Wire leaders is essential for anglers because they protects the fishing line from being cut by the teeth of the fish. Many fish has teeth or hard snouts that can easily cut the fishing line. However, wire leaders are made of a strong material that can resist the cutting action of the teeth of the fish.
Single-strand stainless steel wire leader are used for trolling. Single-strand stainless steel wire leaders is stiff and wont billow out in the water when the fishing boat is moving. Some wire leader have a coffee colored tint.
How to Choose, Use and Care for Wire Leaders
This tint allow for the wire leader to camouflage the fishing line in clear water; the coffee colored tint will even come close to the color of sand and weeds in the water. When using wire leaders, you must select the correct gauge for the line. The gauge of the wire leader will determine the strength of the wire and how the lure will move in the water.
Using a wire leader that is too heavy for the fish will prevent the lure from moving correct in the water. Using a wire leader that is too light for the fish will cause the fish to break the wire. For example, using a light wire with a diameter of 0.011 inches will work for fishing for perch and bluefish.
For fish such as pike and muskie a thick wire is needed. For large fish like wahoo or sharks, use a heavy wire leader with a break strength of over one hundred pound. The length of the wire leader is also another importance factor in the effectiveness of the wire leaders.
Short wire leaders that is six to nine inches in length are used for fishing for fish that come close to the boat. Long wire leaders are often used when fishing offshore, especially if the wire leaders are two feet or thirty-six inch in length. Such lengths of wire leader provides the lures with the range of motion they require to entice fish, while also providing extra protection for the anglers from large sharks.
For example, tarpon require mid range weights of wire with extra length due to the presence of gill plates. You can connect wire leaders to the fishing line and swivels in a few different ways. For single-strand wire, haywire twists is common because they are strong and dont require any special tools.
Crimps are also an option for connecting the leaders to the fishing line. However, the crimp must be the right size for the diameter of the fishing line to avoid slip connections. Barrel swivels are helpful when trolling because they do not allow the fishing line to twist.
Additionally, heavy snaps allows for quick change of the lure attached to the fishing line. However, the snaps must be rated for the weight of the fish being target. There are several different types of wire that is used for fishing lines.
Bright stainless steel wire is easily visible to the anglers. Coffee colored wire can be more stealthy when fish are in clear water. Multi-strand braids offers the advantage of flexibility over single-strand wires.
Titanium wire is used because it resist bending. However, monofilament line is not advised for use when targeting species with prominent teeth as the teeth of these fish can easily cut the monofilament line. Wire leaders must be maintained in order to ensure proper function of the fishing line.
A wire leader should be inspected for kink. The presence of a kink in the leader will reduce the strength of the wire leader by half. In this instance, the wire leader should be discard.
Additionally, anglers should rinse wire leaders with fresh water after use in salt water to avoid corrosion of the metal leader. Finally, the wire leader should be stored in a loose fashion to avoid developing memory curl in the wire leader.