[Philster]

Howdy all. I've never met a line a couldn't loop... Well, I hadn't run across one until today. Windcutter 10/11/12. I was cutting tip 2 into two sections as riveraddict suggests to build a skagit line, and when I went to put on my standard homemade bluewater loops I've been using as long as I can remember, I ran into a problem. The 50 lb braided mono I use wouldn't pass over the line!

I did a search and ran across Juro's loop, which also asks the mono to slide over the line, but with only a little mod, I made it work for me using my old school northern california steelhead shooting head techniques using thread and pliobond instead of Juro's mono and auquaseal.

So while in the short term I have things in hand, I'm hoping someone has some advice for me as I will soon be building a line with an even FATTER belly!

 

[mattzoid]

For really fat line, I break down and buy the prepackaged loops. Some of those 50 lb loops will fit over them. The best are the ones that come with the Scan heads.

 

[flytyer]

Philster,

Carefull cut the one side of the fat belly to about a 1/2" taper with a single edge razor blade, scissors, scalpel, or Exacto-knife. This allows the braided mono to "crawl" up the belly instead of asking it to abruptly open up enough the accomodate the large diameter of the belly.

 

[Philster]

Hey Flytyer

I did actually taper about a quarter inch, but I don't think I can do a half and leave the core intact...

Matt

I guess in hindsight I should check my cortland braided mono. I was using gudebrod and it definitely doesn't fit!

 

[Carl]

Try Gudebrod 50# braid

I've gotten it over the belly of a WC 11/12/13.

Carl

 

[juro]

I have spools of 20#, 30# and 50# braided mono for this very reason.

The fat belly, like DT12 or 13 commonly used in spey heads, requires 50#.

 

[mattzoid]

I've been able to put the Cortland 50# on 10/11/12, but it is a pain in the butt. Warm up the end with a lighter and then squeeze/ roll with finger tips to put a taper in it. Even with that, coaxing it down an inch can take forever. Sometimes inserting other things into your home made loop can help expand it further, before you put it on your line. Either way, it takes more time than I care to give for one loop. If I make 20 bucks an hour and it takes me an hour to weasel some cortland braid on there, I'm loosing money because the 50 pound factory loops (not Cortland, forgot which ones I bought) are just a couple bucks. It just didn't add up, but it does for smaller diameter lines.

Now Cortland 50 # will work great as just a sleave over a spliced line, but with it running inside of itself for your loop, it gets tough.

 

[Nooksack Mac]

Mega-loops

The Kevlar braided loops, which I've seen only in the Kauffman's Streamborn catalog, should fit over any fly line, and probably your anchor line as well.

 

[Rob Estlund]

Strip to core and then snake

Try the method that Kush mentioned recently. Strip the core from an inch or so and then snake a piece of wire (or the cortland tool) down the braided loop. Catch the exposed core and snake the thing up the line. It worked for me on some really fat lines.

The other obvious benefit is that the line stiffness remains fairly constant.

(Do a search. He had pics and everything.)

 

[Brian Simonseth]

I’ve been using 50 lbs (Cortland) braided mono for all my loops on Skagit Lines with no problems. Just use a nail clipper to taper the end of the coating and inch it on.

Here an old loop.