[itgotaway?]

Is fluro carbon really invisible? The reason Im asking is my spools of fluro left from last season have become very weak!! And I have a lot of clear mono laying around which is as good as new so Im thinking why waist money keep buying fluro every year when mono seems to last a hell of a lot longer!

 

[ROCK-ROVER]

dont really know 2 b honest
i do know that you can see it when you cast out

what i do is change it after every trip

i have experimented between flouro and amnesia but catch results dont improve with one or the other

 

[OCTOSPUD]

Just use mono, I have gone back to it after flirting with flouro and have not noticed any difference in catch rates.

 

[myfish]

Is fluro carbon really invisible? The reason Im asking is my spools of fluro left from last season have become very weak!! And I have a lot of clear mono laying around which is as good as new so Im thinking why waist money keep buying fluro every year when mono seems to last a hell of a lot longer!

It's not invisible. Not from an above the water profile nor underwater. In fact, fluorocarbon, unless one cleans it, it collects and retains dirt.

Mono, not all mono can be a suitable alternative but, remember.
Those of you who have not caught bigger fish, hooking a 7, 8, 9lb bass on a mono leader only to have the bass flare it's gills, roll and slice your leader is NOT a pretty picture.

This is one area where fluorocarbon is more effective. Bass are sharp.

 

[Nick Phillips]

Remember there is fluorocarbon and there is Fluorocarbon.

Hook length/leader material and hybrid or main line material.

 

[JonD]

Remember there is fluorocarbon and there is Fluorocarbon.

Hook length/leader material and hybrid or main line material.

Thats right and each one claims to better than all the other fluorocarbons, just have to try and convince the fish :doh:
JonD

 

[Guest]

I use flourocarbon and mono for mullet fishing.flourocarbon works better than mono at night and maxima mono works better than flourocarbon in the day.I only use them both as hooklengths and leaders, my mainline is powerpro unless I'm float fishing when I use mono as a mainline.
This is what I have noticed but others may have different results, one thing I will say is to buy the best flourocarbon and mono you can find, there is a vast difference in quality not always shown in the price.

 

[JonD]

So how do you know which the best fluro is to buy ? they all claim they are good and if you go by price would you get the cheapest line to produce if it was the dearest to buy. Who would buy any line if it was marketed as average. So many people think that by spending more money you get more for the $$$, I used to sell framed pictures for about $90 as I believed that doubling my cost was a reasonable profit. I had a guy tell me I was selling way to cheap and I would sell more if I tripled my price, wanting to prove him wrong I tried it and found I sold way more framed pictures once I upped the price.
JonD

 

[Guest]

as myfish says,flouro does have its advantages ,some disadvantages as well,but it certainly is not invisible underwater. there is an online article by an industry professional that shows the invisibility claims are rubbish.ive posted it on wsf in the past,but as usual the companies producing the stuff either get the articles removed,or fill the net with so many adverts and related cr4p its hard to find negative articles .
where presentation of a bait ,or unrestricted action of a particular lure are required,particularly the smaller soft plastics,i reckon the softer the mono the better,stiff lines such as flourocarbons can inhibit natural movement.
cheers rab

 

[Nick Phillips]

Thats right and each one claims to better than all the other fluorocarbons, just have to try and convince the fish :doh:
JonD

Jon there is a big difference.

If you take something like Seaguar ACE that is only meant to be a leader material,you couldn't use this stuff as a main line as it's too stiff/hard/springy.

But it makes fantastic stiff leaders that have fantastic abrasion resistance.

Then take a fluorocarbon line that is made to be a main line,it has to be altered and other materials added to make it suitable to be cast from a reel.
Basically they make it softer so it's more user friendly.

I use it basically when I want the line to sink under the surface and the Seaguar as leader material.

 

[itgotaway?]

It's not invisible. Not from an above the water profile nor underwater. In fact, fluorocarbon, unless one cleans it, it collects and retains dirt.

Mono, not all mono can be a suitable alternative but, remember.
Those of you who have not caught bigger fish, hooking a 7, 8, 9lb bass on a mono leader only to have the bass flare it's gills, roll and slice your leader is NOT a pretty picture.

This is one area where fluorocarbon is more effective. Bass are sharp.

So are you saying the fluro would stand up better to sharp objects/gill plates than mono?

 

[myfish]

So are you saying the fluro would stand up better to sharp objects/gill plates than mono?

I think it does yes.

However, once nicked or abraded, the line becomes just as susceptible as mono, perhaps even more so. Thing is to quickly change any damaged leaders.

 

[mark333]

It's not invisible. Not from an above the water profile nor underwater. In fact, fluorocarbon, unless one cleans it, it collects and retains dirt.

Mono, not all mono can be a suitable alternative but, remember.
Those of you who have not caught bigger fish, hooking a 7, 8, 9lb bass on a mono leader only to have the bass flare it's gills, roll and slice your leader is NOT a pretty picture.

This is one area where fluorocarbon is more effective. Bass are sharp.

Just how I lost my best every bass ,:giveup:
Gill plate , roll , esp soft ghost I was using .
Rarely use leader now ...I'm sure she would have gilled straight through braid worse though .......
Was left with 5 inches of leader , a good knot , and a broken heart ....
Still , that's fishing , can't land them all ...

 

[lipslicker]

I think it does yes.

However, once nicked or abraded, the line becomes just as susceptible as mono, perhaps even more so. Thing is to quickly change any damaged leaders.

Hi @myfish,
Can i ask the lb'age leader you favour?
I generally use 20lb Amnesia, as I fish pollock ground a fair bit, but set up a lighter 0.13 reel with 12lb Drennan. Bit low?
Cheers.

 

[myfish]

Hi @myfish,
Can i ask the lb'age leader you favour?
I generally use 20lb Amnesia, as I fish pollock ground a fair bit, but set up a lighter 0.13 reel with 12lb Drennan. Bit low?
Cheers.

Fly = 8 - 10lb, if in rough ground, 12lb.
Bombarda = 6 - 10lb
HRF - 12 - 20lb
LRF (if using a leader) 5lb
Needlefishing at night, big lures, big casts = 15 - 25lb but leaders are also (shock leaders). Maybe 6 to 8 turns on the reel during the cast.

That's a fair guideline to what I use.

 

[ianbatt]

I've never used a leader i use braid straight threw i don't see the point
what is the knot strength of your leader once you tie it to your braid to me its a weak link
and the way i see it you don't want any weak links when plugging for bass but hay what do i no
regards ian

 

[cobia]

I've never used a leader i use braid straight threw i don't see the point
what is the knot strength of your leader once you tie it to your braid to me its a weak link
and the way i see it you don't want any weak links when plugging for bass but hay what do i no
regards ian

Could you have possibly missed this thread? Pretty much covered the whole leader pros and cons. As for knot strength, I have stress tested leader material. I found that when the leader is tied with an improved albright, every time the leader material parted not the knot.

 

[itgotaway?]

I've never used a leader i use braid straight threw i don't see the point
what is the knot strength of your leader once you tie it to your braid to me its a weak link
and the way i see it you don't want any weak links when plugging for bass but hay what do i no
regards ian

I seem to remember when I first started using braid, I tried it then with no leader and suffered a hell of a lot of tangles around the plug hooks.

 

[Nick Phillips]

For me a leader of some sort is essential to help prevent hook tangles.

 

[sylofox]

More than asking us if fluro is invisible has any one asked Bob the goldfish if he can see it.

We can only assume the fish can not see fluro.
When infact it may stand out like a flashing light to the fish.