The difference between leaders and tippets can often get lost in translation in the fly fishing world. Here we’re going to give you a complete overview and leave you with some great fly-fishing leader recipes.
What are they? What material are they made of? How long should they be? How do you make them? What knots should you use?
These are all excellent questions that every fly fisherman should know the answer to, and in case you have any confusion about any other, we are here to enlighten you. Join us and we explain everything about leaders and tippets.
What is a leader?
Let’s start from the very beginning and first work out what a fly fishing leader actually is. A fly fishing leader bridges the gap between your fly line and your tippet. You tie one end monofilament you attach to the end of your fly line and the other end to your tippet.
They are there to put a distance between your fly and the visible fly line so that fish don’t see your fly line and don’t get spooked from eating your fly. Leaders come in two main forms which we’ll discuss below.
Types Of Leader
Tapered Leaders
A tapered leader starts thick in diameter at the butt section and slowly becomes thinner and thinner toward the end with a smaller diameter. This taper allows your fly to turn over for better fly presentation when you lay your cast down and reduces the leader’s visibility to the fish you’re targeting.
You can opt to make your own tapered leaders or buy a ready-made tapered monofilament nylon leader that has been tapered chemically. The advantage of a ready-made tapered monofilament nylon leader is that there will be no knots or weak points.
How to make a tapered leader – short version
The only gear you’ll need to make a tapered leader is multiple test leader monofilaments including 20lb, 15lb, 10lb, and 6lb plus some UV glue, and to know what is a blood knot. Once you have the gear ready, this is how it goes.
Take the heaviest monofilament for the butt section, which is what you’ll tie to your fly line, and the next heaviest, so 20 and 15lb if you have the material mentioned above. Pull out about 3ft of both and tie them together with a blood knot. Now grab the 10lb and tie about 2ft of it onto the 15lbs, and repeat this step again with the 6lb tieing it onto the 10lb.
Test all your blood knots so you know they are strong and trim them down. Now add UV glue to each of the blood knots and leave them in the sun to cure. Job done!
Braided Leaders
Braided Leaders are two pieces of furled monofilament line that come together to make a braided leader. You can buy them from most manufacturers and they have some great advantages.
- They are durable and last longer than other leaders
- They turn over flies nicely for better casting performance
- Being furled they stretch well when fighting a fish
- Accurate on short and long casts
- Work well with light flies like a size 22 dry fly
The only disadvantage to them is that being furled they are quite thick and easier for fish to see. And there is no taper, so it’s only their stiffness that turns them over nicely.
Specialty Leaders
You can go out and buy specialty fly fishing leaders link sinking leaders or indicator leaders. A sinking leader acts as a sink tip and will help your fly sink so you can fish it deep under the water’s surface. A good option is Rio’s Versileader.
An indicator leader has a brightly colored butt section, usually red or orange, making them easier to see and acting as a bite indicator. They are perfect if you have a hard time seeing your leader or don’t want to fish a bobbing indicator and perfect when nymphing. A good choice if you need one in Rio’s Indicator Leader.
Leader Material
Most leaders are made from nylon monofilament material but you could also fluorocarbon if you wanted to. Monofilament has more abrasion resistance and better breaking strength whereas fluorocarbon is nearly invisible to the fish and is best used when fishing dry fly in gin clear water or for big spooky trout in New Zealand.
Leader Length
The length of your fly fishing leader should vary depending on where your fly fishing, what flies you’re fishing, and what species you’re fishing for.
Fly fishing leaders for trout are usually between the 8 and 12 feet range. You can make them shorter if you’re nymphing in shallow water for trout, or longer when fishing a dry fly in crystal clear water to educated big trout, like in New Zealand.
Anglers in New Zealand fish a 20 feet tapered leader because the water is so clear and the fish are wise and will see your fly line if the length of your leader is any shorter.
One thing to note is that the longer your fly fishing leader and tippet, the harder it will be to cast and turn over your fly nicely for a good presentation. But, if your leader is too short, the fish are going to see your fly line and not go anywhere near your fly.
My advice is to use the longest leader possible that your casting can turn over. This will give you the best chance if the fish do not see your fly line and eat your fly.
Leader Weight
The end of the leader should be a higher pound test or diameter than the tippet you plan on using to keep the taper going.
If you plan on using a 6-pound test tippet, the end of the leader should finish with a 7 or 8-pound test monofilament line. The same goes for a 4x tippet, it should be tied onto a 3x diameter leader to keep the taper going for a better fly presentation.
When fishing for trout you can move between a 6 and 3lb leader and tippet depending on the size and water you’re fishing. When targeting bonefish, a 16-10lb is what you’ll need.
What is Tippet?
Tippet is the final piece of monofilament (or fluorocarbon) nylon you’ll tie o