Hand Tied Leaders

Why's and How's of Hand-Tied Leaders

Note (5/5/08): As a result of knowledge gained through competition fly-fishing I no longer hold tapered leaders as near and dear to my heart. However, the information in the article still holds true where tapered leaders are desired. In addition, I now find myself using fluorocarbon tippet regularly but not for the "invisibility" factor. Fluorocarbon is more dense so it will sit lower in the water casting less of a tension shadow; it does not adsorb water so knot strength remains in tact, and it is more abrasion resistant. I also appreciate it's slightly stiffer properties when fishing nymphs or stillwater fishing.

Those that are familiar with my fly-fishing habits know that I am a staunch advocate of using hand-tied leaders. For some reason this topic seems to generate a good many questions and even a tad bit of animosity among the ranks. Let me take a bit of your time to try and explain why I feel so strongly about using tied leaders; then I’ll go about explaining how to build and employ your own leaders. As usual, look for the red underlined text to take you to cited work or more detailed information.

There are two primary functions of a fly leader. The first, and most obvious, is to separate the fly from the fly line; to form an invisible connection between the two. The second, and lesser-understood function is to direct and dissipate the energy transfer from the rod, through the fly line to the fly.

“Loading” the fly rod forms a traditional fly cast. By “loading,” we mean to imply that the rod is storing energy to be used later on. Typically the loading occurs on the overhand back cast where the weight of the fly line, coupled with its inertia, store energy in the rod blank. This process can also be accomplished using the surface tension of the line on the water, such as with a Roll Cast. On the forward cast this energy transfers from the rod to the line, propelling the line forward. At the end of the cast, the remaining energy is transferred to the leader. The two keys here are the “remaining energy” and the leader itself. Think of them as a team.

Physics tells us that there will be some loss of energy between the initial loading of the rod and the final lay-down of the cast. How much energy is lost depends on factors like the rod blank, line taper, length of cast, amount of wind, and casting skill—those same factors can effect how much energy is stored too! But for this discussion we are concerned with the remaining energy and what to do with it. Casting lessons, a new rod, a different line and better conditions aside, the cast has been made.

A tapered leader is constructed with this energy transfer in mind. There are three sections to a tapered leader: the butt (beginning), the taper (middle), and the tippet (end). The purpose of the butt is to make the energy transfer from the line to the leader. This is crucial for accuracy and for turning the fly over. A fly that “turns-over” is one that lands beyond the leader. A fly that does not turn over is one that stops short of the end of the leader, usually piling up with coils of leader, or even back with the fly line. You’ll know it when it happens and it is super-frustrating. The taper further transfers this energy, but it also begins to rapidly dissipate it. This is important for the final presentation of the fly, especially if you require a soft delicate, yet accurate landing. Both the butt and taper are typically made from a hard mono such as Maxima, while the tippet is best built from soft monos like Orvis Super Strong or Cortland Climax. However, there are applications that use all hard (bass bugs, streamers) or all soft mono (George Harvey style leaders). The tippet is the cushion. It connects the fly to the leader but has little ability to carry energy. What it does do is create an effective connection between the fly and the meat of the leader: a connection that will work more with than against, water currents and fussy fish eyes. It’s sort of like the “finish nail” of the fly-fishing industry. It does its job, but just barely, and very inconspicuously. How you build your leader, with what, and how much you use for each section will go a long way to making the whole cast work well.

If your leader is performing it’s duty then the fly will roll out at the end of the cast, exactly where you intended it to go. For dry flies there will be no unintentional ‘SLAP!” to alert the fish. The fly will be the last in line, not hidden amongst a loose pile of coiled monofilament; but the connection will also not be tight, there will be some lazy curves to cushion the drift of the fly from the current. Subsurface presentations will be likewise stealthy. The leader will be stout enough to protect the fly against violent takes, but supple enough to maximize action. Nymph fishermen will have the variability they need to adjust to different depths and currents. Streamer anglers using sink tips will have appropriately short leaders to keep the flies down with the fly line. Clearly no one leader can accomplish all of these tasks, not even for one angler. If you have any issues with your cast or your presentation the leader may be the culprit.

If the sole purpose of a leader is to separate the fly from the fly line, then a straight piece of thick, hard mono about the length of the rod will suffice in turning the fly over. Obviously that will not work in many instances. For sure, aggressive species like bass and pike require nothing more than such a leader in many instances. When fishing for aggressive fish on still waters using large flies, with big eyes that can accept 15, 20 or 25-pound test monofilament, the flies and fish should react fairly well on a straight leader. But once you start dealing with smaller flies, compound currents, fussy fish and specialized techniques the leader plays a more vital role in your success. Being able to create your own leaders gives you the ability to economically develop customized tools built around your current casting level for the conditions, fish, and flies you are accustomed to. The economics alone should be a selling point, the investment in your success will pay-off handsomely.

Before we get into tying the leaders themselves, lets peak a bit into the qualities you should be looking for from your leader during some common instances.

Leader Applications

Leader applications have variables. Water size, compound currents, wind, fly size, fish attitude, fishing pressure all play a role in the leader construction. The end construction of your leader needs to display the following attributes:

A properly constructed dry-fly leader will enable the angler to make a comfortable yet accurate and functional cast. The result should be a straight butt-taper ahead of a loosely laid tippet and fly. The cast should land on target and delicate, with supple qualities to minimize the effects of drag. Lastly, the tippet should be fine enough to fool the fish, yet stout enough to make short work of the ensuing battle. In short, the leader should compliment the caster, not require the caster to jump though hoops in order to get the leader to perform. Dry fly leader lengths are decisions based on rod length, water conditions and fish attitude. Typically most anglers cast best with leaders about as long as their rods. However, low, clear water and fussy fish can often require longer leaders while murky water or aggressive fish can permit much shorter leaders. Furthermore, leader adjustments can usually be made to the tippet. This enables the use of one basic leader for many dry-fly applications by simply adding or lengthening tippet sections.
A properly constructed nymph leader will exhibit many of the same attributes as a dry fly leader. The reason for this is simply because nymphs are small and need to be placed exactly and fished naturally under the most difficult conditions. Even when the fishing is easy and short line high-sticking with a few split shot is effective, a good leader will work well. The leader will really shine when the water drops and clears and the fish get finicky. Obviously the tippet sizes will not need to be as diminutive, or always as long—but they should remain supple. Now, many folks—including yours truly—use fluorocarbon tippets for salmon and steelhead in the Great Lakes Tributaries. I do see it as helpful when the water is clear and pressure is booming (I do not use it for inland trout fishing…ever). But it does help at the expense of suppleness. Fluorocarbon is more rigid, so even though it is heavier than regular mono you sacrifice a bit of action when nymph fishing since it acts as an extension of the leader. Using longer tippet sections will help too. In fact, I have found that it is often far more effective to go to a longer tippet than to add more weight, especially when using fluorocarbon tippets. I see little value in using leaders comprised entirely of fluorocarbon. The economics should speak tales.
Streamer fishermen have a bit more slop to play with regarding leaders. For those who use floating lines it is still necessary to get sufficient distance from the highly visible line as well as to get appropriate depth. The rod length rule is a good one here. The actual construction can be as simple as a straight section of hard mono up to the most intricate leader you can imagine. Keep in mind however that you should still be striving for accurate casts and good turnover. Leaders with too many knots will slow decent and collect debris. If you can perform with a straight section of mono (accurate casts, good turnover, fish are tolerant) then it may be the best choice. But if you need a degree of separation and a finer tippet then look into basic tapers.
Bass and Pike anglers are usually not dealing with fussy fish. They need leaders with enough power to push big flies accurately and to horse fish out of vegetation. Straight mono on through simple tapers will all work.

OK, so let’s discuss building the leaders. I have comprised a small spreadsheet of leader formulas that I use. All are based on the 60/20/20 rule where roughly 60% of the leader is the butt section, 20% is the taper, and 20% is the tippet. Many of these formulas were published by Steve Sywensky of Fly Fisher's Paradise in State College, PA. Perhaps more than anyone, Steve has impacted my fishing by example. His no-nonsense approach to fly fishing, augmented by his earnest attention to detail has shown me how important presentation is to this game. This, to the point of realizing how small a role the fly actually is, has allowed my skills to grow ten-fold in the last 15-years. Steve sells the kit that has the literature he wrote as well as all the materials needed to get started tying your own leaders. Feel free to download and use the spreadsheet I have built, but all credit goes back to Steve.

First, we need to decide upon a mechanism to attach the leader to the fly line. There are a number of mechanisms, and variations of those mechanisms. The first, and possibly most common is the nail knot and it’s variations. This provides a small, slick, durable junction. The drawback is the difficulty of tying the darned nail knot! An option used by some of my friends is to nail knot a section of mono to your fly line. To that you can blood knot your leader. A blood knot is easier to tie on the water so leader changing is easier. Keep the mono section equal to, or just slightly heavier than, the initial butt section of your leader.

Using a similar method, employ a loop-to-loop connection for even faster leader change-outs. Nail knot a section of stout mono to my fly-line and tie a Perfection or Double Surgeon’s loop to the other end. The butt sections of my leaders get a loop also and the two loops connect when I change leaders. The advantage here is that the change-out is quicker, and you do not eventually “use-up” mono from the butt or nail-knot sections by cutting the blood knots.

One can also splice a loop into the fly-line itself. I did this for years. Simply double the line and splice the overlap with thread and a coat of Pliobond or Aquaseal. The reason I stopped using direct loops was that I found the loops in mono to be smaller. Smaller loops collect less debris and slide through the guides easier.

Lastly, anglers can use variations of braided leader connectors. I dislike and distrust these so I will not speak on them other than to say, “Watch out.”

Next, we need to decide on the leader formula. This is where trial and error will play a role. My suggestion is to pick a formula based on your rod length. Then, predict what the most common tippet size will be and select the formula for the leader one or two sizes larger. For example, if you use a 9-foot rod and commonly use 5X tippet, select a formula for a 9-foot 3X or 4X tippet. Then you’ll always know to replace the final section of tippet with fresh new 5X.

To tie the leaders you need to acquire the materials. Hard mono, tippet material, scissors/nippers, and a tape measure are all you’ll need. I have a workstation set-up where I build leaders. I simply drilled my workbench to accept a ¼” dowel. I sunk and epoxied the dowel in place to hold the leader and tippet spools. Then I inked a measuring rule to the front of my bench. Now I can simply pull off the desired amount of material from the dowel mounted spools, across the permanent ruler and cut off what I need. I mounted a second dowel to hold the leaders as they are being built.

The first step is to measure and cut the first section of butt material. Cut each section 1” longer to account for knots. I cut the butt section 3” longer to account for the loop and knot that I’ll use on either end. Once it’s cut I add the Perfection Loop and hang it on the open dowel. Please note that I usually tie at least 6 of each type of leader at any given time. For me the free dowel that I use to hang them on keep things organized—I also use it to tighten the loops I tie.

Continue measuring and cutting each section and blood-knotting then to the previous section. Before you know it you’ll have amassed a supply of leaders! I recommend you refrain from adding the final tippet until you are streamside and can monitor the conditions. A few tips and reminders:

Remember to switch to tippet material for the last 20% or so of the leader when tying for presentation sensitive applications.
Note than leader construction is a function of line diameter and not pound-test. Try to keep the increments to within .002" to .003" for efficient energy transfer.
The "X" factor. "X" is a designation to reference the diameter of tippet material of .011" and smaller. The "X" is the number,in thousandths-of-an-inch, that a tippet line is thinner than .011". For example, 4X is 4 thousandths thinner than .011", or .007."
Wet each knot and draw it tight. Be sure the blood knot stubs are opposing and cut them flush to minimize debris collection.
Do not make loops any larger than necessary.
Coil and mark your leaders. Commercial Leader wallets are handy investments.
Whether using the spreadsheet I provided, or another source of formulas, feel free to adjust according to your cast and conditions. Keep tabs on what you did, what worked and what did not.

To conclude, using leaders you’ve tied yourself will open up new doors to your fly-fishing experience. You will see growth in your casting and catching as you begin to learn how important the leader is to your complete fishing experience. Like anything worthwhile, there will be a small investment in time required to learn the skills of tying leaders and to evaluate their effectiveness, but I am confident that you will appreciate the decision to take that step.