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

[Poopdeck 0]

They are unquestionably a personal preference. I agree they are at thier finest for dry flys. Im not buying the idea that a little trout is stretching a furled leader thereby dampening detection by any measurable amount. I like furled leaders for nymphing in say 3 or less feet of water. When i am nymphing im relatively close to the fly further negating factors surrounding line stretch. Line stretch is a factor when you have a hundred yards out. A 5 to 7 foot furled leader has no appreciable stretch just as 5 to 7 foot of mono has no appreciable stretch.

[Kentuckysteve 0]

So i have seen positive and negative post about furled leaders.They seem to be just like every other fishing product.You either like them or you do not.I have never used a furled leader but they don't appear to be any better than my hand twisted leaders i already have.They both provide an almost invisible connection between fly line and tippet and they both land lightly,roll over and straighten out like they should.It comes down to personal preference.I don't seem to be missing anything by not using them.

[mikechell 0]

they don't appear to be any better than my hand twisted leaders i already have.

"hand twisted leaders"??? Sounds like you ARE using a furled leader, since that's really just a "twisted leader".

I could be confused ... again.

[Kentuckysteve 0]

I take a single strand of mono or flouro and twist it freehanded then fold it over and twist it more then tie it at certain lengths to form a leader.I think a furled leader has more strands or is made of fly tying thread.I have not used one so i am not sure either.Maybe i am making furled leaders and did not realize it.

[Dave G. 0]

About 25 years ago I settled in on knotted Chameleon leaders after trying various tapered leaders that I never liked. Every time I try something different I'm never really happy with it, I just go back to that again. Course you can't buy them anymore so have to make them up. I find the furled leader idea interesting though and that is probably about as far as I will ever get with it ! Since retiring I try not to chase every idea that comes down the pike when I have something that's working for me already. If I had a broken part to my leader program ( unhappy) that might be another story then, it would be worth the chase maybe.

 

On the other hand, it's also interesting that most of my spinning reels now have braided line on them, pretty much never replace it and it never curls on me. Just need a leader on there and that you do have to change now and then. Different topic I know except that it's fabric line that works well.

[mikechell 0]

Does anybody buy a tapered leader ... cut it to the appropriate diameter, then tie a perfection loop and put a tippet on that? The rod I borrowed in Illinois didn't have a good leader on it, so that's what I did for that one. It seemed to work pretty good.

 

Just wondering, with all this talk of furled leaders and knotted leaders.

[Dave G. 0]

Does anybody buy a tapered leader ... cut it to the appropriate diameter, then tie a perfection loop and put a tippet on that? The rod I borrowed in Illinois didn't have a good leader on it, so that's what I did for that one. It seemed to work pretty good.

 

Just wondering, with all this talk of furled leaders and knotted leaders.

I have done that yes. And then keep a couple of different tippet systems made up that can just go on loop to loop. For a while there I was buying all 2x tippet, put in the loop and I would add on to that. I found I kind of wasted the tippets though, getting them caught in vest zippers, or knotted up etc.etc.

[mikechell 0]

I rarely use tippets and leaders, just one piece of mono from fly line to fly. But that experience in Illinois got me thinking. So, I have two rods set up with a whip finished loop on the fly line, a piece of 14 pound test looped to that for a leader and either 10lb, 6lb or 4lb (rarely) looped to the 14lb.

I keep the different lines on tippet spools or small line spools. I have a band of elastic strap round the spool with the line extending through the elastic. When I pull out new line, I tie a new perfection loop on the line on the spool. So, if I want to change tippet, I just pull off the right amount of line and it's already got the loop knot on it.

 

However ... after having said all that ... I haven't been much impressed on the system and might not keep doing it for too many more trips.

[McGnat 0]

Due to the way a perfection knot is tied, you can pull off more tippet to your liking and tie another perfection loop. Keep going for as many as you like and wind them back on the spool. When you need a new tippet just unspool to the knot and clip off the new tippet between the knot and the spool.

[mikechell 0]

Two problems I see with that, McGnat ...

1) If you happen to want a longer tippet, you can't.

2) I have a problem with mono unspooling and making a mess. After you've wound the knotted mono back on the spool, how do you keep it from doing that?

 

I am not disagreeing with your method, I just think the way I do it is working well for now.

[Dave G. 0]

When I've cut a tippet back so it's getting too short from putting on many flies, I've been known to just tie on a new piece to the old. I like at least 3-4 ft of tippet though and have used 6 ft in a midge hatch ( think clear still water fishing for finicky trout). Bass fishing is a whole different affair, I have a loop on the fly line probably cut from the last new leader I put on there . I run 12 lb test Chameleon looped off of that, drop to 8Lb for the fly ( tied on). And the whole rig is about 6-7ft. Where for trout the whole leader is more like 12-14 ft with tippet. But for bass I only use that because it's the same weights of line I use on our trolling rigs and I keep spools of it on hand up in my hutch and on the boat. But even spin fishing I use 8 lb for bass off my braided line. Actually I think on poppers I've run the 12lb leader without tippet more than once. I've never known bass to be line shy, I think you could use rope ( just kidding).

 

Trolling rigs are on lead core line, we run about 25ft leaders complete. And of that leader, the 8lb test tippet is 8-12 ft long. And some of the serious salmon trollers tell us that is too short, that we should be running 20ft of tippet regardless of the length of base leader.. . I told one of the guides I know in Maine we used 8 ft one time and that was his reply. Well we didn't get the boat up there last year with my bum knee and all. But next time I do I might just try that. I get it, because it's clear water and we are fishing in 35-60 ft of water generally near the top , the fish have a clear view of the whole rig.

[McGnat 0]

Two problems I see with that, McGnat ...

1) If you happen to want a longer tippet, you can't.

2) I have a problem with mono unspooling and making a mess. After you've wound the knotted mono back on the spool, how do you keep it from doing that?

 

I am not disagreeing with your method, I just think the way I do it is working well for now.

I usually fish about the same length tippet. Any longer and it will not turn over properly. Of course you could just make each tippet overly long.

The elastic that comes on the tippet spool keeps it in order.

[ThreeJsDad 0]

Given that we have strayed off topic as far as we have I think I will take a stab at the original question that was asked by the OP. Not everyone uses them for one real reason whether they realize it or not. In order for a furled leader to perform well it needs to be built for the particular application in which the will be used. I am going to suggest that in most cases people who tried them and did not like them were using an off the shelf furled leader. Off the shelf type furled leaders are no better and sometimes worse than tapered mass produced mono leaders.

 

Keep in mind I have been fishing them for 20 years and LOVE them. I also am building a business based on furled leaders.

 

Mikechell: if you shoot me a pm or post your specs I will build you a couple of furled leaders to play with and we will see if you like them. I will need to know line weights, fly type (big and bushy or more stream lined), primary tippet size and if you use a nail knot or a loop in your fly line. There are other details we could get into but that will give me a basis to go off of. It may take me a couple of tries to nail down what you like because we don't fish together but I believe I can come up with something you will really like. If we fished together I would have it sorted out in one shot.

[Kentuckysteve 0]

I don't use furled leaders because from what i have read they are no better than what i already make myself and use and for the price of one furled leader i can buy a spool of line that will make dozens of leaders.I have not read anything about them that makes me believe they will improve my fishing or make that much of a difference.Some people say they will never use anything else.To each his own i guess.

[mikechell 0]

I appreciate the offer, but I'll decline. The previous experience was similar to what you offer. I had a member of another site make the same offer. I told him what I had and he built one and sent it to me.

My complaint wasn't it's casting ability but it's tendency to pick up water every time a start a new cast.

If it's a furled (braided ... twisted ... whatever) leader, it will probably pick up water no matter what application it's designed for.