Braid As A Leader

[stlfisher]

This may be really dumb question (so don't be too harsh if it is), but does anyone use braid as a leader on your fly rod? I was wondering if there would be any advantages to this while fly fishing for bass (not trout obviously). I would use this setup on stained lakes with lots of brush and vegetation. I would use a 6 weight or 8 weight fly rod and maybe add a small section of mono tippet. I figure the braid would help me feel the softer bites and last a little longer.

[Zach Bearden]

Are you talking about making the entire leader out of braid? If you used a sinking line and made a loop at the end, then put the braid as your tippet that would be fine. But I don't believe it would have the diameter to turn anything over.

[stlfisher]

I would attach the braid to the fly line via a loop to loop connection.

[Gavin]

I use braid on my spin rigs, but I've never tried it on my fly rods. Most of the stuff I use is really thin, so I'd think that you might have issues with turnover, plus braid tends to float. That could be a good thing or a bad thing...

Give it a go and see if you like it...or try a furled leader. Make a furled leader out of braid and you should be able to tow a truck with it. Cheers.

[jdmidwest]

I have used Braided Leaders from the Orvis Company since the 80's, they are tapered and turn over well. The braid seems to take a little of the shock out of hooking and playing a fish, they have more "give" than mono. I also make my own braided leaders for nymphing and bass out of a braided material I pick up in spools of 30 mtrs. They are non tapered and used loop to loop connectors to connect to line and tippet. They work just fine also. The material comes in colors, clear, gray, and orange.

[stlfisher]

Thanks for the replies. I think I will give it a shot and see how it goes.