Favorite Fluorocarbon?

4106 Views 20 Replies 14 Participants Last post by Speyducer, Feb 19, 2007

bigfatrod

Discussion Starter · Feb 15, 2007

With so many brands of fluro out there to choose from, what are people using and happy with? I'm typically a Maxima Ultragreen guy, but am leaning towards fluoro for summer steelies this year, especially when fishing skaters and/or in low water flows. With a floating line, of course! Still use Maxima UG for winter fish--see no reason to change except maybe in very clear water.

Any and all input appreciated!

BFR

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Speyducer

· #2 · Feb 15, 2007

Favourites...

For heavy work (Atlantics), would use Seaguar Ace fluoro - 15lb & above tippet.

For lighter work, would use Berkley Transition fluoro tippet.

For monofilament nylon, Maxima Chameleon.

Mike

JDJones

· #3 · Feb 15, 2007

Fourocarbon

Fourocarbon does not do as well for skaters because it has a specific gravity, or something like that, less than water. So it sinks. You may be able to get by with flouro for the tippet and Ultra Green for the rest of your leader. I tried building tapered leaders entirely out of fluro for sunk fly applications using a floating line. Terribly expensive plus it was a pain to switch back & forth between flouro and mono, for sunk flies or skaters. And I never felt it was worth it.

But for sink tip leaders, flouro is the only way to go. I use Maxima. Only because I have been using Maxima Chameleon and Ultra Green so I have confidence in the stuff.

Carl

· #4 · Feb 16, 2007

Maxima has been durable and cheap. I've used more expensive, but won't bother for anything 1x or bigger...and the Maxima is just fine lighter as well. I've used it down to 6# with no complaints.

Carl

bigfatrod

Discussion Starter · #5 · Feb 16, 2007

fluorocarbon

William,

While some may be turned-off by your general bravado and machismo, I enjoy your fiestiness and will tolerate it, mainly because I know you care about fly angling for steelies and the quarry you chase, so I won't take the bait on your "snipe hunt" or "magic bullet" comments. This is simply William being William; that's fine.

Sure, most info. on fluro is from anecdotal and not "hard evidence". Heck, what info. on catching steelies IS based on hard evidence? Not much. When one angler can catch a steelhead on a size 14 Gold Ribbed Hares Ear with 7x tippet and another on a massive, stinky glob of roe and 0x, that leaves a lot of "what ifs" in between.

I'm just interested in what brand of fluoro people have used and had confidence in. Will it help me hook more fish? Who knows. But testing new lines/flies/approaches/techniques is part of the fun of chasing steelhead.

Please continue.

BFR

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MJC

· #6 · Feb 16, 2007

If you think you need it, Airflo Sightfree works very well. For steelhead fishing I personally think it is not needed. I also think it is bad for the environment.

Yes I do sell it, but if you want some you will have to listen to me tell you I think it is bad for the environment.:saeek:

GPearson

· #7 · Feb 16, 2007

Fluoro? We don't need no stink'n fluoro!

Cheers.

sean

· #8 · Feb 16, 2007

If you are going to use it I think the seaguar fluoro is the best. Most consistent for me as far as knot strnegth. I stopped using it as the extra dough I was spending on it compared to increased hook up ratio just was not there for me.

-sean

pescaphile

· #9 · Feb 16, 2007

I'll use a 15' tapered FC leader by extending the butt of a 9' Orvis Mirage tapered leader with large dia (.021") FC. This will fish surprisingly deep with a comet or boss. I use this frequently (or the aqualux tip with a 9' leader) in low and cold water conaditions.

Seaguar Grand Max is the best material for strength and for holding a knot. They don't have tapered leaders in the Grand Max as far as I am aware.

JD's right about using the stuff with skaters. I tired it once and I couldn't even keep a waller waker up. He's got his specific gravity backwards though, FC sinks because it has a higher specific gravity than water.

wilson

· #10 · Feb 17, 2007

I always use the RIO Flouroflex, not the Florouflex Plus, but the good stuff. The Plus is too thin and wimpy, regular Florouflex works pretty well on flies up to #1/0 at around 14 lb.

-Chris

BLACK FRANCIS

· #11 · Feb 18, 2007

i second the rio fluoroflex. i have been using it for years from .015 to 7x and it performs consistantly.

fluoro bad for the enviroment? what because it has a half life of something ridiculous? anyone know what the half life of nylon is? if they both degrade after, oh say 1000 years, who cares if one is gone in 900 years and the other takes the full 1000? i have heard this argument before and didn't buy it then.

i also don't believe that it makes one bit of difference for swung flies, i just like the properties of the fluoro better.

danimal

· #12 · Feb 18, 2007

S A I I

I shy away from flouro as much as possible.. But cold clear water and pressured fish make me pull a spool of it out of my vest..Two guides that I have spent a considerable amount of time on the water with( on their days off they want ME TO SHOW THEM WHERE AND COMPARE NOTES:hihi: guess I should charge them , except I pickup a pointer here and there and one of them brings the cigars, so I consider that a fair trade. Just dont know why it always has to be my boat and I am the one rowing.) Anyway -two yrs ago they turned me on to S A flouro II

.. Dudes-I is here to tell ya that ifn ya aint ever used it...Ya better try it.. Strongest sh:whoa: t I have ever used:smokin: , Holds its knot strength really well too.

wilson

· #13 · Feb 18, 2007

I should say I always use the Flouroflex after B.F. put me on to in several years ago ;-)

Never let me down and I like the stiffness for kicking over larger patters I use for Atlantics. I was sorely disappointed in the Plus came on the market making the regular hard to come by.

-Chris

chromedome

· #14 · Feb 18, 2007

After using the original Fluoroflex for quite awhile, I switched to the Fluoroflex Plus when it came out. That was before I went completely over to swinging and was drifting egg patterns/nymphs over jagged bottom structure most of the time. I had enough experience with tippet failure to tell me that the Plus probably has less abrasion resistance than the original Fluoroflex so I switched back. As stated in a recent thread, after years of finding this product to faithfully have the diameter stated in the labeling, more recently I have found the Fluoroflex to be oversize. Maybe they figure if Maxima can get away with it, why shouldn't they be able to

.

Speyducer

· #15 · Feb 18, 2007

Size matters...?

chromedome said:
...after years of finding this product to faithfully have the diameter stated in the labeling, more recently I have found the Fluoroflex to be oversize. Maybe they figure if Maxima can get away with it, why shouldn't they be able to.

IMHO, I don't think the tippet diameter spooks fish for sunk & swung flies, but the tippet performance does depend on its flexibility/rigidity and diameter - ie, gentler presentation with softer & low diameter tippet for dries/skaters, and stiffer and higher diameter tippet for turning over larger (esp. sunk) flies.

Mike

SpeyHermit

· #16 · Feb 18, 2007

Flouro

I've had good luck with Seaguar (the real good stuff) and Drennan. The latter is very strong and small diameter. I stuck with that, MOST IMPORTANTLY, because flourocarbon sinks, just as JD said.
IMHO, Flouro WILL NOT buy you anything for floating, even with copious amounts of leader dressing.
For surface fishing, Maxima UG is my preferred. For warmer surface fishing (regular season), Maxima, Orvis and Rio are my favorites. I will not use flouro for drys or emergers.

That said, in winter, whether it's flouro, Maxima or whatever, frequently strip the ice build-up off your leader. Otherwise, you're just fishing with a rope.

bigfatrod

Discussion Starter · #17 · Feb 19, 2007

fluoro

Great advice. Many thanks!

GP---:chuckle:

Very interesting comments about fishing a skater with fluro. Hmmm. Makes sense, though.

To save money and split the difference, I may just go ahead and use regular mono for the main part of the leader and use the fluoro for the tippet section. Otherwise, I'd end up spending serious cabbage on leader material for, perhaps, not much, if any, in return.

Maxima UG has been so good to me over the years, it's strange to use something else. Well, at least for the tippet section, that is. We'll see what happens.

By the way, what about using fluro for salt water fishing, specifically, bones and permit?

BFR

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Speyducer

· #18 · Feb 19, 2007

Always...

bigfatrod said:
... what about using fluro for salt water fishing, specifically, bones and permit?

BFR

...use a good fluoro for bones & permit, as 1. they are easily spooked and 2. they will run out a lot of line over the coral flats, and the line needs to be as invisible as possible, strong, abrasive resistant, and, as sunk flies are being used, fluoro answers all these needs.

Mike

chromedome

· #19 · Feb 19, 2007

Speyducer said:
IMHO, I don't think the tippet diameter spooks fish for sunk & swung flies, but the tippet performance does depend on its flexibility/rigidity and diameter - ie, gentler presentation with softer & low diameter tippet for dries/skaters, and stiffer and higher diameter tippet for turning over larger (esp. sunk) flies.

Mike

Mike - It seems to me from what you say, that if you have found a given diameter to give you the tippet performance you want, you would be concerned if that tippet is actually oversize from what you thought you were using as stated on the label. Also, I'm not sure that diameter is not critical in spooking fish. I recall watching a Lani Waller video where he showed the underwater swing of a redwing blackbird. Both my friend and I remarked about how brightly light was being reflected off the tippet as the fly was swinging. In my own experience I've had occasion to believe that with steelies, tippet diameter is a factor. Often these fish follow the fly quite a ways before taking or turning away. They see the fly from a variety of angles, and not just from behind (away from the tippet) as many assert.

salmo

· #20 · Feb 19, 2007

Chromodome,

I have found the Fluoroflex to be oversize. Maybe they figure if Maxima can get away with it, why shouldn't they be able to

What toll did you use to measure a tippet material.
Most calipers have accuracy +/- 0.001” ( 1x size).

Salmo

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