How to make wind on leaders 2

Nick Drakes, a Trolling Lure manufacturer and owner of Sekard Technology explains how to make Wind-On Leaders.

MAKING A WIND-ON LEADER
The following steps illustrate how I make my own medium to heavy wind-on leaders. The actual technique may vary slightly from one angler to the next, but the basic principles are always the same. This is my way; give it a try yourself and then feel free to fine tune the technique to suit your own needs and preferences. The key point to note about my method is that I use a double walled Dacron connection, whereas some other methods use just a single wall. Double walled connections are a little more fiddly and time consuming to make and are a little bulkier in profile, but they are a belt and braces solution with the greatest grip and reliability.

STEP 1
Measure off the main section of monofilament leader, type, colour and breaking strain to suit your requirements. Establish the overall leader length you require and then decide how you want to proportion the two sections. The longer rear section will carry the Dacron connection and will join to the reel line and the shorter front section will be attached to the hook or lure. Some anglers have a very short front section, maybe only 1 to 2 feet long. Others prefer a longer front section, but don't make the front section more than 6 feet in length, otherwise the main benefits of using a wind-on leader will be reduced. A typical example would be a leader of 25 feet overall length, made up of a 20 foot long rear section and a 5 foot long front section.

STEP 2
Measure and cut 8 feet of braided Dacron, selecting a diameter that is best suited to the main monofilament leader. In this example I am using hi-viz yellow, but feel free to use a more camouflaged colour if you prefer. Bright colours are useful as they provide a good visual indicator of when the leader is nearing the boat. Less obvious colours are better if stealth is important or if there are concerns about passing Wahoo or Barracuda striking the brightly coloured connection.

STEP 3
Measure from one end of the piece of Dacron and, using a pen, mark points at 4 feet and 5 feet from the end. The 4 foot marker will be the point where we insert the Dacron back inside itself and the 5 foot marker defines the section that will form the loop at the end of the connector. Note - The 1 foot section between the 4 foot and 5 foot markers will form a 6 inch long loop in the finished connector. If you prefer a longer or shorter loop then adjust the Dacron length and dimensions accordingly.

STEP 4
Take an off-cut piece of Dacron and tie it in a tight overhand knot around the main piece of Dacron between the two marker points. This is a safety measure to ensure that we do not accidentally pull the whole section of Dacron back inside itself and lose the loop.

STEP 5
Take the threading needle and insert it part way into the Dacron at the 4 foot marker point. To do this first grasp the Dacron between fingers and thumbs in two places (about an inch apart) and squeeze together, this will cause the Dacron to bunch up and the weave of the braid will open up slightly. This provides the opportunity to carefully work the needle through the side wall and into the hollow centre of the Dacron without damaging any of the braided strands.

STEP 6
Take the opposite end of the piece of Dacron and thread it just through the eye of the needle, by about an inch.

STEP 7
Thread the needle through the hollow central core of the Dacron and right out the other end. To do this pinch the Dacron to make it bunch up and then slide it along the needle an inch or two at a time, this action always reminds me a little of the way a caterpillar crawls along. Once all the Dacron is bunched up on the needle pull the needle through, drawing the Dacron with it.

STEP 8
Remove the needle, but be very careful not to allow the inner Dacron section to disappear back inside the outer section. Hold onto the inner section of Dacron and bunch up the outer section as tightly as possible up to the opposite end. Allow the loop section to slip partly inside; this is okay as the Dacron off-cut that was tied on earlier will prevent it from disappearing completely.

STEP 9
Take the main longer section of the monofilament leader. Using a piece of abrasive paper round off any rough edges on one end of the monofilament. You do not want a sharp point on the end of the monofilament, rather than aiding the threading process this will cause problems as it will constantly snag or break through the side wall of the Dacron.

STEP 10
Thread the monofilament inside the inner section of Dacron, use the same caterpillar crawl technique to inch it along. Stop when you reach the 5 foot marker with the end of the monofilament. Note - This marker will be on the inner section of Dacron, so you need to have the outer section fully bunched up in order to see it.

STEP 11
Stretch out the inner Dacron section along the monofilament leader. Run along several times with the Dacron gripped between finger and thumb to ensure that it is fully stretched and snug.

STEP 12
Carefully re-open the loop at the end of the Dacron connector back to its original length (6 inches) while also stretching out the outer Dacron section over the top of the inner section. Run along several times with the Dacron gripped between finger and thumb to ensure that it is fully stretched and snug. You will note that the outer Dacron section is slightly longer than the inner section, this is deliberate. The inner Dacron section is now protected from abrasion and fraying by means of being fully covered by the outer section, this also creates a slimmer profile at the point where the Dacron and mono meet.

STEP 13
It is inevitable that the end of the outer Dacron sleeve will have frayed slightly during construction. VERY CAREFULLY trim away the frayed strands using a pair of sharp fine pointed scissors, do not cut or nick the main monofilament leader when doing this.

STEP 14
To prevent any further fraying smear a thin coating of super-glue around the end of the outer Dacron sleeve. Make sure that the end of the Dacron is smoothed down neatly onto the monofilament with no loose strands left sticking out.

STEP 15
The point where the Dacron and monofilament meet must now be protected. This is to prevent damage to this critical area when the leader passes back and forth through the rod guides. If left unprotected the end of the Dacron connector would soon begin to fray and come apart. There are two methods that I use to protect the Dacron/mono joint and I will explain both so that you can try them and see which you prefer.

OPTION 1 - Take a length of rigging floss (dental floss) and start at a point about three quarters of an inch along the Dacron from the point where it meets the mono leader. Begin a series of half hitches, pulling each one tight and making sure that each half hitch touches the next, i.e. no gaps. Continue with touching half hitches right to the end of the Dacron and along the monofilament for a further quarter of an inch. Complete by tying a whipped finish, just as you would use to secure a Bimini Twist, this is sometimes referred to as a Rizzuto finish. Trim off the tag end of the rigging floss and then carefully coat the surface of the floss with a very thin even covering of super-glue. If you use conventional general purpose super-glue, be very careful to make sure there is no excessive build-up or any loose ends of Dacron or floss sticking out. This is because regular super-glue dries hard and brittle and can create sharp edges that could cut the main reel line when the leader is wound onto the reel.

OPTION 2 - Take a one inch long piece of low temperature heat shrink tubing with a diameter that just fits over the Dacron/mono join. Slide the tubing onto the leader and mark the positions on the Dacron and mono where the tubing will fit, ideally approx, three quarters of an inch onto the Dacron and a quarter of an inch onto the mono. Take a hair dryer and switch it on so that it is ready and up to temperature. Now coat the join area with a thin even covering of super-glue, immediately slide the tubing into position and heat with the hair dryer. Do not hesitate or the glue will have cured before the join can be finished. Once the tubing has shrunk down tightly the join is complete.

STEP 16
The Dacron connector has now been fitted to one end of the longer section of the main monofilament leader, so the most difficult and critical part of the wind- on leader is complete. Now attach a snap swivel, of an appropriate strength rating, to the other end of the main monofilament leader. Use a correctly sized crimp and short piece of anti-chafe tubing to produce a strong and durable connection.

STEP 17
We can now turn our attention to the second, shorter section of the main monofilament leader. You will first need to rig your chosen lure, hook or bait-rig to one end of the short leader. Then form a small neat loop at the other end of the leader using a correctly sized crimp and short piece of anti-chafe tubing to produce a strong and durable connection. Once we are ready to go fishing this short section of leader can be attached to the longer main section by means of the snap swivel.

STEP 18
The complete wind-on leader assembly is now finished and ready for use. To connect this onto the main reel line, first tie a loop in the reel line by means of a doubled line and a Bimini Twist or Aussie Plait. Next, coil up the main monofilament leader so that it is neat and tidy and then thread the loop in the main line through the Dacron loop in the leader. Form a cats-paw knot by passing the whole leader back through the loop in the main line between 3 and 5 times, fewer turns on heavy lines and more turns on thinner lines. Before pulling the cats-paw knot tight, moisten the monofilament to add lubrication and also make sure that both legs of the loop in the main line and both legs of the Dacron loop are exactly equal in length, unequal legs will create uneven tension in the line and the Dacron connection.

THE END
Finished, now we can go catch some fish! I hope this article on wind-on leaders has been useful and explanatory. As with some of my other articles it's quite long and detailed, so I hope you managed to stay awake right the way through! My writing style came about through my own frustrations over many years of reading articles by other writers; so often they were too vague and missed out vital pieces of information that made it difficult for a novice angler to follow and understand. I always feel that it is just as important to explain WHY? in an article as it is to explain HOW? and it is often the WHY? that many authors miss out.

If you'd like to raise any questions or seek clarification on any points within this article, feel free to contact me at on the Sekard Technology website at www.sekard.com