Speyducer
Advisory Board 
Release to spawn another day
Posts: 4,123 
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Post by Speyducer on Nov 2, 2007 8:07:38 GMT
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Speyducer
Advisory Board
Release to spawn another day
Posts: 4,123
|
Post by Speyducer on Nov 2, 2007 10:47:53 GMT
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Speyducer
Advisory Board
Release to spawn another day
Posts: 4,123
|
Post by Speyducer on Nov 23, 2007 13:30:25 GMT
Whilst there are several different types (not just brands) of leader materials out there, some important differences should be stated:
Nylon: eg Maxima
Quite stretchy, therefore forgiving when a fish takes a lunge on a tight line eg near the net, but perhaps not so abrasion resistant as fluorocarbon. Softer than fluorocarbon, and more forgiving on tied knots. Lighter than water, but 'takes on' or imbibes water during immersion, so diameter increases with use. Degrades in water, sunlight etc. Higher refractive index than water, so can be seen more easily than fluorocarbons.
Fluorocarbon: eg Seaguar
Originally developed as a sea line, now in general use for the big fish in Scandinavia & Russia. The N. Americans aren't really using this much. Better abrasion resistance than nylon, but not as stretchy. You have to be more aware of the type of knots used, and more careful in tying and locking down those knots. Stiffer than nylon, and usually a bit bigger diameters than equivalent nylon leaders. Although has better abrasion resistance, sudden failure of fluorocarbon had been reported in colder waters, possibly due to minor abrasion combined with line brittleness and sudden fish lunges. Fluorocarbon sinks, degrades extremely slowly, and doesn't take on water like nylon.
Copolymer: eg Greys Greyflex/Rio powerflex
Finer diameter than equivalent nylon, reported good abrasion resistance, and 'good knot strength tests'. IMO more suited for trout/seatrout/grilse, not salmon.
Hybrid: eg Yo-Zuri
A revolution in monofilament which has yet to show a big impact in salmon fishing, but I'm confident that it will. A blend of nylon and fluorocarbon manufactured in such a way as to take advantages from the properties of each polymer. Potentially may overtake or replace the use of pure fluorocarbons, but we will await critical evaluations.
I will be using Maxima & Yo-Zuri for my salmon fishing from now one.
Mike
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salmo
Advisory Board
Posts: 1,814
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Post by salmo on Nov 24, 2007 11:14:23 GMT
Great post about leaader types I will definitely give the Yo-Zuri Pink Hybrid a try.
I have seen many criticisms of fluorcarbon so I rigged up my own test of maxima ultragree vs seaguar ace.
I use seaguar ace all the time but I found that I had 2 spools of 12 lb Maxima Ultragreen kept in a dark drawer that I bought in 2003 for the Dee. I rigged up a test this evening and connected it with double surgeons knot loop to loop with Seaguar ACE.
Each time I pulled the two lines in series. (so that the axial force is the same for both lines)
Results
12lb Maxima was stronger that 11.6 lbs Seaguar (no surprises)
12lb Maxima was stronger than 13.6 lbs Seaguar (surprised)
12lb Maxima was weaker than 15.4 lb Seaguar (no surprise)
Here’s what I found interesting the 12lb maxima line was 0.32 mm dia. And the Seaguar 15.4# was 0.285 mm.
The Seaguar is definitely stronger for the diameter than maxima.
For the same diameter as maxima Ultragreen 12 lb you can use Seaguar ace at 19 lb so I tend to use this as my smallest line for salmon leaders.
Given the low refractive index and lower stiffness it is probably better to go for higher line ratings in the Seaguar.
Even more interesting for me was that none of my lines broke at the double surgeons loop. It was always an inch or two away. Is this because I lubricated the loops with saliva and this helps dissipate some heat? Or is it because the cross sectional area of the surgeons loop exceeds that of the line and the knot adds no addition stress points to the system.
Seaguar is def stronger than maxima but here’s the crunch. The stress in the line is equal to the force divided by the cross-sectional area. If you notch the line ie snag on a submerged rock or on a big male salmons teeth the high tensile line will be more prone because it will lose a lot more capacity when the diameter is reduced.
My recommendation for clear water ie big gravel beaded rivers would be fluorocarbon Seaguar ace.
My recommendation for rock pools or submerged shelf would be to increase your maxima line by 100% and hope for the best.
salmo
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