Using stick bait with/without a steel leader

[WalterH]

Hi all,in regards to Walleye fishing in waters which also inhabit Northern Pike, I would like to know if everyone uses a steel leader tied to the main line or perhaps a braided line?? I feel the steel leader might affect the numbers of fish you catch and the action of the lure (Rapala shad rap,etc.)? Any thoughts?

[REW]

Actually, several of my friends use one of the solid wire - 8 lb steel leaders. Very thin flexible and pretty impervious to the bite of a northern. The wire is thin enough to have very little effect on the action of the crank. Just put the smallest clip possible on the end of the leader to avoid having too much weight at the crank bait.

http://www.4fishin.com/wire-leaders.htm

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0011246314955a&type=product&cmCat=SEARCH&returnPage=search-results1.jsp&QueryText=wire+leader&N=4887&Ntk=Products&Ntx=mode+matchall&Nty=1&Ntt=wire+leader&noImage=0

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0011429317460a&type=product&cmCat=SEARCH&returnPage=search-results1.jsp&QueryText=wire+leader&N=4887&Ntk=Products&Ntx=mode+matchall&Nty=1&Ntt=wire+leader&noImage=0

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0053946320280a&type=product&cmCat=SEARCH&returnPage=search-results1.jsp&QueryText=wire+leader&N=4887&Ntk=Products&Ntx=mode+matchall&Nty=1&Ntt=wire+leader&noImage=0

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?type=product&cmCat=Related_IPL_320280&id=0003335119657a

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Several of my friends use the last leader listed, which is the titanium leader when fishing for Musky.
With the style fishing that they do; they are flipping and casting heavy baits hour after hour after hour.
The one thing that they noticed is that due to the flipping action - much like cracking a whip at the end of a cast, there is significant bending right after the crimp on the line. As a result, there is the effect of hundreds of sharp bends in the end of this leader. After a few days of hundreds of casting, some of the leaders will began to fray and show signs of broken wires at the crimp. When this is noticed - it is time to change the leader and go with a new one.

If you are simply trolling as is often the case, when fishing for Walleye, you won't have this issue, because you aren't doing the hundrends of casts that are the case for Musky fishing.

Take care
REW

[bentrod]

I tied up some quick-strike leaders using this, it is very thin. Use regular knots no need to use a sleeve. A little expensive but cheaper than pike bite offs and a lost lure, and those bite-offs usually end in death for the pike.
http://www.malinco.com/fishing/boa.html

[no1son]

The knotable metal leader materials are pretty amazing. It is even possible to snell on bait hooks with some of them and those snells, though more difficult to tie than with regular line, hold very well. They are expensive, but then what else that we fish with isn't?

[WalterH]

Thanks guys,great stuff! I'm up in Canada so will have to see if we have those products,looks like it will work great!

[mike d unlogged]

I use 10-12lb mono and fish for walleyes in lake that have a ton of northerns. Don't remember the last time I was bit off using any crankbait even small ones like #5 shadraps.

There will be somedays we will catch 20+ northerns with no problems.

Make sure you retie if you see any abrasions from the teeth.

[Slayer]

Flurocarbon Leader material can be used in place of the metal leaders with good results. Seagar is a manufacturer of this product. Looks and acts like mono with the performance of steel.
http://seaguar.com/Products_FW.html

"Slayer"

[PRD1]

Good point Slayer, our group has pretty much started using the fluorocarbon leaders exclusively when fishing Canadian waters and I use them most of the time here in MN. You can make your own with ball bearing swivels for a couple bucks each. I like the titanium leaders but sure hate to lose them given what they cost and really prefer the flurocarbon because of the invisibility of the material.

I make 30#, 60#, 80# leaders and buy the 130# leaders I use for Muskie because the 130# material is really pricey. The 30s and 60s are good for walleye and bass and I use the heavier ones when targeting pike and muskie. The leaders are incredibly durable and best of all they don't kink up like the steel leaders.