British Made Furled Leaders - from Deepest Darkest Cornwall

by Richard Fieldhouse

In this week's email, we have a NEW (to us) tippet material from RIO and we've just received a large parcel from Luke Bannister containing lots of his stunning Furled Leaders. Here's a message from Luke:

"Since I have taken over the making of Furled Leaders from Rod Dibble, who some of you will no doubt know. Over the years Rod developed some excellent tapers and has been kind enough to pass on all of his leader designs, as well as his Furling boards, so that I can continue to make them in the same way. The range goes from the Mono which is the leader that I have made for some time, through to the highly regarded Ultralight & Super Delicate which were developed with the help of a quite extraordinary fisherman - Stuart Crofts." Luke Bannister

If you want to know more, read on McDuff ...

There are several reasons why you should choose one of Luke's furled leaders when dry fly fishing, instead of a standard monofilament tapered leader:

  1. Improved accuracy and delicacy: The soft, flexible nature of a furled leader allows for a smoother transfer of energy from the fly line to the fly, resulting in more accurate and delicate presentations. This is especially important when fishing with smaller, lighter flies, where even the slightest disturbance in the water can spook the fish.
  2. Better turnover: Furled leaders are designed to turn over flies more smoothly and efficiently than monofilament tapered leaders, which can be especially helpful when casting large, heavy flies.
  3. No memory: Unlike other tapered leaders, furled ones have no memory whatsoever. Just unravel it and you're ready to go.
  4. No knots: As furled leaders have no knots they cause less disturbance of the water surface when retrieving line.
  5. More durable: Furled leaders are generally more durable than monofilament tapered leaders and can last for many seasons without breaking or wearing out. This can save the angler money and time in the long run, as they won't need to replace their leader as frequently.
  6. Customizable: Furled leaders can be customized to suit the angler's specific needs, with different lengths, tapers, and materials available, some even have built-in indicator sections. This allows the angler to tailor their leader to the type of fishing they will be doing and the specific species they are targeting.

Overall, while monofilament tapered leaders can certainly be effective, furled leaders offer a number of advantages that can help improve an angler's success on the water.

But which Furled Leader should you choose? Here's a quick run-down of how to make your decision.

Furled leaders are generally chosen based on the line weight you will be using:

As for choosing the correct length for your furled leader: as a general rule of thumb, take the overall length of the leader you currently fish with (including tippet) and divide it by 3, that is the length of furled leader to choose - i.e. if the overall length of your desired leader (including tippet) is 12ft, then go for a 4ft furled leader etc.

To fine-tune it a little further, also consider the fly you will be using if it's big and bushy (like a daddy long legs), then go for a slightly longer furled leader than the formula above. For example, fishing a big bushy fly on a 5wt line with a total leader length of 12ft, use either 5ft or 6ft mono leader.

Note: I would never go for a furled leader that is less than one-third of the overall length of the leader, even when fishing size 18 and 20 dry flies. But then, I'm not that blessed in the casting department!

It always pays to have a few different lengths handy, just in case you need to change tac midway through your session on the water.

Our Furled Leaders from Luke Bannister are now back in stock and available again for only £8.00 each - a bargain for the quality and improvement in your fishing pleasure. Just click on any image or button in this email to view the leaders in more detail.

Give one a go, you will not be disappointed!

NEW: The Best Tippet Material Available Today

I know that tippet material is really a confidence thing, especially regarding knots, and anglers rarely change their brands. But, I would urge you to try this tippet out - it has replaced my favourite Orvis Superstrong tippet in my pack - I never ever thought I would find anything better!

RIO's Powerflex Plus Tippet is the strongest nylon tippet material ever made, with tensile strengths up to 20% more than regular tippet. A highly technical formulation of the nylon copolymer manufacturing process has resulted in this prodigious strength increase, without compromising knot strength or suppleness. Simply put, this is the strongest, most reliable tippet ever made.

Each spool has the added bonus of 50 yards of tippet.

Features:

  • Incredible strength-to-diameter ratio
  • Soft material for high knot strength

Available in the following sizes | breaking strains | diameters | length:

  • 4X | 7.5lb | 0.178 mm | 50 yds
  • 5X | 6.0lb | 0.152 mm | 50 yds
  • 6X | 4.0lb | 0.127 mm | 50 yds
  • 7X | 2.7lb | 0.102 mm | 50 yds

The RIO Powerflex Plus tippet material is now available from us for only £11.99, which includes FREE delivery. Just click on any image or button in this email to view the leaders in more detail.

Our Other Specialist Tippet Materials To Consider This Season

We also have a few other specialist tippet materials available, From the 'do it all' Powerflex, to the 'dry fly specific' Suppleflex, to the nymph-specific Fluoroflex we have tippet material for all techniques:

Image of RIO Powerflex Tippet

 

 

RIO Fluoroflex Tippet

£12.99

If you want to try a few roll-your-own leaders, here are some recipes for you to follow:

Leader Length

If the water is small or rough, use a leader which is roughly the length of the rod you're using. If the water is calm, extend the leader to between 11ft and 15ft, then add 2ft to 4ft of tippet. Just remember:

"the calmer the water - the spookier the fish - the smaller the fly - the longer and finer tippet you need."

Tippet Size

To enable your dry fly to turn over correctly (which is our main aim), your tippet should always be balanced to the size of your fly:

 

DIY Leader Designs

In this section I will give you some leader designs for different leader lengths. All of the below designs end with 6X (except one) and are designed for rods rated from 2 to 7 weight - happy tying:

Get out there and have some fun this easter!

 

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