Mono Vs Tippet material

[murphlax34]

This may be a dumb question, but!!! I bought some 2 lb mono to tie some furled leaders and thought why not use if for tippet as well? It has the exact diameter as Maxima at .005 and is at least 3x's cheaper!!! I tried it out and got skunked for the first time all year, now the conditions were a bit rough with pretty chocalotey looking water, but,, was it the tippet or the conditions??

[Flyrodde]

Tippet is just higher quality. It is made to higher standards and lower tolerences. That is why the price is higher. For fishing around ever day mono is fine. For the once in a lifetime chances or large fish Tippet it more than worth it. Don't trust LB test. Do your own tests and know what you gear can do before you hookup.

[Fly Goddess]

I don't use MONO but I do use fluorocarbon. I don't buy the tippet kind I buy 2, 4, 6, 8 and maybe a 10 in P-Line but there is also Vanish (be sure it states 100% fluoro and not coated) and Seagur.
As stated there is a quality to tippet for example: a 5X is typically considered 4 lb but Mirage is 5 lb. A 7X considered a 2 lb again Mirage 2.7 where Vanish is 2lb Mirage .004" and Vanish .006" meaning that regular line is thicker than tippet of what we would think the same size.

I choose to use regular Fluoro because it is strong and allot less money. When guiding I can go through allot of tippet, so to off set charges, I do try to buy quality in bulk.

[murphlax34]

I Think we are using the same philosophy Joni! I was thinking about using Flourocarbon for next Steelhead season since that is all subsurface fishing...But for the small streams around here for the most part Mono is a bit more versatile I think?? Much much cheaper that is for sure...I guess it all depends on the flies you are throwin eh???

[Fly Goddess]

I Think we are using the same philosophy Joni! I was thinking about using Flourocarbon for next Steelhead season since that is all subsurface fishing...But for the small streams around here for the most part Mono is a bit more versatile I think?? Much much cheaper that is for sure...I guess it all depends on the flies you are throwin eh???

I know I will be called on this but I an a firm believer in Fluoro for it's invisibility and have had several occasions the enfourced my choice (like I catch and the mono guy doesn't, with same fly and same spot)
I don't hold to the theory of using fluoro only for sinking. I use the 2lb on my #32's and they don't sink. True story!
I know mono is cheaper, but call it superstition or crazy, but like I said, Fluoro is invisible, mono isn't.

[murphlax34]

and I think that is the important thing,,but you do have me thinking about grabbing a spool and giving it a shot...I might have to try an experiment, my buddy and I are fishing weds after work,, so maybe I'll put some on without telling him,, see if I can finally nail a few more than he does...of course it shouldn't be in doubt with my new Camo leader that is very sweet!!! By the way your flies will be on there way Tuesday......

[chris from canada]

Like the others said,

Go the florocarbon route, I did the same last year, and am extremely pleased with the results.

Most of the time I use just a 5 to 7 foot piece if floro. as a leader, really simple, and does the job!

Happy fly flinging,
chris

[sagefisher]

Fluorocarbon tippet is not just for subsurface flies. I use it on all of my dry flies as well as my nymphs and wet flies. I believe that the tippet from the fly up to about 18 inches is the most visible to the fish.

1. Fluorocarbon will be hidden far better in the water than monofilament tippet. It is well worth the extra money.

2. That extra cost is offset by the fact that you can use the fluorocarbon tippet materials for many years, until you have used it all up. With monofilament tippet, if you didn?t change it every year you could very easily loose some nice fish. Mono breaks down under UV light and there is a lot of it out there when you are fishing. Fluorocarbon does not break down.

3. Another point is that monofilament weakens the longer it is in the water. It may start off at 2 pounds but after a few hours of steady use it has absorbed a lot of water and is much weaker, hence a greater chance of loosing a fish. That does not happen with fluorocarbon.

Just for info, I really like the Rio Fluoroflex Plus tippet material. It is a lot thinner yet stronger than most other tippets.

Larry ---sagefisher---

[mickalo]

I'd have to strongly agree with using Fluorocarbon leaders, they are an excellent all around leader material.

I bought some 7-12ft fluoro leaders a while back and and decided to just pick up few spools of and make my own. Berkely's Vanish Fluorocarbon line, #4,#6#8,10#, makes excellent leaders and you get so much more on a spool then just buying precut leaders, for less cost.

Or if you want to make your own tapered knotted leaders, got that little tip from nighthawk for tossing larger poppers and streamers.

MIke

[Flyrodde]

If you do decide to use Flouro, be careful tieign your knots. Take you time, moist them, tighten slowly. Some knots that work great for mono diminish the stregth of flour considerably.