DIY: Furled leaders

Kinder, Gentler ROFFians,

SWMBO was out of town on a business trip this weekend, so I was
looking for a new project. Did some reading on making furled leaders
and figured that might be something fun to try. I wound up following
the instructions from Mike McGuire's page:
http://www.peninsulaflyfishers.org/T...ed_leader.html

I didn't have any 2x6's laying around, but did have some 1" thick
stock that was 6" wide and 10' long. Dug around in the toolbox for a
cup hook, scrounged through my supply of wooden dowels for some 5/8"
dowel stock (didn't have any 1"), grabbed a 5/8" auger bit, my trusty
old Miller's Falls "Holdall" hand brace and set about making the jig.

My first plan was to make some leaders for my 3-wt., as the supposed
advantages of furled leaders seem more appropriate on a lightweight rig.
Took some 8/0 Unithread (light olive seemed like a good color) and
laid out the thread on the jig.

Most plans call for using a power drill for furling the thread, but
with that lightweight thread I thought a hand-drill might be better, so
I grabbed my old Stanley "eggbeater" drill and set about furling the
thread. Mike's page calls for using a nail set into the jig to hold the
first leg of the leader after you twist it up. However, for some
reason, he sets the nail *away* from the last dowel posts, and this
didn't make any sense as all the instructions say that you want to
shorten your leader material by roughly 10% as you wind it.

I simply marked the 10% point on the jig and pounded the nail in
there (between and in front of the two end dowels). That way I could
simply furl the thread until it shortened to that point and I knew I was
at the proper length.

Anyhow, Mike's page has the clearest instructions of all and his
method seems easier (he does two individual legs rather than one long
one that has to be reversed and wound). I wound up making three for my
3-wt. and two for my 5-wt. (using 6/0 thread). I broke the thread a
couple of times (it turned out I had a burr on the inside of the
hook-eye and it abraded the thread), but I found that all is not lost;
you can straighten the thread back out, tie a quick overhand loop and
keep going.

I treated them with Watershed, put an end loop in for attaching
tippets and simply overhand-knotted the butt end to keep them from
unraveling. I used a nailknot to attach one to my 3-wt., and added a 3'
piece of 4x tippet via loop-to-loop.

Yesterday I went out to the local river where they put in the
factory trout to test the rig out. From the first cast I was very
impressed. The reel was rigged up with that newish Cortland "sylk"
stuff, and the line to leader transition was basically indetectable. I
played around casting everything from tiny dries to an extended body
green drake monstrosity, and it handled all of them equally well.
Excellent turnover and it really does tighten up your loops. (Not that
I usually have a problem with that; I'm a tailing-loop kind of guy. :-)

The wind didn't pose any special problem (i.e., no more than normal
with a 3-wt. rig), I didn't get any windknots, and the thing was so
supple that drifts looked particularly good.

The only problem I noticed was that even though the leader was
pre-treated, it was sinking (some) by the end of my time on the water
(about 3 hours). Even then, it didn't seem to pull the fly under during
the normal part of the drift.

So, I know that lots of folks don't like these leaders, but as a
DIY'er, it's a fun thing to try. If you have the tools, lumber and
hardware, you can make up the jig in about a half-hour and be furling
your own leaders for nothing more than the cost of the thread. (And I
got three full leaders from one 200 yard spool with plenty left over.)


Chuck Vance

From: Conan the Librarian

The only problem I noticed was that even though the leader was
pre-treated, it was sinking (some) by the end of my time on the water
(about 3 hours). Even then, it didn't seem to pull the fly under during
the normal part of the drift.

When I started flyfishing back in the fifties, getting your leader to sink so
that it wouldn't cast a shadow was a real big deal. All of the outdoor
magazines would occasionally publish a tip on how to sink leaders, and there
were several brands of leader sink compounds on the market. Now it seems many
anglers feel that a sinking leader is a disadvantage. I don't know when or why
the thinking changed, but as long as the sinking leader isn't causing drag or
pulling your fly under, I would regard it as an advantage rather than a
problem.

All that said, I would rather apologize on ROFF, or be Michael Moore's valet,
than mess with furled or braided leaders. {;-)

(If it ain't broke, don't fix it.)


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

George Adams wrote:
From: Conan the Librarian

The only problem I noticed was that even though the leader was
pre-treated, it was sinking (some) by the end of my time on the water
(about 3 hours). Even then, it didn't seem to pull the fly under
during the normal part of the drift.

When I started flyfishing back in the fifties, getting your leader to
sink so that it wouldn't cast a shadow was a real big deal. All of
the outdoor magazines would occasionally publish a tip on how to sink
leaders, and there were several brands of leader sink compounds on
the market. Now it seems many anglers feel that a sinking leader is a
disadvantage. I don't know when or why the thinking changed, but as
long as the sinking leader isn't causing drag or pulling your fly
under, I would regard it as an advantage rather than a problem.

I would guess that tying furled leaders is like anything else in this
sport, and making stuff yourself would give the fishing that much more
meaning.

I guess it's time for me to hijack another thread with apolog.... never
mind all that. What about using that Orvis mud stuff on leaders? I just
bought some (not because I needed it, but because it called to me from
the shelf) and haven't yet tried it. Because the "secret spot" water is
so clear, I thought it might reduce leader flash and produce another
fish or two. Has anyone else used it? Liked or disliked it?
--
TL,
Tim
------------------------
http://css.sbcma.com/timj

George Adams wrote:
From: Conan the Librarian
The only problem I noticed was that even though the leader was
pre-treated, it was sinking (some) by the end of my time on the water
(about 3 hours). ...


When I started flyfishing back in the fifties, getting your leader to sink so
that it wouldn't cast a shadow was a real big deal.
snip
All that said, I would rather apologize on ROFF, or be Michael Moore's valet,
than mess with furled or braided leaders. {;-)

(If it ain't broke, don't fix it.)

I'd rather be hog-tied and forced to listen to a Rush Limbaugh
marathon ditto-fest than mess with a furled leader. ;-)

It's not that I'm bothered by them sinking, like George says,
that can be a GOOD thing, what I don't like is the splashy
spray of water they make when the get good and wet.

--
Ken Fortenberry

Ken Fortenberry wrote:

George Adams wrote:

When I started flyfishing back in the fifties, getting your leader to
sink so
that it wouldn't cast a shadow was a real big deal.
snip
All that said, I would rather apologize on ROFF, or be Michael Moore's
valet,
than mess with furled or braided leaders. {;-)

(If it ain't broke, don't fix it.)


I'd rather be hog-tied and forced to listen to a Rush Limbaugh
marathon ditto-fest than mess with a furled leader. ;-)

It's not that I'm bothered by them sinking, like George says,
that can be a GOOD thing, what I don't like is the splashy
spray of water they make when the get good and wet.

I was afraid this thread was going to turn into a discussion about
how horrible furled leaders are. :-)

My intent wasn't to resurrect that old argument (trust me, I Googled
up all of that before even considering trying them), but rather to say
that for those who do like furled leaders, it's really pretty easy to
DIY. And as Tim noted, it's all part of the process; some of us tie our
own flies, some make our own rods, some furl our own leaders.

I'm not advocating that anyone use furled leaders, just reporting
that I was impressed. I didn't notice any spray (maybe the Watershed
treatment helped in that regard), and the sinking was minor enough that
it didn't seem to cause any drag.


Chuck Vance

From: "Tim J."

I guess it's time for me to hijack another thread with apolog.... never
mind all that. What about using that Orvis mud stuff on leaders? I just
bought some (not because I needed it, but because it called to me from
the shelf) and haven't yet tried it.
Because the "secret spot" water is
so clear, I thought it might reduce leader flash and produce another
fish or two. Has anyone else used it? Liked or disliked it?

Back in the day, we used mud. Not Orvis mud, but real, honest to god, mud. The
idea was to slightly score the surface of the tippet in order to cut glare,
and, hopefully get the tippet to absorb a bit of water and sink. Since we
seldom used tippets much smaller than 4X, the slight loss of strength wasn't a
consideration.

Fast forward to the 21st century, and the "secret spot", I find I seldom use
tippets heavier than 6X there, and more likely will be using 7X or 8X, so I
don't want to do anything that might weaken the tippet. I compensate by fishing
shaded areas when fishing dry in order to reduce the leader shadow problem.

In answer to your question....I have never used Orvis Mud, and have no idea
what effects, positive or negative, it would have on the tippet. Big help, eh?


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

George Adams wrote:
From: "Tim J."

I guess it's time for me to hijack another thread with apolog....
never mind all that. What about using that Orvis mud stuff on
leaders? I just bought some (not because I needed it, but because it
called to me from the shelf) and haven't yet tried it.
Because the "secret spot" water is
so clear, I thought it might reduce leader flash and produce another
fish or two. Has anyone else used it? Liked or disliked it?

Back in the day, we used mud. Not Orvis mud, but real, honest to god,
mud. The idea was to slightly score the surface of the tippet in
order to cut glare, and, hopefully get the tippet to absorb a bit of
water and sink. Since we seldom used tippets much smaller than 4X,
the slight loss of strength wasn't a consideration.

Fast forward to the 21st century, and the "secret spot", I find I
seldom use tippets heavier than 6X there, and more likely will be
using 7X or 8X, so I don't want to do anything that might weaken the
tippet. I compensate by fishing shaded areas when fishing dry in
order to reduce the leader shadow problem.

In answer to your question....I have never used Orvis Mud, and have
no idea what effects, positive or negative, it would have on the
tippet. Big help, eh?

As usual, no. ;-)

Thursday is my civic-duty-fulfillment-day (jury duty), but if my panel
doesn't get called or I weasel out early, I'd like to find myself out on
the river to see how/if this mud stuff works. If anyone out there in
Mass. Consumption-land wants to wet a line while particpating in
euphoric East Coast camaraderie, think "Thursday" with Friday as an
alternate.
--
TL,
Tim
------------------------
http://css.sbcma.com/timj

Conan the Librarian wrote:
Kinder, Gentler ROFFians,

SWMBO was out of town on a business trip this weekend, so I was
looking for a new project. Did some reading on making furled leaders
and figured that might be something fun to try. I wound up following
the instructions from Mike McGuire's page:
http://www.peninsulaflyfishers.org/T...ed_leader.html

...
Chuck Vance

You are right about the nail--brain fart on my part, will fix that. Try
Mucillin for water proofing, I find it works pretty well

Mike McGuire

Mike McGuire wrote:

You are right about the nail--brain fart on my part, will fix that. Try
Mucillin for water proofing, I find it works pretty well

Mike,

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll give it a try. Which type of
Mucilin do you use? (IIRC, there are two different types of the stuff.)

Sincere thanks for your page on furling. After reading all the
other instructions/methods I could find online, yours was the simplest,
most straightforward of all. I really like the little heplful hints
like using a fishhook to capture the first twisted section from the
screw-eye.

And I'm happy to see that I was thinking correctly on the
positioning of the nail. :-)

While I have your attention, have you made any furled leaders for
fishing heavier rods? I was thinking about experimenting with 3/0
thread for throwing bass flies with an 8-weight.


Chuck Vance

Conan the Librarian wrote:


Mike,

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll give it a try. Which type of
Mucilin do you use? (IIRC, there are two different types of the stuff.)

...
While I have your attention, have you made any furled leaders for
fishing heavier rods? I was thinking about experimenting with 3/0
thread for throwing bass flies with an 8-weight.


Chuck Vance

Thanks for you appreciative comment.

I use the green Mucillin.

I would use some 2 lb or 4 lb mono spinning line for that sort of
application. You have six strands in the tip segment so the strength and
diameter is going to be something like the equivalent in solid mono of
that strength.

Mike