Phil from Maine

I wish, I was down there to and see if I could hook into one of those big bass.. LOL That would certainly be something.. I also try hard to stay stocked up on lures and stuff. But, with a couple of kids and a wife, grandson that is trying to lurn how to fish as well as myself I can go threw a lot of tackle sometimes.. For as far as braided line goes what do you use? Is it simply spider wire? or something else? I may get some to try it out. Do you also use a leader of the braided line or just tie right on to it? I know some of these questions sound kind of stupid but really I have no idea. It has always been mono for me except for the flyrod or leadline fishing deep..

Chuck7

Not stupid at all..fact I plan to ask you some elementary fly fishing questions in the near future,,

From my experience..Power Pro is the best braid..for your area largemouths 20 lb would be fine..
20 pound Power Pro is about 6 pound diameter.


Fly fishing question...

My rod came equipped with a tapered leader..it's to my understanding that I make a loop knot at the end of the leader and simply tie on about 5 foot of 8 pound mono ..is this correct?

Phil from Maine

First thanks for the reply..

Now with this question everyone does things differently..

What some will do is purchase an eyelet that you push into the flyline. This little thing is sharp and contains barbs like on a fish hook. Normaly 3 barbs but some may have 4 and the shaft is roughly a 1/4 inch long. This works great if you are not in a fly fishing only area. At least here anyways any thing that can add even the slightest of wieght would be a no no..

How how tie mine together (just in case I end up in a fly fishing only area) is to tie them together with an improved fishermans knot. I tie one end and then the other the same way. Then cut away any and all excessive line. I have to be carefull when running my leader and line out threw the rod eyes. Other than that this works good.

Chuck7

Hey Partner..I know how to attach the leader to the fly line..{ -;My question is..do you attack a piece of mono to the leader?..to save your leader

mrl0004

If you have a tapered leader, it should be tapered down including the tippet at the end. Meaning you shouldn't have to add anything. What kind of leader (size) is it? Is it rated for bass? The reason I ask is that a lot of leaders for trout taper down to 6X or 7X, which a big bass would snap in a heartbeat. A bass leader is usually rated at 8-16lb test and has a large diameter butt and short, steep taper providing the "muscle" to turn over big bass bugs.

For you chuck, where you fish, I would recommend a furled leader. It's extremely effective at turning over a big popper and it attaches directly to the fly line with a loop/loop connection. The other end usually has a small ring or loop that you attach 8lb mono (or whatever size you want) by a simple clinch knot. That's my warmwater set up. Extremely easy and low maintenance. So if you get hung up, just snap off the tippet and tie a new one on! There are numerous places on the internet that carry them or you can build your own.

Sorry to butt in, but thought I would put my $0.02 in.

Chuck7

Thanks man..that helps alot..
Honestly..i don't know what size the leader is..I do know it's a tapered leader...and I was thinking..to keep from tieing and retieing and destroying my leader..I could just tie a loop on the end of the leader and attached some monofilament..

I would like to get good at fly fishing..I've done some before { About 5 times total} years ago..and thought I'd get into it again..

So ..the tippit is the end of the leader?

Is this a good furled leader?



http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fluorocarbon...item256ebf2842

Here's another..

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Wonderfurl-C...item53e5c48343

Phil from Maine

No problem mrl0004..

I do differ quite a bit.. But, what would I know? I have caught bass but, then again they have only been smallmouths and not much pulling them out of the weeds..My largest fish is only the Atlantic Salmon in which both the smallmouths and the Atlantics are real good acrobats.. The smaller landlocks as well are pretty good at doing acrobatic tricks while trying to escape from the hooks.

I do agree with mrl0004 one the leader issue and sorry for not fully understanding your question Chuck. I simply tie my fly right on the leader in which I use a mono leader.. The wieght is dependant on what type of fish you are fishing for.. For as far as tying any form of loop for me is a big no way would I. I have learned over the years added knots lead to breakage. The more knots you use the bigger the chance for your line to break. The tippet being the end of the leader is correct..

Chuck7

Thanks Phil...I thought that was the case..I guess I need to have some extra leaders..How often do you guys go through leaders??..

By the way..I'd be catching bluegills up to 3/4 pounds
and bass up to ..maybe 5

mrl0004

Chuck,

To answer your earlier question first, tippet is what goes on the end of the leader, or some people build tapered leaders out of varying (large to small) tippets. Tippet is expensive (smaller than mono and fluoro, with same pound rating). I usually use straight fluro or mono in 4-6lb test for trout and 8-12lb test for bass, or bluegill as they aren't leader shy. I use a loop to loop on fly line to furled leader, and a clinch for furled leader to tippet.

The second leader you added a link to on Ebay is probably the better of the two. Just remember fluoro sinks more than mono. So if you are going to be fishing a topwater bug, it may pull that down a bit. Mono is what I have I think. A friend made them for me, so I don't know for sure.

I usually use a furled leader for a year. And that is fishing all spring, summer, fall and winter. I only use a fly rod, so it is getting lot's of use/abuse over that time period. The ONLY negative for them is that they will tend to accumulate algae, etc. if you fish them in muck. Just have to weigh out the benefits over the negatives. To me the benefits far outweigh the negatives.

Some people will tell you that they spook fish because they're larger than tapered leaders, but those are the same people that forget about the huge chartreuse fly line floating on top of the water! I use them for spooky brook trout all the way to larger wary brown trout. I still catch 'em! The key is lengthening the amount of tippet I add. This is typically (almost always) not a problem in warmwater as bass, bluegill, etc don't care what size tippet you are using.

Hope this clears it up for you more.

Chuck7

First of all...an apology to Buckhunter for hi jacking his thread..

Alabama Fly Fisherman and Phil..you've both been a great help...I noticed that we have a lot of dragonflies around..orange colored...are there any bass bugs that resemble dragonflies? These are the only insects that I'm aware of that I've seen causing bass to bust the surface...and those that bust are pretty darn good sized bass....some up to 8 pounds..entire bass leaping up shaking their big red flared gills.

Thanks again,
Chuck7