Pike on the fly, what leader to use!

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MartyLee

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Joined
Apr 30, 2012
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Location
Muskoka
I want to try to land a pike on my fly gear. but am woundering what my leader should be. I was thinking 30LBS bread about 3 feet of it, I have seen on a fishing show (The New Fly Fisher) I believe, a Wire leader but am not sure where I would get them. Anyone have any advice for a rookie like me :)
 
Check this out to get started bro:

Getting Wired

Using a wire shock tippet on your fly rod always feels a bit unnatural, and certain fish do often shy away from the rig. But, if you are after toothy critters, such as mackerel, kingfish, barracudas, or sharks, then you are better off with wire.

After many years of experimenting, I have come to the conclusion that using wire on a fly rod is the art of knowing which is the thinnest and shortest piece you can get away with. Bearing this in mind, let’s choose the proper wire size and length and then discuss how to tie it to your tippet.


HayWire Twist Pass the wire through the hook eye and give it 3 to 5 uniform twists. Then begin barrel wrapping the tag end around the standing line for another 4 to 6 close wraps. After the last wrap, do not cut. Instead, bend the tag end at a right angle to form a small lever. Rotate the wire in one direction until it snaps off cleanly at the knot. (Wire diameter exaggerated for illustration.) Albright Knot Form a 'U' in the wire. Lay the monofilament into the loop. Pinch the first wrap against the wire and continue with another 8 or 9 wraps. Pass back through the head of the 'U,' moisten and draw tight on the tag end first. For extra strength, double the monofilament, or tie a Bimini twist and then tie the Albright as close to the Bimini as possible.
So-called straight or “hard” wire (as opposed to braided cable) comes in several sizes, from about a No. 1 to about No. 19 or so, depending on the manufacturer. Fly fishermen should carry from No. 3 to about No. 6 or 7. And because of the glare the bright wire produces, most of us prefer the dark wire, called coffee color.

For smaller fish like Spanish or cero mackerel, I use three to five inches of No. 3 or No. 4 wire. For barracudas of more than 20 pounds in both flats and reefs, I like six to eight inches of No. 5 wire. If you use a shorter length, a large ‘cuda will often eat the whole rig and cut you off. But I find that with six inches or more I can often strike before they swallow the leader. And this length is a good compromise between getting hits and making the long casts that are often needed for barracudas in the flats.

For sharks, say over 50 pounds, I like No. 6 wire as a good all-around choice. It is heavy, but I am usually using a 12-weight rod and can cast the wire and the big fly that goes with it.

Not all that is wire is bad, though. Often, while trying to get a fly down more than 50 feet with a fast-sinking line, you’ll find that the small piece of wire helps sink the fly into the strike zone. It is not unusual on a day of deep fishing with a sinking line and a fine-wire tippet to take mackerel, snapper, grouper, and jacks while using a No. 4 wire. I’ve done it many times.

Connections

There are probably as many ways to connect wire to mono as there are methods for tying mono to a fly. However, here are a couple of my favorite ways. Double the butt end of the wire in a U and tie an Albright Special with the monofilament, much the same way that one would tie to 80-pound mono when tarpon fishing. To make it stronger, I like to double the tippet and then tie the Albright. Or, for really large prey, such as sharks, I will tie a Bimini Twist in the tippet, and then take the doubled line and tie my Albright as close as possible to the Bimini knot. I tie my Albrights with at least nine turns, or sometimes more for extra strength, and I have not had a problem landing big fish. The fly is best tied to the wire with a classic Haywire Twist (see illustration).

Coated cable also works fine, and the soft plastic cover ties well with an Albright knot. However, when using coated cable, many fly fishermen prefer a simple figure-eight knot to the fly. There are disadvantages to both wire and coated cable. A hard-wire knot will tend to pick up grass and other debris. On the other hand, the plastic cover of coated cable increases its diameter and therefore its visibility. So I’m staying with regular wire for the time being.

But remember that whether you use wire or cable, it’s a good idea to tie several of these tippets with wire and loop the night before. Then, when opportunity presents itself, you will be ready.
 
When I fly fish for Pike I use only a 1 foot leader/tippet of 50 lb Flouro attached to my main leader. If by 30 LBS bread you mean 30 LBS braid then no, braid cuts like butter when bit by pike and since it's so thin there is not too much abrasion resistance.

For Pike in the 5-10 lb range I would say 50 LBS is a good strength 40 LBS at the minimum but I like to be safe.

Be careful with the thick lines though because they make casting a bit more difficult.

I would say definately no to the wire leader for fly fishing as it makes casting more difficult, adds unneeded weight and, can spook fish.

Hope this helps
 
FishingNoob said:
I would not use 30 pounds of BREAD for a leader, it is weaker then any fly tippet.
And would make casting quite difficult. Plus 30 LBS of bread would not be very cheap! :p
 
oh so 40 to 50 pound Flourocarbon for the leader then. and yes I ment braid and not bread.

I do have braid as my backing thou, 150 feet of 15 pound. I am just getting into fly fishing and mostly fish for Bass so that is more then enough backing. did get a bunch of brookies last fall up north of Terrance Bay Ontario on the fly. was great, and since it was a open all year lake they where tastie too.
 
liger Rob H on this forum--he knows the way--I am sure he will be nice enough to show you what he showed me-he might even respond to this post--good dude. ...just another option not to discount any other stuff you got...just sayin
 
Nothing less than 50lb Fluorocarbon especially if you are targeting pike over 10lbs, you can easily get snapped off. There are titanium leaders which are fantastic and much more durable than steel.
 
Around my fishing area pike over 10Pounds are common so ya heavyer line is better. I mostly fish for bass with my fly-rod, trying to get my casting and all the other skills up to par before I venture out into the wide world of Trout. Been to the Beaver River once. very few others fishing in early Aug 2 years ago. so I could fish without having to worrie about tangleing with others too much.
 
Anyone know if copolymer shock leader is in the same catagorie as flurocarbon.... from what I read online it sounds like it would do the job
 
I do the same as these boys, run 50 lbs floro, run directly to the fly and a micro swivel to the leader, it does make casting a bit more difficult, but the benefit of pike is they aren't too spooky, so tighter casts can be just as productive.


Not too much more fun then gators on the fly.

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This is my go to fly, a large marabou streamer tied in chartreuse and white, pink and white, or red and orange, add a bit of crystal flash or flashabou in there, and it's pike candy.

A88975AD-E151-4934-BBEE-120F95ABE0C2-1589-000003DC81C5EC3F.jpg
 
Completely un related to the posters orginal inquiry, but I have to share.

Last night watching River monsters, he was able to hook and land 150+ Tarpon on a fly! I was actually shocked.

Now hearing people fly fish for Pike, I am jaw dropped.

Pike I have bene told use a 5 of diamond or red devil spoon, cast high in order to make a splash on the wter and start reeling in violently.

How the hell do you fly fish for pike? Do you still use the edge of weed beds and ledges as a casting point?
 
pike fly.jpg
I often tie in the leader similar to the previous posters picture , I do however carry the leader through for a weed guard . I most often use a 50 b.s regular mono .
But keep in mind this is just me and I am not a real avid pike fisherman.[/quote]I often tie in the leader similar to the previous posters picture , I do however carry the leader through for a weed guard . I most often use a 50 b.s regular mono .
But keep in mind this is just me and I am not a real avid pike fisherman.
 
Tuf line Braided steel leaders were what we were using for shark in Florida, I belive you can get them at Bass Pro Shops, They were actually a breeze to cast because they are pliable like regualr mono but good luck cutting through it. We were using 5 yards of 50lb which i think is the standard
edit: we cut the leaders down to 2 foot sections, they come in 5 yard spools
 
I have fly fished for all kinds of toothy critters. With the exception of Sharks and Barracuda i always use Fluorocarbon
40-60lbs as a bite leader. I`ve been doing quite a bit of Muskie fishing the last few years and I use 50lbs of Fluoro to a short leader(4`) and put it together with a Slim Beauty Knot.

Check out this link: http://www.orlandooutfitters.com/knots/knot.asp?id=16
 
best pike leader i have come up with is 6 feet of 40 pound rio power flex tippet to turn over big flys and then conect with a loop to loop 10 to 14 inches of rio wire bite tippet
 
iJay said:
Completely un related to the posters orginal inquiry, but I have to share.

Last night watching River monsters, he was able to hook and land 150+ Tarpon on a fly! I was actually shocked.

Now hearing people fly fish for Pike, I am jaw dropped.

Pike I have bene told use a 5 of diamond or red devil spoon, cast high in order to make a splash on the wter and start reeling in violently.

How the hell do you fly fish for pike? Do you still use the edge of weed beds and ledges as a casting point?
Did he tell you that those nasty tarpon can swallow a grown man whole and send blood flying in all directions?
 

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