Furled Leaders

[reevesr1]

One of the members of the board, MikeG, sent me several furled leaders for me to try out. I think his theory of asking me to test is: "he may no know what he is doing, but he sure fishes alot." So to help him out with actual knowledge, I gave a few to troutlover to try. I hope he has something intelligent to add.

 

Anyway, here is what I think:

 

I've been using a couple of different nymph leaders, both around 6 ft. One is all mono and one is a braid indicator on top, mono after. Both leaders turn over unbelievably well. The mono sinks pretty fast. I'm thinking of appyling xink to get it to sink even faster, but I don't think that stuff will work on mono? Anyway, I haven't tried the indi part yet because for the most part I've been setting my indi pretty shallow, like 3-5 feet and since I have 3 ft of tippet tied to the bottom of the leader, that means an indi on the leader itself. I'll try the indi hopefully next week. Crow would be nice.

 

One of the other benefits, apart from the wicked turnover, is that the braided leader does not seem to have any memory for the thingamabobber, at least after a couple of hours. Seems like they would last for quite a long time (like as long or longer than my fly line?). Also, I used the all mono at Bullshead in heavy wind with very few, if any, tangles from the wind. Same thing on the Bow. I can hardly think of any tangles (other than some catches on the indi).

 

I also have a short streamer leader, which is pink (mike claims that fish can't see it. I think he's laughing at me.) Again, casts and turns over great. Can't say much of anything else as I've been struggling with streamers lately.

 

The only issue I have had is torque. But a quick stretch of the leader and all is good again.

 

I also have a couple of thread 8 or 9 ft leaders for dry fly fishing. I just put some waterproofing on them tonite. Can't wait to try them out.

 

So far, I really like these leaders. And Mike seems to like making them, so win-win for me!!

 

Mike-I do want to tell you how much I appreciate you making these. They are fun to fish with.

[gillmy]

Thanks to Rick for allowing himself to be a guinea pig for leader testing - I'm glad that they are working out. Rick sacraficed days that he could have been working to be out on the river helping with product development , and for that I truly thank him. They are quite easy to make once you build the jig, and the cool thing is all the different combinations of lengths and materials that can go into them. It has been a busy spring for me and also I am pretty new to flyfishing, so I haven't been out at all yet - hopefully soon. Thanks for the post Rick, and the new shipment should be arriving shortly.....

[reevesr1]

I actually got them yesterday, but didn't open the letter yet. Waiting for the weather to improve.

 

 

[Taco]

I got a half competed 10' adjustable furled leader jig leanin' in the corner of my shop. I really should finish it before I use it to prop open the door in the wind or something. I just started usin' furled leaders last yr. I like'em.

[troutlover]

The furled leaders are great i haven't had a lot of time to use them but here is what i can say so far they turn over great! especially when using heavy rigs. Also i used them tonight on my community lake and they were turning over 15 feet of leader like nothing. One feature that is wicked is the swivels tied into the end. I cant wait to try them on the dry next week hopefully as things warm up! should start seeing some snouts in the evenings. also cant wait to use the nymph rig with the built in indi on some small streams i know that have some of the spookiest trout I've ever had the pleasure to belly crawl to. I'll post more as i use them thank to rick for letting me try em and thanks to Mike they work awesome.

[Conor]

I like them as well. I use pretty standard stuff for dry and light nymph, but I have a formula for deep nymphing I like.

 

I use two stands of a power braid (I think I have stren at the moment) and add a short taper by tying long surgeons loops (one about 6-8" and the other about 12-14") to each end. I think the thinner a nymphing leaders, is the faster it will sink (hence just two strands). Also, the zero stretch braid makes for a not very stretchy furl, which helps with nymphing. They're great; they cut through the water like wire, show takes well and almost never tangle.

 

You two will be happy when you throw some dry flys. That is when furls really shine. You can actually throw a mend into your leader!

[gillmy]

Hey Conor - is your leader just braid and what lb/test? and how long for the length? I do have lots of braid on hand, but usually use it as a core or mixed with mono or thread. Yours would be a very skinny leader. Thanks...

 

Mike.

[Conor]

It is just braid. One strand of 8-12lb. You'll figure out quickly that you can not add any taper if you want to have one two stands at the tip, so I just tie long loops at either end to create a short taper.

 

The leader is very thin, which is why it works so well. I learned when I was cod fishing how important diameter is for depth. A power braid would hang pretty well straight up and down in a moderate current, while a mono or dacron would be out at 45 degrees.

 

I used to use just one strand of braid for a straight leader for nymphing, but it lead to a few more tangles than mono. A furl helps to keep the tangles away but is still very thin.