Leaders?

[REW]

Just curious for folks that run leaders.

I know that there is a lot of talk these days about using braid with a floro leader.

Just curious if folks had ever done side by side comparison over enough time to give it a valid test to use inexpensive mono of equivalent size and lb test of the floro leader to see if there is any difference in the catch rate and the number of fish in the live well by using either mono or floro for a leader?

I suspect that a lot of folks are using the floro leaders because of the advertising for the particular line. But, rather than just listening to the advertising, have the users of the line tested both in a long term side by side comparison to see if either has an advantage that folks have personally found to be better than than the other.

i.e. personal experience, as related to the number of fish in the live well, as opposed to what someone says should happen by using the various leader materials?

Take care

[twistertom]

I very rarely use leaders since most of my fishing is done on the Mississippi. However, I do use mono/flouro on my 3-way rigs. For me, I prefer mono over flouro because it doesn't seem to get as twisted up. I have tried the cheap mono - like Trilene - but it is too brittle for me. In terms of putting fish in the boat I don't see an advantage of one or the other and comes down to personal preference & confidence in what you are putting in the water.

[Coho975]

Originally Posted by REW

Just curious for folks that run leaders.

I know that there is a lot of talk these days about using braid with a floro leader.

Just curious if folks had ever done side by side comparison over enough time to give it a valid test to use inexpensive mono of equivalent size and lb test of the floro leader to see if there is any difference in the catch rate and the number of fish in the live well by using either mono or floro for a leader?

I suspect that a lot of folks are using the floro leaders because of the advertising for the particular line. But, rather than just listening to the advertising, have the users of the line tested both in a long term side by side comparison to see if either has an advantage that folks have personally found to be better than than the other.

i.e. personal experience, as related to the number of fish in the live well, as opposed to what someone says should happen by using the various leader materials?

Take care

I use both throughout the year. Generally speaking, I think flouro sinks faster, is stiffer, doesn't stretch as readily, and is more abrasion resistant than mono. This can be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on the type of fishing you're doing or the technique your using. I'm not sure you could make a blanket statement that one line always puts more fish in the box than the other. My .02

[whytie]

Ice Fishing, snap and vertical jigging are the only time I use Fluorocarbon leaders. When I'm vertical jigging I use a 24-36" lead. I tie on a ball bearing swivel to my main line and fluoro and a duo lock to my jig. Some of my buddies use straight braid and I usually catch more or better overall sized fish in the same boat. Doesn't hurt to be a little more stealthy than the rest of the guys in the boat.

[h8go4s]

In the August-September issue of In-Fisherman, Doug Stange did a piece on terminal rigging. He uses braid a lot, with a fluorocarbon leader. He cites a study done by Berkely where they hung fluoro and nylon mono in tanks and counted the number of time bass ran into the lines. Nylon was run into more often than fluoro, indicating fluoro is less visible. That's good enough for me. There's a lot more in that article, I recommend reading it.

[mjayn]

I use both(90% fluoro). I usually use mono when I am out of the size of fluoro I want or I am losing leaders one after another(zebra muscles).

I prefer Fluoro because its stiffer and keeps lures(I mostly cast and jig) from wrapping up in the first few inches of the leader. Its easier to tie the knots I like(because of the stiffness). I also like abrasion resistance. Seems fluoro is effected less by a little nick in the leader then mono.

The fact or perceived fact that it is less visible is a plus but not my main reason. The fact that it sinks faster is taken into consideration and is usually a positive(not always- small topwater).

With Braid having little/no stretch I like both fluoro or mono to add that tiny bit of stretch that 4ft of mono/fluoro brings. Its the best of both worlds. The sensitivity of braid but with a touch of stretch.

[REW]

MJ,
Take a view of this following video which tests mono against Floro line for abrasion resistance:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiQTvmM-1cY

----------------------------
H8,
Did you do a typo in your reply?

You indicated that the bass ran into the nylon line more often than the floro line. If that is what the test indicated, it would indicate that the floro line was more visible than the mono line - which I am quite sure is not the case.

Take care

[REW]

From the replies posted, there have been responses about folks that use braid with the floro leader, but not many responses which indicated that they had ever done tests and or fishing using braid with a mono leader which was the question being asked.

Thanks for your thoughts.

[whytie]

Originally Posted by REW

From the replies posted, there have been responses about folks that use braid with the floro leader, but not many responses which indicated that they had ever done tests and or fishing using braid with a mono leader which was the question being asked.

Thanks for your thoughts.

Sorry REW I should have mentioned my fishing buddies use mono main lines and one uses straight braid no leader. On our last outing I caught 8 walleye largest was 4.5lb. The other guys caught a total of 5 fish between the 3 of them their biggest was just under 2lbs.

from fishing with these guys the mono guys seem to miss the lighter bites.

[clawman]

It should be called "the practice of fishing" because there are NO hard and fast rules. Exceptions are the rule. I fish the Columbia River which is 15' clear in the winter. There have been numerous times that I've tied directly to a blade bait with braid and still catch walleye in the winter. Yet I still use a flouro leader primarily because that is how I've always done it.