leader line advice

Member Joined: Dec 01, 2005 Posts: 16

hi can anyone tell me how long a shock leader line should be for beach casting? :?:

Occasional Joined: Dec 02, 2005 Posts: 144

i personally use the length from the reel to the tip and down to the bottom of the butt, + 1 turn of the reel handle.

this maybe incresaed if i'm on a pier and/or need a rubbing leader.

if you use a long drop whilst casting then it'll prob need to be longer.

Member Joined: Dec 01, 2005 Posts: 16

bigguy wrote:

i personally use the length from the reel to the tip and down to the bottom of the butt, + 1 turn of the reel handle.

this maybe incresaed if i'm on a pier and/or need a rubbing leader.

if you use a long drop whilst casting then it'll prob need to be longer.

thank you

Posted: Thu Jan 19, 2006 3:49 pm

hi mate,

my leaders are normally the length of the drop, plus about 6-8 turns on the reel which is normally the rule to follow.
If you invest in tapered shock leaders as i do they are set at the correct lenth anyways.

tight lines

Member Joined: Dec 01, 2005 Posts: 16

Raymondo wrote:

hi mate,

my leaders are normally the length of the drop, plus about 6-8 turns on the reel which is normally the rule to follow.
If you invest in tapered shock leaders as i do they are set at the correct lenth anyways.

tight lines

hi raymondo, thanks for the advice. i'll ask at my local takle shop about tapered leaders, thanks. big grin

Guest

HI Mate the length of your shockleader also depends on the style of fishing eg if fishing off high cliffs I would recommend longer so you can hand line the big ones up the cliff.I normally would use around 7m in length this is usually good for all round occassions.Tapered are good if you cant be bothered in measruring but a bit costly if you snag.

Posted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 7:57 pm

general rule of thumb is 6 turns on your reel plus the length of your rod plus the drop you normally cast with,ie pendulum about 6 ft

Member Joined: Jan 14, 2006 Posts: 9 Location: NEW ZEALAND

Hi Salty, The true purpose of a "shockleader" is to take the force applied when casting, and should not be confused with your leader or trace line.
The force generated when you cast can be quite high in comparison to the breaking strain of the line on your reel, for example, I have a fixed spool reel on my surf caster, the reel is filled with 30lb braid, I have attached a "shockleader" of 65lb braid with a double uni knot to that, about twice the length of my rod. Depending on the size and type of the fish that I am expecting to play, I will attach a 30-50lb trace with my hooks attached. So when casting off a beach the 65lb "shockleader" fills the entire rod, this is taking the strain during the cast. The trace line is taking care of any abrasion by fish jaws/teeth at the sharp end, and the rod and mainline combination is taking the strain when the fish is being fought. Hope this helps.
Snowkiwi

Posted: Fri Mar 02, 2007 2:59 pm

That was extremely helpful guys. I'm new and have sorted out most queries but this is one least talked about.
Does the knot that is tied from the leader to the mainline ever get snagged or hit the loops on the rod when casting or is this of no consequence. (I've yet to get out there)

Guest

FatherJack wrote:

Does the knot that is tied from the leader to the mainline ever get snagged or hit the loops on the rod when casting or is this of no consequence. (I've yet to get out there)

Yes....if your knot is "scruffy"......if you use an appropriate leader knot and make a neat job of it you shouldn't have too many problems.

Another cause is when you do a duff cast, you sometimes catch the leader knot on your thumb if using a multiplier....making sure you wind the knot onto one side of the spool will prevent this.

Another problem (although not related to casting) is weed collecting around the leader knot when you retreive and jamming in the tip ring. When this happens you simply need to clear the weed off before you can finish reeling in......tapered leaders often help in these circumstances because the knot is smaller and catches less weed.