Loop connection vs. knot

I'm new to this group, and I must admit to being bewildered by the
breadth of topics, and intensity of feelings, expressed. But after
reading the FAQ and lurking awhile, I am starting to enjoy the feel of
the group. Y'all are all right.

I'm fairly new to fly fishing. I converted from spinning gear last year
at the gentle prodding of a friend, who has proven both field guide and
mentor to me, and for whom I am very grateful. I am *really* enjoying
fly fishing for the challenges it presents, the intimacy of being right
in the stream, in the action, and the exhilaration of hooking and
fighting a fish on a fly. It's awesome fun!

My Question: Are loop connectors at the end of your fly line an
advantage? They sure make it easy to change leaders, but do they
provide sufficient transfer of energy from line to leader? Is it
"better" to use a nail knot? Or does it matter?

Philosophize at will.

Tim

haresear wrote:
...
Philosophize at will.

I used loop-to-loop for years. I nail knotted a piece of mono to the end
of my fly line and tied it into the smallest perfection loop I could tie.
Then I tied perfection loops on the butt end of my leaders.

I don't bother anymore. I nail knot a 7'6" 3X tapered leader to my fly
line and build a leader on that. I don't replace the tapered leader but
once or twice, three times at the most, per year and at that rate a DT
line will wear out long before I use up a significant amount of fly line
to nail knots.

Congrats, BTW, on a text book entry into this asylum. ;-)

--
Ken Fortenberry

From: Ken Fortenberry

I nail knot a 7'6" 3X tapered leader to my fly
line and build a leader on that. I don't replace the tapered leader but
once or twice, three times at the most, per year and at that rate a DT
line will wear out long before I use up a significant amount of fly line
to nail knots.

Ditto.... oops! , I mean "what Ken said", except I use the Zap-a-Gap connection
instead of a nail knot.

Congrats, BTW, on a text book entry into this asylum. ;-)

Yes, nicely done.


George Adams

"All good fishermen stay young until they die, for fishing is the only dream of
youth that doth not grow stale with age."
---- J.W Muller

haresear wrote:

My Question: Are loop connectors at the end of your fly line an
advantage?

They suck on light tackle. You have this gross, doubled-over, inch-long
glob of mono -- plus the knots, which make the leader at least FOUR
times the density at spots. It's not the right setup for stealthy trout
fishing, and certainly not for dry-fly fishing.

Some people complain about poor casting with loop-to-loop connections
due to "hinging," or some other supposed effect, but I don't believe it.
I just think they suck, period. :-)

What, please tell me, is the pressing need to change leaders easily? How
many times, per fishing day, do you change leaders? If it even comes
close to 1 (from below), you're doing something wrong. And, when you do
change leaders, what is so hard about tying a three-turn blood knot in
thick mono?

Oh, BTW, welcome to ROFF, haresear!

--
Cut "to the chase" for my email address.

"rw" wrote in message
m...
What, please tell me, is the pressing need to change leaders easily?

I use my 3 wt. and 4 wt. outfits for both trout and bluegills. I switch
leaders for the two applications. I've never had problems with the braided
loops I use. Many tools, many applications...

"rw" wrote in message
m...

....What, please tell me, is the pressing need to change leaders easily?
How
many times, per fishing day, do you change leaders?....

How many times, for that matter do you change leaders in a SEASON?! Unless
one goes over to the dark side (not necessarily an unmitigated evil, I'll
grant) and starts nymphing or swinging wets or streamers, one or two leader
changes per year should suffice......IF you fish eight to twelve hours a day
for a hundred fifty days or so.

Leader links.....for every situation, every day.

Gospel.

Wolfgang

"Wolfgang" wrote in message ...

Leader links.....for every situation, every day.

While tying flies for my recent trip to the San Juan I
came across a pack of leader links I had added to a
Cabela's order on a whim. I rigged one up on the rod
I was using, and really loved it. Sooo smooth coming
through the tip-top that I didn't have to worry at all
about bringing in the end of the 10' leader into the
guides with an 18" bow on the end of 6x. The fish would
do their one last run and that leader link would glide
through the guides smooth as silk...

Jon.

"Jonathan Cook" wrote in message
m...
"Wolfgang" wrote in message
...

Leader links.....for every situation, every day.

While tying flies for my recent trip to the San Juan I
came across a pack of leader links I had added to a
Cabela's order on a whim. I rigged one up on the rod
I was using, and really loved it. Sooo smooth coming
through the tip-top that I didn't have to worry at all
about bringing in the end of the 10' leader into the
guides with an 18" bow on the end of 6x. The fish would
do their one last run and that leader link would glide
through the guides smooth as silk...

Jon.

The closest thing to a problem I've had with them is that the knots in
the thicker sections of a knotted leader will not pass through the
link, thus making it necessary to cut the stopper knot on the butt in
order to change leaders. As I change leaders infrequently and
snipping and retying the end knot is insignificant, it isn't much
trouble.....considerably less bothersome than most other methods.

Wolfgang

Jonathan Cook wrote:
"Wolfgang" wrote:

Leader links.....for every situation, every day.

... really loved it. ...

Leader links are tacky little doodads for those who are
too lazy or incompetent to tie good knots.

You wouldn't hang a velvet Elvis in the Louvre, why put
tacky **** on your flyline ?

--
Ken Fortenberry

"Ken Fortenberry" wrote...
Jonathan Cook wrote:
"Wolfgang" wrote:

Leader links.....for every situation, every day.

... really loved it. ...

Leader links are tacky little doodads for those who are
too lazy or incompetent to tie good knots.

You wouldn't hang a velvet Elvis in the Louvre, why put
tacky **** on your flyline ?

http://www.despair.com/elitism.html
--
TL,
Tim
------------------------
http://css.sbcma.com/timj