Do you love big bluegill?

Furled leaders?

Anybody using, or tried, furled leaders?

Those who are selling them talk them up so much you'd think they're the greatest thing since the invention of the fly rod - or maybe even the evolution of the bluegill :-) Not unnatural - they've got to make a living, after all - but if you've tried or are using them, how good are they in comparison to a standard tapered leader? If you like them, do they also work well on small rods like 2-weights, or is a 2WF line not heavy enough to turn over a furled leader well?

Thinking of getting some, but wanted to get opinions from my number one source of fishing info first :-)

Thanks,

Jonathan

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Chris Barclay on April 9, 2013 at 7:40am

Excellent advice!

Permalink Reply by klrbaer on April 9, 2013 at 8:04am

Thank you.

Permalink Reply by Ray Ditzenberger on April 9, 2013 at 9:40am

You are correct my friend. But it is also a function of the line plane on the back cast vs. front cast. I am no expert myself. I used to get a lot of wind knots and I know what causes them but that does not mean I am capable of eliminating them either. These furled leader have eliminated 90% of my wind knots. I do 100% agree on feeling the cast. I have seen where a lot of advise on turning and watching the back cast. I find it difficult to be able to place a fly on a target on the forward cast while watching the back cast. IMHO the back cast has to be felt to let the rod do the work. It is the enjoyable aspect of fly casting.

Permalink Reply by klrbaer on April 9, 2013 at 9:44am

Thank you for your comments.

Permalink Reply by klrbaer on April 9, 2013 at 8:05am

Well, the sun is shining, I'm going fishing.

Permalink Reply by Leo Nguyen on April 9, 2013 at 8:30am

LOL Well, the sun is shining over here too..but we're stuck working, while dreaming of fishing on the water.

Permalink Reply by dcastlen50@hotmail.com on April 13, 2013 at 6:21pm

I use a furled leader on my 8/9 wt 7 1/2 ft fly used for bass and snook. It is good for throwing big bugs. I do not know why one would be used for flies with hooks in the 14 to 5 size hooks. Let me know. I will be glad to give it a try. I just kind not understand what value it would be for these smal flies.

Permalink Reply by dick tabbert on April 13, 2013 at 7:57pm

dc I was thinking that it would help to eliminate some of my many wind knots.

Permalink Reply by JBplusThuy on April 13, 2013 at 11:46pm

Maybe - people say they get fewer wind knots with furled leaders - but what somebody else in this thread said about wind knots - that they're mostly a result of form/technique - seems to be true. Since I've lately started getting semi-regular fly casting instruction at a local lake, it's not unusual to come away from two hours of practice without a wind knot.

Don't get me wrong, I'm still an awful caster and if I were out in my float tube instead of comfortably casting from a flat shoreline with 100 feet of open ground behind me it'd probably be wind knot city, but this is still a huge improvement for me :)

Permalink Reply by Leo Nguyen on April 14, 2013 at 10:34am

Indeed, wind-knot-city, or rather, jungle, is fully achieved on a float tube. This is why I invested on a inflatable pontoon with a standing platform to gain that advantage of standing-on-water fly casting.

However, it's all about the techniques. Greg, Jen, Mike, etc. have mastered their sitting and casting techniques, minus the wind knots. I still have a bit to learn to master on the float tubes that I have, since each one has different height out of the water. I still have much to go in mastering the fly from picking off my hat, or picking me off when the slight wind kicks up.

Permalink Reply by Ray Ditzenberger on April 14, 2013 at 7:29am

I find your comment very interesting. My experiance has been that the furled leaders work real well on my light outfits. I personally found no advantage on my 7wt and up outfits.

Can you be more descriptive of the furled leader you use on your 8wt? I would like to change to the furled leader on my heavier outfits. Maybe it is the leader design that I am using.

Permalink Reply by dcastlen50@hotmail.com on April 14, 2013 at 9:42am

First thank you for the advice. I will start looking for furled leaders for my smaller rods ( 5 and 6s). You ask me to "describe" the furled leader I use on my 8wt. Well I am not trying to be tautalogical but it is a furled leader for 8wt rods. I bought it out of a catalogue..... I can not think of what magazine it was.... I think "Feather Craft".... anyway just look up "furled leaders" and find the ones for 7wts. Sometime ago read a discussion about furled leaders. There are actually three types as I recall. Nevertheless, when I throw big flys (eg size 1 spun hair poppers etc) the furled leaders enhances my acuracy and distance. I also come in touch with my real exestional self - but that is another story