit, It lives in an old shoe box when not in use, but would fit in something 1/3rd the size. All you need in addition to this is a table 20% longer than the finished leader you want to make.

post-43582-0-44410400-1371887108_thumb.jpg

Most of that kit is there just to make production easier, When I demonstrate furling I use a dubbing whirl and bottles held down with blue tack for the stanchions.

 

Fly line taper is enough. The size of the tip of a fly line isn't dictated by any casting factor, but by the manufacturing process. Fly lines are made on a level core, the taper being made from the polymer coating. The tip size is dictated by the size of the core and the thinnest practical coating. The fact that so many line manufacturers also sell tapered leaders demonstrates that they consider that the taper needs to be continued beyond the fly line.

 

Furled Leaders are a one trick pony. This simply isn't correct. Slack is needed in the leader after the cast. I'll answer both at once. Slack is needed to prevent drag. The drag is caused by the fact that mono is stiff. The coils and wiggles are pulled out by the current giving the fly time to drift drag free. A thread furled leader isn't stiff when on the water. It will move freely, and so overcomes the problem of leader caused drag in a different way. That is a second trick from the pony. Yesterday I had an AAPGAI (Association of Advanced Professional Game Angling Instructors) instructor order a bunch of leaders from me. He stated that he wanted them for their limpness on the water above the improved turnover they give. Not having to generate slack in the leader means it is possible to cast with greater accuracy.

 

I do not consider furled leaders to be a universal solution in all fishing situations. I don't use them all the time. When I do use them it is because they are the best solution to the problems in that situation. They are prone to spray. If the spray is hitting you in the face then you are lifting off in a far more aggressive way than I could get away with in the places I fish. The spray is only really apparent at the end of the back cast, where it doesn't matter. In over 15 years of using them I have never seen a fish spooked by the spray on the forward cast. Coating the leader with floatant reduces the problem of spray even more.

 

They do stretch, but the stretch is very limited. I would say a leader will stretch up to 2 or 3% of its length. Then it will not stretch beyond that. The stretch is the inherent stretch in any rope. (Which is what a furled leader is).

 

You can learn to cast in such a way that you put in the extra energy needed to turn over a level length of mono. Furled leaders are not a cure for and should not be a reason for bad casting. Why though not make use of every advantage you can get? The extra energy put in for turning over a level leader can create other casting problems. This, after all is what brought about the development of tapered fly lines in the first place.

 

Of course, as they say, "your mileage may vary".

 

Cheers,

C.

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Hahaha, coiled mess....someone needs some casting lessons, i can cast 10 - 12 ft of straight mono, fluoro and get it to turn over exactly the same as a furled leader, and sometimes with a huge ass intruder attached, go figure...

 

+1

Of course it will turn over with a fly which has some decent mass. The velocity of the fly combined with the mass of the fly equals momentum which will carry the "heavy" fly forward. No brainer. I'd like to see a straight 10 foot leader of 4lb test tied to a small dry fly get turned over the same as a tapered leader- on a normal type cast - with all other factors being equal. I'm all about keeping it simple, but there are sound reasons for using a tapered leader.

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I had a guy give me a furled leader for my 6wt. I liked it for streamers and such, but when i would put a topwater bait on, the fly wouldnt act right? Is it just me or maybe u shouldnt use furled leaders for topwater flies?

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OK, this is starting to get complicated. Can somebody please explain to me in SIMPLE terms what the advantages are of using a furled leader? Is it something that's normally used on trout streams, or is it applicable to warm/salt water? Is it supposed to be more rigid or more flexible? Why would it turn a fly over better than mono? (please no physics lecture) Frankly, I've not only never used a furled leader, I've never even SEEN one. I doubt I'll be rushing out to get one for the simple reason that the leader systems I've developed over the years aren't exactly crying out for any improvement that I can think of. That said, I'd sure like to understand the basics, as would others who are probably as confused as I am.

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In plain terms a fly line turns over due to the transfer of energy from a heavier thicker portion to a thinner lighter portion. Hence the tapers of fly lines. Add a tapered leader to this and you extend the energy transfer. A furled leader made of thread will be more flexible in the same dia than a solid mono one and this may be better for dry flies. For wet flies I personally don't see a need for anything other than a straight leader but I am looking again at furled leader for dry flies just to check im not missing out LOL.

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Furled Leaders are a one trick pony. This simply isn't correct. Slack is needed in the leader after the cast. I'll answer both at once. Slack is needed to prevent drag. The drag is caused by the fact that mono is stiff. The coils and wiggles are pulled out by the current giving the fly time to drift drag free. A thread furled leader isn't stiff when on the water. It will move freely, and so overcomes the problem of leader caused drag in a different way. That is a second trick from the pony. Yesterday I had an AAPGAI (Association of Advanced Professional Game Angling Instructors) instructor order a bunch of leaders from me. He stated that he wanted them for their limpness on the water above the improved turnover they give. Not having to generate slack in the leader means it is possible to cast with greater accuracy.

Now that simply isn't correct either :-) If the drag in the butt and mid section of the leader were a concern, then this would be great. But its the tippet, which is not made of magic furled supple stuff, that gets you into trouble. Laying out a mono tippet in a straight line makes it immediately susceptible to drag. That accuracy comes at the cost of drag. You certainly can find some situations were a no-slack cast will give a drag free drift. But in my experience the majority of stream fishing for trout requires a slack tippet for a reasonable drift. I'm ignoring tight line nymphing and streamer fishing here for obvious reasons.

But if you are having fun and catching fish, that's all that matters.

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I use furled leaders for fishing my favorite brookie haunts for dry flies I use a black thread furled leader and for my nymphs I use a thread furled leader that starts out hot orange then transfers to black making me a built in strike indicator

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Hairwing.....I keep telling the newbs that FF is not rocket science and you just backed me up

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I wonder if Orvis still sells the braided butt leaders. The thought came to me the tips were available in various wt. knotless tapers. Gonna check into it. Also, nylon sinks if not greased, similarly fluro floats. Seems like I remember my 2# vision fluro braided er furled leaders did that well, anyway I have to get back to fishing so I know what I'm talking about.

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I use furled leaders from feather-craft.com exclusively, I have used every other brand I have found and feather craft wins every time. They are wound far tighter than any other brand that I have found and in my mind that makes them turn over flies and longer tippets better. Mine have the tiny little tippet rings an if you have some really spooky fish you can tie on 3 feet of 10 lb flouro, then 3 feet of 6 lb, then 3 feet of 2 lb and cast to 'em from your car, LOL!! I can even toss size 6 and 8 hoppers on my 3 wt. I LOVE 'EM!!! I also found that on my 7 wt pike rod the work well as a shock leader.

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