fluorocarbon line.

[Wilkie]

Hi Being new to fly fishing can you use ordinary mono line for tippet or not, seems every where I see most people using fluorocarbon.regards Martin

[laffingravy]

Hello Martin, yes of course you can use standard mono and the fly fishing police will not lock you up for it.


To give you a brief outline of the differences between standard mono and fluorocarbon here they are:



Fluorocarbon as a rule of thumb sinks and it was originally designed to sink whereas standard mono tends to float. Fluorocarbon is far more rigid than standard nylon and therefore can offer better turnover of the fly. Standard nylon being softer is more supple and therefore can improve mobility of the fly. Standard mono tends to have greater resistance to abrasion therefore if a fish drags against rocks then standard mono can give you a better chance of banking the fish. Fluorocarbon tends to be thinner for equivalent breaking strains and this can have bonuses.


I don't mean to overload you with information so we will not go into discussing copolymers. If you want any more info then please just ask.


Best regards,
Geoff

[Wilkie]

Thanks for the info that's made it a lot clearer for which one to use.regards Martin.

[twmtwm]

Fluros great for daylight fishing,but for night time I go for mono it's a lot cheaper .I tend to use 12-15 lb this time of year .The fish won't see it at night and its easier to make droppers .Maxima clear/green or Pro Gold cheap as chips fantastic knot strength and good turn over at 12-15 lb.I know one chap on the Towy who used the cheapest 20lb mono to great affect.

[Sawyer]

Ditto with the above not a fan of fluoro always found it a tad unforgiving for fishing at night, maxima all the time

[laffingravy]

I find Maxima a little bit thick for its breaking strain for my own personal tastes. It really is a matter of personal choice. I find this STUFF Excellent. Very thin, extremely strong and at eight quid per spool it is dirt cheap. The 0.25mm diameter stuff works out at about 20lbs breaking strain.

[speycaster]

looks good but with postage its eleven quid not such a good buy at that

[twmtwm]

Pro Gold @12lb about £19 Inc postage ,500 yds around £ 12 Inc on eBay last me a couple of years.

[jj1]

I have no problem with maxima, its my joint first choice along with dren' sub surface, both punch above their weight and most importantly hold their knot stregnth when playing large fish. Ive tried many other nylons and for most, ive been let down by smash takes or being too limp to turn over heavy flies resulting in wind knots, which then you have to re make a leader etc etc
I loved the original sightfree and secret trap fluros, great for daytime work on cloudy days.
I am more weary of the newer gen' stuff after being smashed up on them as no matter how carefull in tying the knots, they have let me down
Ive landed 18lb+ sewin on the ultragreen 8lb, an many many 10lb+ fish on the stuff.
You use what you have faith in!

[laffingravy]

The original question in this thread was to ask what people felt the differences were between mono and fluorocarbon. We need not get into a protracted debate regarding brands. It is evident form the answers thus far that we all have our own particular favourites. The facts about the differences between fluorocarbon and mono however have little or nothing to do with branding.

[Teifi-Terrorist]

I tend to use this very simple approach; if the water is clear (or clearish) and it's daytime then I use fluorocarbon - this includes with smaller flies at dusk. Absolutely no reason to use at night though - just an unneeded expense. I did once feel the need to use heavy fluoro for fishing surface lures, but soon found it made little difference.

At night just stick to standard mono that you have confidence in.

For the record; agree with a lot of the advice above. For the night fishing I always use Pro Gold; top stuff. Or just stick with maxima ultragreen. For the fluoro I use Airflo G3 or Extreme - both excellent.

TT.