pine_knot wrote on Mar 6^th, 2014 at 2:44pm:


I like 8" - 12" leaders. It takes about 15" of material to make a 12" leader. If you screw up a knot (or two) you end up with a 10" or 12" leader or less.

It takes a little practice and patience like learning any new knot with new material. You will make a few mistakes and you will learn from them.

Don't ask why but your reference to rock music and camo triggered a vision of Apocalypse Now.......something about loving the smell of fish guts in the morning. Sure, we can talk about who we have seen in concert......led zeppelin and Zappa were awful live while Queen, Santana and Iggy Pop were amazing.

Going to try and swing it......chomping at the bit to go. If your boat has any size cross the harbor and fish bull and turtle bay. Hit every point that has current. Live sardines put lots of fish in the boat.

Kingfisher wrote on Mar 6^th, 2014 at 5:58am:


KF -- so you buy your own swivels to make your own leaders, correct?  What type?

I won't be at 'copia, so won't have the advantage of seeing you and the leaders.  But I'm intrigued.  No more bite-offs?  No more lost lures?  Or at least fewer of both.  I like that idea. 

prouboy

It is surprising how many fish one can catch without any bite-offs using straight mono. I have sometimes gone a year or more without getting bit off.

However there are lures with notable exceptions. Jigs get nipped and erratic lures such as spoons often get nipped and consequently I will not use a spoon without a leader.

I lost what I can't help but believe was a pike of a lifetime on Burntside this past summer. Nailed a rather long multi jointed crank. Did she bite me off, rub up against a rock or just break the line with a massive kick of her tail I just don't know. The leader would of been nice and I might of just had quite a pic if I was using the skinny flexible wire KF advocates.

I am of a mixed mindset concerning the wire having always been of a "stealth" mindset when trying to put the very largest walleyes in the boat. I am not about numbers at all and small fish hold little interest for me. Will the wire turn off the big marble eyes? That is the question.

Jax I am not excited about your intention of having a 3 or 4 foot leader using a snap that you will be unable to reel through your eyelets. That is 3 or 4 ft of line out there at boat side while you try to handle the fish. Potentially awkward.........been there, done that. On the other hand I did not have lots of success tying Floro to 832 although I know of folk who do it. Maybe I didn't try hard enough but my usual system (power pro to floro) didn't seem to hold that well and thus my displeasure with 832.

Yup, often a bit hilarious how many folk want to reel the fish right up to the eyelet and a few want to reel the fish right through them

I'm trying to picture your landing method. If you grab the line with one hand and your rod is in the other then either you live near a nuclear power plant and have grown a third hand or you have someone help you remove or land the fish?.......or you set your rod down.. And that my friend is a distinct no-no in MT's world of piscatorial pursuits. But hey, we all have our own style and that is what makes fishing fun.