Furled leaders

[JackM]

My biggest issue with furled leaders for me is when I yank out a snag, my leader recoils and has to be straightened.

 

[PennKev]

JackM wrote:
My biggest issue with furled leaders for me is when I yank out a snag, my leader recoils and has to be straightened.

Keep your rod low (even in the water) and pointed directly at the snag. Pull straight back until the tippet breaks. By keeping the line and leader along the surface of the water, the water will retard the recoil of the leader and you won't have a tangle.

This is a good idea for non furled leaders too, BTW.

 

[Chaz]

Never!! but there is no selection to vote for never.

 

[lv2nymph]

Foxgap239 wrote:
Never used them but may try them. Haven't decided yet.

This is where I'm at.

 

[JackM]

PennKev wrote:

JackM wrote:
My biggest issue with furled leaders for me is when I yank out a snag, my leader recoils and has to be straightened.

Keep your rod low (even in the water) and pointed directly at the snag. Pull straight back until the tippet breaks.

How do I do this when I am in a tree?

 

[Sabot]

I've been fly fishing and tying my own leaders for about 40 years now. About 7 years ago I got a Feather-Craft furled leader and I won't go back to any other type of leader. Swattie87 nailed the benefits of the furled leader but I disagree with his comments about customization. If you get a good book about tying your own furled leaders and you tie a few, you will soon realize how easy a self-tyed furled leader is to customize. By varying the number of wraps, length of loops and even the pound test line you use, you can create a custom leader for any fishing situation. Heck, you can even use colored mono sections to create a nymph indicator built into the butt.
You can build them out of mono to float or flurocarbon to sink. The jig you use to furl your leaders is very inexpensive. The materials and hardware to build mine cost about $2.00 more than one of the Feather-Craft saltwater leaders I usually use and I've tied dozens of leaders on it. I love 'em.

 

[pro4mance]

1 have a really long rod
2 climb down out of the tree
3 cut the tree down
4 dont be in the tree
5 squirels usually dont hit flies, just nuts

 

[PennKev]

Try to pull in a direction so the the leader shoots towards the water.

 

[geebee]

i apologise in advance if this is a dumb question, but won't these spook the fish when dry fly fishing on spring creeks ?

they seem very popular for stripers - especially the blue sky ones but i'd be concerned about making long casts with them on glassy flats...

 

[troutpoop]

I've not had problems with spooking fish that I am aware, even in spring creeks. I often use a tippet of 3ft or more and they can be turned over well with the furled leaders.
Having said all that I also tie my own leaders and use tippet rings on them.
I guess I use the furled leaders about half the time.

 

[PennKev]

geebee wrote:
...won't these spook the fish when dry fly fishing on spring creeks ?

Nope.

 

[pcray1231]

Like Foxgap, I haven't given them a fair enough shake and intend to this year. Geebee, they'd be less a problem than standard mono leaders. Not as stiff, less spray. Fish don't spook by seeing leaders/tippets, so long as it's floating naturally. Stuff floats down the stream all the time that doesn't bother them.

My biggest hangup was the customizability thing that Swattie brought up. I'm constantly rebuilding leaders and see it as an advantage. Not just tippet. We're talking removing mid sections to shorten them, adding sections, etc. I often use anything from a 5' to a 12' leader, and everything in between, in the same day, WITHOUT changing leaders.

But perhaps if I just got a bunch of them and was willing to change leaders all day long. Or have some section system like Swattie was talking about.

I have no doubt they turn over better while still being more supple, and thus would be great dry fly leaders. Also, stretch is important for big fish, but that's mostly nymphing and tossing streamers, where I'd likely not use them. For dries stretch isn't usually so important.

 

[geebee]

pcray1231 wrote:
Fish don't spook by seeing leaders/tippets, so long as it's floating naturally. Stuff floats down the stream all the time that doesn't bother them.

interesting...thanks.

 

[paparise]

As Afish knows, I just furled my first leader using his method (ie no pegboard) and it worked out pretty well. Any errors I've seen with the leader are not a fault of the leader method but of the construction. I learned a bunch making the first one and the second will be better.

I created a 6' furled leader and then 3x,4x,5x knotted tapper after that. Caught one trout on it at VC on sat w a BWO.

One complaint I've heard is that it picks up a lot of water and you get spray while casting. I only noticed this on really slow pools. I'd imagine it could be a problem on low clear days.

 

[Sabot]

You can furl separate butt and mid sections (or as many sections) as you wish. You connect them loop to loop and that's easier than tying barrel or blood knots. They do not pick up and spray water any more than a knotted leader if they are tightly furled. The leaders that famously spray water and create a wake on the water are braided leaders. Every time I switch back to knotted or knotless tapered leaders (as when on a trip and I want to try something different) I end up cursing them and go back to furled.

 

[Sabot]

If you're interested in learning more about furled leaders, there's a great article about them in the latest issue of "Pennsylvania Fly Fishing."

 

[StarvinMarvin]

sabot, what book would you reccomend for learning how to tie them. I want to learn !!

 

[Sabot]

Here is the link to Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Furled-Leaders-secrets-creating-fishings/dp/0982736800/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1364873828&sr=8-1&keywords=steven+zondag

The Title is "Furled Leaders" by Steven Zondag. He's good but not a great writer. Be prepared to screw-up a few before you catch on to the techniques. When you do figure it out you will be amazed with the leaders you can tie. He also gives tips on starting your own business tying furled leaders. It's a short book but he packs an awful lot of info in it. Good luck.

 

[PennKev]

pcray1231 wrote:

My biggest hangup was the customizability thing that Swattie brought up. I'm constantly rebuilding leaders and see it as an advantage. Not just tippet. We're talking removing mid sections to shorten them, adding sections, etc. I often use anything from a 5' to a 12' leader, and everything in between, in the same day, WITHOUT changing leaders.

No, you are quite right. In fact, I get a good laugh out of all the claims that a furled leader can do everything. They are not well suited to sub surface presentations. Anything deeper than 2ft and you are handicapping yourself by sticking with a furled leader. Even that is probably pushing it.

pcray1231 wrote:

But perhaps if I just got a bunch of them and was willing to change leaders all day long. Or have some section system like Swattie was talking about.

Not worth the effort in my opinion. Better off carrying a couple furled leaders for dry fly situations and then keeping your mono leaders for going deep.

pcray1231 wrote:
I have no doubt they turn over better while still being more supple, and thus would be great dry fly leaders. Also, stretch is important for big fish, but that's mostly nymphing and tossing streamers, where I'd likely not use them. For dries stretch isn't usually so important.

In my experience the stretch is largely dictated by material. Mono furled leaders actually have way too much stretch IMO. Unfortunately, they are the most widely available as the mono material is extremely cheap. However, it is also very stretchy to begin with and the construction method of furled leaders adds an additional amount of stretch.

By far the best furled leaders are constructed out of Uni-thread fly tying thread. They are much more supple than mono, have less stretch and are also strong and durable. Additionally, it is much easier to create a fine, carefully tapered leader with Uni thread. Once you use a uni thread furled leader, mono furleds will seem coarse and make-shift at best. The stretch/recoil problem I previously replied to is also significantly less with uni thread furled leaders.

Kev

 

[StarvinMarvin]

wow thats cool. thanks for the info sabot i just ordered, cant wait to check it out