Some people I know DO NOT fish without a leader and some say the fish can see the leader and are more likely to spook than eat… Any opinions regarding the use of leader with reds and trout? I fish with a 55 lb leader on just about every rig except jigs.
I find that 40 pound fluorocarbon is plenty for inshore. That might even be overkill but it seems to do the job for me at least
“mr keys”
I fish braid, but always use a leader. Preferably flourocarbon; not because it is less visible, but because it is more abrasion resistant, stays straight, and it sinks faster than mono.
The test of braid I use is matched to the rod and reel. The leader strength I typically match to the braid advertised strength. Example: 20# leader with 20# braid.
This is typically how my rods are set up :
Trout = 4-8# or 6-12# line rating rod, 2000 reel, and 10# braid and 15# leader
Light tackle reds and trout = 8-15# line rated rod, 2000 reel, and 15# braid and leader
General purpose for light bottom rigs and floats = 8-17# line rated rod, 3000 reel, and 20# braid and leader
Heavy inshore = 10-20# line rated rod, 4000 reel, and 30# braid and 20-30# leader
from my experience anything more than 30# leader with impair the action of live bait and also the fish can feel the line and drop the bait. 40# is overkill 99% of the time inshore. I have used 40# only once when I ran across a school of 30+ in reds holding under a dock that were fired up and ready to rumble.
Iain Pelto
Sea Hunt Triton 160 w/ 90 ETEC “JB3”
Native Manta Ray 14
Fish 30 lb leader. Maybe drop to 20. All above is over kill. I fish 20.
Even with a loop knot.
big dog
Great stuff, Iain. Especially the braid test to flouro advice. I do 20 braid/20 flouro on my red rods, but I have 10 braid/12 flouro on my trout rod. I seldom have uni-knot breaks on my 20/20 rods but have them often with my 10/12 rout rod. 10 braid cuts the 12 flouro I’m guessing.
Dustin, do some basic math. Not insulting you, but think about it because I know you are frustrated. When have you caught a 55 pound fish? When have you caught a 20? When have you caught a 10?
Point being, a hoss red is 10 pounds. Naturally, things would have to be perfect (drag, knots, zero line nicks, etc) to bring her in with 10# test. So I use 20#, giving me double the strength of what would likely be my best red fish. I go lower for trout.
Big boy jetty red!? Still 50 braid, 30 flouro. If I lose a 30# red, I salute him.
Vinman
“Every saint has a past, every sinner a future”
www.summervillesaltwateranglers.com
2011 Carolina Skiff 178DLV
90 HP Honda
I use 20-25# fluorocarbon leader (not the spools of main fluoro line, but actual leader material which is stiffer and tougher).
The chance of a bluefish or even a trout (or oyster) cutting the 10lb mono I use is just too great. Eventually I’ll upgrade to 25# braid and 25# fluoro leader.
20# flouro will do everything you wanna do with a 2 or 3000 or 4000 reel. I will bump up to 40# flouro if I’m breaking off big reds around docks or sheepshead fishing.
Hunter P. Hames
11’ Tarpon 100
19’ Sea Fox 125 merc
Good point Vin. I thought maybe the higher the poundage the more abrasion resistant it would be to fish bites and bouncing across structure. Makes no sense to use 55# leader for 20# test. If I did hook a monster that could snap 50# I’m sure my 20# would snap first. What do y’all think about using snap swivels for quickly changing leaders/lures?
That’s why they call it fishing, not catching…
learn to tie a double uni knot…practice, practice, practice grasshopper…
The Morris Island Lighthouse www.savethelight.org
Either the the fish getting spooked by the fishing line is BS, or Im just catching the stupid ones! I use 20 lb. Fireline tied straight to the hook. No leader whatsoever. I pull in 28" Redfish all day long (slight exaggeration) and to the best of my knowledge have only broken off twice in the last two years I stopped using leaders. I won a half day trip with a local guide a saw he used no leader. We pulled in 16 Reds that day and I haven’t used a leader since.
We also went to Abaco last year and my wife caught two Bone Fish sitting on the bow of the skiff moored behind our house. She was dragging a piece of cut Pilchard along the bottom with a black steel leader attached straight to the hook. The next day we caught 31 Yellow Tails out on the reef with the same 20 lb. Fireline tied straight to the hook stabbing cut conch. No chum just ice cold Sands and a cooler full of fish! Maybe I just found out how to hold my mouth?
19’ Fiberskiff, 150 Bluewater Mercury. 14’ Gamefisher, 5hp Mercury.
Snap swivels are an alarm bell for the fish. Tie straight to the bait and get used to doing it often.
'06 Mckee Craft
184 Marathon
DF140 Suzuki
I use regular mono 40# leaders (and snap swivels) pretty much everywhere - jetties, harbor and up the ashley and catch plenty of fish. My rods are spooled with 20-50# braid and I don’t feel like messing around with 4 or 5 types of leader. Been fishing this way for 15+ years. If I happen to tie into something odd like a cobia or big jack, or even a tarpon - the leader will hold up. Even when fishing the ashley, we never know when that 30#+++ cat is going to hook up.
I don’t fish shallow/clear water often, when I do I will downsize.
I fish 10lb braid on spinning gear with 12lb yozuri hybrid as a leader
Casting gear 30 lb braid with same yozuri leader.
If targeting trout in open water I will fish the 10lb braid without leader.
quote:
Originally posted by tigerfinSnap swivels are an alarm bell for the fish. Tie straight to the bait and get used to doing it often.
'06 Mckee Craft
184 Marathon
DF140 Suzuki
Never had an issue with snap swivels. Think about other styles of fishing - rattle traps, spinner baits, popping corks, topwater plugs with rattles, all are noisy. A snap swivel sitting on the bottom 3-4’ away from the bait… no issues.
Well, that certainly clears up that question…not.
I rarely use a leader for fishing inshore. It is always a good idea to check the last 4 or 5 feet of your line before you go out. Especially if you have been bumping bottom for flounder. I don’t think snap swivels matter, I use them all of the time and still do well. If I run a weedless jerk bait, I will often times use a snap swivel to add just a little more weight. Most of the time, my fishing knot is a bowline. It is a small knot and never slips.
Narcosis
It is a somewhat of a personal preference on whether to use a leader or not. For most of the year fishing inshore water clarity is such that the visibility of the line is not much of an issue. Especially with reds as they don’t have excellent vision.
Some factors that sway me towards leaders are:
- I am a preperation freak and when line visiblity matters I am always ready
- Good quality leader material IMO is tougher when it comes to encounters with oysters
- Braid tends to grab and wrap around oysters/structure a lot easier than hard mono or flourocarbon.
- I do not like tying knots in braid. I tie one knot with braid; a spider hitch to form a double line to which I attach the leader material.
- When casting topwaters and multi hook plugs, mono or flouro is less likely to tangle on the hooks when casting.
- Leaders provide a some level stretch which helps keeps hooks from being thrown.
Iain Pelto
Sea Hunt Triton 160 w/ 90 ETEC “JB3”
Native Manta Ray 14
I use 20# leader when bottom fishing and with bait. Sometimes I use leader when fishing artificials but not that much. Anything above 30# is overkill as others have said
quote:
Originally posted by DFreedomWell, that certainly clears up that question…not.
Ask 20 fisherman and you will get 30 answers.
I used to live on/fish the susky flats on the Chesapeake - striped bass (rockfish) mecca. The local fishing board -tidalfish.com- had 1000’s of members that would talk about what they used to catch fish with on the flats, everyone thought they had the best method… many costing $$$ in tackle and rigs. One would need boxes of tackle to fish the flats if they listened to the internet experts.
One thing they agreed on - the best fisherman in the area. A local guide, I guy I knew. He was the “man”. I sat down with him in his tackle shop during the offseason - I was about to purchase a few hundred in goodies for the flats. Floro leaders,high dollar poppers and plugs, the best hooks, the best everything… He had me put everything away and led me to a few items totaling about $30.
-400 yards of 40# cheap mono leader.
-swivel snaps
-egg sinkers
-cheap circle hooks
-#17 Tony Acetta Spoon
-Super Spook.
-A few jig heads and plastics.
-2oz Stingsilver jig - $3 or so.
I’ve used that cheap bait setup with great success for 15+ years. Up and down the east coast, inshore and offshore, north and south…
That 2oz stingsilver jig has caught 10+ species of fish. From yellow perch, to BSB’s, to trout, catfish - to 50#rock…
Keep it simple. A handful of tackle, 2-3 knots tied well = multiple species of fish in many different bodies of water.
I use either 10 or 20# leader inshore. I match whatever test braid I have on my reel. I start out with about 3’ new every time I go out and my leader gets smaller as I switch jig heads and such.
It’s definetly a personal preference thing. I’d rather tie one braid knot before I leave home and only deal with tying the mono leader the rest of my day.
I have noticed that once my leader gets too short, around about 1’, I get less bites. That could be just a weird coincidence, but I believe the mono leader is harder to see.
Semper Fi
18’ Sterling
115 Yamaha
Big Ugly Homemade Blue Push Pole