leaders

FAOL Community Fly Anglers Online
1

Hand tied leaders: why and how!

A question I get all the time is why I use hand tied leaders. I will try not to get too involved but still answer the question. I like things to work as well as they can. I do not feel that a leader manufacturer can make a leader to function on all rods properly.
If you take a look at the leader formulas you will find that there is room to tune your leader. Start with a standard 9? 4X leader and you are casting a soft rod. You may want to shorten the butt section and lengthen the tippet, by as much as 6? this will soften the 4X leader. On the other hand dif you are casting a performance rod you may choose to shorten the tippet and lengthen the butt section.

That is one reason I tie my leaders, the second reason is they are much cheaper. If you do not want to tie you own, Think about buying 7 ?? leaders one or two sizes heavier and adding tippet. This gives a base leader to work off of that tells you when to add more tippet. 
One other tip I have is when you add tippet or tie your leaders up, try the Loon Outdoors Knot Sense Glue. This is a UV set glue that covers the knot so nothing can hang up on the knot.
Think about trying a hand tied leader. You can check out the leader formula?s at: [url=http://www.froghairfishing.com:6c5af]www.froghairfishing.com[/url:6c5af]   and the loon Knot sense at, [url=http://www.loonoutdoors.com:6c5af]www.loonoutdoors.com[/url:6c5af]

Best fishes Mike

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I tie my own leaders because of cost. I was out of FF for some years and when I got back into it the price of tapered leaders floored me. I still have leader packets with 59 cents price stickers on them. I complaned to my brother and he was astonished I would even consider buying when I could tie my own, to my needs and at a fraction of the cost. I can sit in my recliner and tie a dozen during one half hour OLN fishing show. It takes the dust buster to vacuum up the mono shards but it works for me.

Clint

Wise men still seek HIM…

3

I ty most of my leaders although I don’t think they are much better than store boughts. I like to wade fish with very long leaders 14-16 feet. I like to fish lakes with VERY LONG leaders 18-20 feet I fish from the drift boat with 8-10 foot and and streamer on a wet tip line with 4’ of level leader I use no formula at all other than big to little and a 20 foot leader may have only 4 sizes or it may have 8 depending on what size leader I am out of. and they all work just fine (for me) and if I did it just for the money savings I would find another sport! but you will save some money if you ty your own. maybe, (in my case 10.00 a year) but I only fish 100 days a year so you guys that fish 200 would save 20.00

Rich