leaders for waleyes

[Wisconsinite]

I have not fished Lake of the Woods for almost 20 years. At that time, we fished for bass most of the time. The first week in June (2010), we are planning to fish mostly for walleyes. Are leaders frequently used, and if yes, what type?

[walleyemaxx]

Hi Wisconsinite,

I,ve only ice fished Lake of the woods, but I can give you general advice about using leaders for Walleyes.

I personally do not use wire leaders for Walleye fishing. Or for Bass for that matter. On your jigging rod and slip bobber rods, use a good quality 6# test monofilament line.

If you troll, or drift with worm harnesses, use a 14-6 super braid line, a swivel, and a leader length of 6# mono about 6 feet long.

If you troll crankbaits, use 14-6 super braid line with a 10# test mono leader. If you cast crank baits up near shallower water, use 10# mono. If you keep getting bit off from the northerns, than you may want to use a wire leader, but personally I don't. I would rather lose some cranks for the increased catch of Walleyes. Notice I said mono leaders on the other setups. I hope this helps. Any more questions, just ask.

Walleyemaxx(Tom Christianson)
Walleyemaxx Guide Service

[A.Kempka]

Okay why not flurocarbon, you can go higher in strength and have less visibility? Mono is more visible underwater isn't it, either way, why mono?

[walleyemaxx]

Hi A. Kempka,

Reasons I use mono over flurocarbon is
#1- flurocarbon is to stiff. It does not allow your baits to work the way they were designed. The flexibility of mono does. even the super braids have more flexibility.
#2 When drifting, trolling, or casting baits, the diameter of the line does not really mean any thing. The fish react to a fast moving bait.
#3 This is an important reason. When drifting, trolling, or casting baits, the stretch of mono is actually a good thing. Your flurocarbon, and the super braids do not stretch. They are very unforgiving. Set the hook with them and you stand to pull the hooks right out of the fishes mouth. the stretch of mono allows you to set the hook without danger of that. Play the fish right and you won't loose many fish either.
#4 This may sound weird, but I have heard of guys breaking their rods when they forgot that you shouldn't set the hook. It's drilled into us to set the hook.
#5- Maybe the best reason is the cost. mono is so much cheaper than he other lines. I have always had good performance with the brand of mono that I use, that I don't even consider using the expensive lines.
When I guide, I like to keep things simple. Mono is just that, simple.
Hope this makes some sense. Any more questions, just ask.

Walleyemaxx

[MuskySlayer54]

Personally I do not use leaders for Walleye fishing. Its a personal choice whether you trust your line or not to hold up against them. I have never had a bite off with a walleye and therefore do not have reason for using the extra gear. I have always believed that leaders are only needed for fish like musky and northen. I have fished in Canada for 7 years now and have never been let down, (fishing without leaders).