Nylon or fluorocarbon?

[Viking Lars]

I'd love to hear if you nylon or fluorocarbon - or both? And why - and where?

Lars

[Paul Arden]

I use nylon and braid. I think fluorocarbon is crap!!! I generally go by diameter - properly measured of course - and stay away from 25m FFing spools. It has to be at least 100m to be affordable

Cheers, Paul

[ACW]

Lars
I use both ,most of my fishing for trout is on a pair of 50 or so acre reservoiiurs that are deep.
usually fishing teams of 3 nymphs/wets.
if i want the flys down deep fluro is my go too ,if i want to fish high in the water nylon is the way to go .
for nylon I like stroft gtm ,fluro is asso or seagar .
For my sadly limmited river fishing its stroft or maxima clear or green never the tarry rope .

[Boisker]

I use nylon the vast majority of the time, but have been trying fluoro whilst ‘euro’ nymphing this winter, but only for the tippet section below the sighter. Main reason i’ve been trying it is due to it being supposedly less prone to abrasion; trouble is you have to be a lot more careful tying the penny knot with it, which irritates me... so when the fluoro runs out on my current spools i’ll no blunt just use nylon.

[Geenomad]

I'd love to hear if you nylon or fluorocarbon - or both? And why - and where?

Hi Lars
I fish fresh stillwater mostly - full range of fly types. I use both and choice depends on things like water depth, snaggy/weediness of the area, desired sink rate, scumminess of the water and whether I have time or inclination to be bothered changing the whole cast to fish differently.

Having dragged and failed to drag my share of fish out of weed and snags I do think FC is hardier. OTOH if tippet diameter is considered then some of my nylon has a slightly higher breaking strain for a similar stated diameter.

For dries and emergers I tend to go with FC as I want the tippet to sink but it not a fixed rule.

For nymphs and wets - depends.

For streamers, hmm, probably FC has its nose in front but... nylon is also used especially when I can't be bothered changing.

In saltwater I prefer the flats and if there are nasties around like coral or rock then FC but it is a state of mind choice rather than a scientific one.

No clear winner for all fly fishing. As the years go by I feel worse about decorating fish with flies and tippet. Nylon has made a comeback over the last 5 years.

Cheers
Mark

[Mika]

Hi,
I use FC when fishing salmon or big trout. Also sometimes when nymphing with small flies and need to go down fast. Not sure if fluoro is helping but testing now and then. I have found that fluoro can handle rocks better but mainly I'm fishing with nylon. Stroft gtm is really good and knot holds well.

[Paul Arden]

Hi guys,

I’ve heard the better abrasion resistance but haven’t seen any tests on the subject. I wonder if it’s like “better accuracy” in rods - something marketing people think that anglers would like (despite the fact that the US team who dominate the World Championships use 20yr old rods). Let’s see, stronger, tougher and invisible. Knot strength is poorer, I can see it, I wonder if it’s tougher?

When I first started fly fishing I used Maxima tippet material that was dark brown. On the spool it said “the line the fish can’t see”. This is because fish can’t see brown FFS? Nymphs are brown!

For me it’s the Emperor’s New Clothes. It’s expensive too. Yes it does sink faster. This has disadvantages as well of course because if you use delicate emergers it turns them into Wet flies.

I use nylon. I go by diameter, measured diameter - not what the spool says - and I ignore breaking strains which are often complete fantasy. I once read the small print on a spool here in Malaysia that said “breaking strains tested on fish”. WTF does that mean?

If I need more strength for diameter, and the best abraision resistance you can buy, then I use PE/Spectra/Braid. If I squint very hard I can imagine that too is invisible to fish and then it works just fine.

(Just one more thing on this subject. When it comes to braid I’ve tried blue, yellow, light green, dark green, brown and black - here in the jungle where the lake is the colour of pea soup - the colour that gets the least refusals is black! I have no idea why).

Cheers, Paul

[Neil Owens]

I went with copolymer leaders and fluorocarbon tippet ‘Cos that’s what all the guides and teachers use - at least all the guides and teachers I know know

However, like others, I find fluorocarbon to be quite stiff.

This year I’m trying a new coated nylon tippet that’s supposed to give nylon suppleness with flourocarbon like resistance to water absorbtion etc

[Viking Lars]

I am, as stated, using nylon myself almost all of the time for reasons also stated (casts better, cheaper, breaks down etc.) and basically I'm not sure where I stand on the marketing.
I know many who fish tropical saltwater, who say FC is miles ahead of nylon in that environment, but I can't comment, only rely on their experience, which I certainly believe to be real.
On the whole invisibility-thing I'm not sure, I'm not a trout, but when I look at FC and nylon side by side under water, I cannot tell the difference in visibility at all. I've had a few experiences where I changes to FC tippet and caught trout/grayling that otherwise refused, but only a few, so I can't rely on them.
I'd like to hear from people who fish gin clear, shallow water for wary, heavily fished trout... Anyone?

Lars

[Paul Arden]

I think there is another problem. If someone tells you that item X has such and such a improved property, when you experience any event that might involve it, your brain reinforces this suggestion. What I would like to see is non-bias studies that don’t involve marketing departments (who’s creativity in the world of flyfishing at times borders on fantasy).

An additional problem is that there are anglers out there who will maintain these fantasies because to deny them would mean an acceptance that they’ve been suckered.

PE fibre on the other hand is the real deal. For its diameter it is far stronger and I won’t part like butter in the way nylon will when brushed against an abrasive snag. But it is solid and coloured! I would be interested to hear from people who would give it some serious experimenting on trout - because it would be good to pool info! If fish eat flies on brown Maxima mono - which they do - then PE is no different. (Of course you’ll be able to pull their faces off).

Cheers, Paul