Never cared for the store bought leader tippet combos.
Fully agree. Logically, knotless is nice. But I don't know if it's the taper they use, or what, but they turn over like crap for me.
And my knotted leaders have a fairly large advantage in that they're adjustable. Gotta get a tight loop up under that branch? Take out a section to shorten the leader, and shorten up the tippet too. Fishin the frog water and need to focus on getting drag free? Add a section or two towards the tippet end.
Just an FYI for the OP. Most of us use the term "mono" for anything made of nylon. But true mono's are rare these days. Maxima Chameleon is one example. But most of them are actually copoloymers. Same material (nylon). But mono's are simply extruded to size. Copolymers are extruded to a smaller size, weaved like a rope, and then bonded. Sort of a furled leader effect that reduces stiffness. But even most "monos" intended for spinning rods are copolymers as well. The difference between them and "tippet" is mostly about tolerance. A spin fishing "mono" that says 0.008 may actually average 0.010 and range from .008-.012. A fly fishing tippet that says 0.008 may average .0085 and range from .008-.009. Important? Sometimes. But you certainly can get away with using spinning rod line. Just be aware of what you're buying, and don't trust the size on the packaging. Berkely, namely, is notorious for doing things like taking what everyone else would call 8 lb test, and packaging it as 4 lb test. It will be thicker, and stronger, than what it says. And they can then market crazy stuff like "our 4 lb test is the strongest on the market!". Of course, they'll also sell a "castability" or "ultra-thin" version, which isn't any different, but they'll actually use 6 lb test in that one (while still calling it 4 lb)! Stren isn't much better.
Of the major spin fishing brands, I've always liked silver thread and Tectan. Both can be hard to find.
Stiffest: Mono
middle: flouro
most supple: copolymer
I've always liked my leaders to be stiff in the butt section and as supple as I can get it on the business end. Hence if I do use flouro it's usually NOT the tippet, but a transition between the stiff and supple sections. That said, fluoro does have the advantage of better abrasion resistance, and if I'm after critters that are more toothy than your average 10 inch trout, I will use fluoro tippets.
The nylons stretch, fluoro does not. Hence if planning to fight bigger fish, it's always nice to have at least a section or two of something made of nylon in there. It protects tippets just like a soft rod does.
