Leadcore how do you use yours??

[kermit]

In my opinion (and KevW's too by the sound of it), using leadcore with anything other than a helicopter rig is reckless and irresponsible <sound of Kermit ducking head below parapet and waiting for backlash!>.

Why do people go on and on about fish welfare and 'safe rigs' only to use leadcore with running rigs and lead clip set-ups? In these situations, a snapped mainline will lead to carp trailing 3 to 4 feet of leadcore leader, which I feel is totally unacceptable.

I've only recently started using leadcore, so don't claim to be any form of expert. To date I've been using the 1m long ready made ESP helicopter leadcore packs and cannot fault them. Well put together and I'm confident that the setup is as safe as can be should the mainline break. As a bonus I've even caught a few fish on them too!

Mike.

[booth91]

yeh same as most but longish lengths of around 6 feet.

fished helicopter style but with no top bead.

instead i just wrapp a piece of dissolving foam around the leader.just to stop the hooklink flying up on the cast.

this way if a breakage happens the fish can deffinetly rid itself of the leader.

[Bl4cky]

i use it in varying lengths depending on the circumstances normally around 2 1/2 feet on normal casting and big chucks and up to 6/7 feet on close in dangling. down sarf there are a number of pegs where your fishing to a far margin reed line and the fish have a tendency to bolt into them on the take so i fished locked up with 4 feet of it and a strong abrasion resistance hook length in case they just make the reeds. i find that a length between 2 or 3ft is perfect for giving it the biggun as i've got the correct drop from the rod tip that suits my casting ability and the large lengths of 6ft and slack lines for the very close in work. i add i use 18lb mainline when fishing close in so breakages have never occured. the method of attatching is a splice with superglue (never had one slip and have never mastered the needle knot on bench tests) and a trimmed down lead clip. rarely if ever use helicopter rigs as lost loads of fish last year whilst on them and not to happy with securing the top bead too tightly to the leader.i've witnessed lads fishing this way in the correct manner but never had much faith in the hooking properties meselfof the rig ( too much movement in my eyes between the hook and weight of the lead ).

[Deano]

Keep it coming lads, I also want readymade leader users to reply eg TFG, Korda leaders etc etc.Some varying responses and much of what I expected.The fun might start though once we get a few more replys....

[Bl4cky]

i use the tfg leaders on waters where leadcore is banned (the ones with just a flexi ring swivel on the end) and inline leads and have found them to be mint. a loop knot is the best way of securing without cutting into the leader and these don't have the tungeston blobs on like the korda ones which people seem to dislike and are cheaper. good arrows.

[connor]

use about 3ft leadcore for a helicopter rig, strip out some lead ,tie lead on with a grinner knot put heli components on then attach the mainline with a needle knot! dont see the need for splicing.

[Callum91]

1 metre of esp leadcore, fox leadclip, fox tail rubber, fox swivels with the hook one one end to change hooklinks easily and a korda rig sleeve over the swivel with usually an 11inch combi rig, 18mm meteor and a 12mm shellfish pop up on top snowman style

[Grim REAPER]

Not so sure leadcore leaders and lead clips/tail rubbers can be deemed as safe when used in conjuction with one another
and as an after thought if your using a 45lb leadcore leader(ESP),you may as well use a heavy enough mainline that is gona stand up to any punishment,because a 45lb leader aint exactly subtle


"Light blue touch paper and stand well back

[THE SNIPER]

Originally Posted by THE SNIPER

running rig....needle knot.......

cant trust a splice

i also use it for tying up the wife and get her to check the stength of the knots

[Grizzly]

The length of leadcore varies between 3ft to 6ft with needle knot to the main line and spliced at the rig end. This is then either fished with a Carp R us safety lead clip or helicopter set up .

[faz]

i see that alot of people dnt agree with usin it with anythin but the heli rig, surley if ur set up was in the correct ratio there should'nt be a problem, i use 30lb braid mainline with 45lb leadcore and no more than 12lb hooklink so if anythin should go it would be the hooklink 1st.

[Bl4cky]

Originally Posted by kermit

In my opinion (and KevW's too by the sound of it), using leadcore with anything other than a helicopter rig is reckless and irresponsible <sound of Kermit ducking head below parapet and waiting for backlash!>.

Why do people go on and on about fish welfare and 'safe rigs' only to use leadcore with running rigs and lead clip set-ups? In these situations, a snapped mainline will lead to carp trailing 3 to 4 feet of leadcore leader, which I feel is totally unacceptable.

I've only recently started using leadcore, so don't claim to be any form of expert. To date I've been using the 1m long ready made ESP helicopter leadcore packs and cannot fault them. Well put together and I'm confident that the setup is as safe as can be should the mainline break. As a bonus I've even caught a few fish on them too!

Mike.

i understand what your saying matey but no leadcore rig is fullproof. my argument is that if you do suffer a break with a leadclip the lead should discharge. with a helicopter rig thats not got a rotten bottom there is the chance that the leadcore can kink and prevent the bead from running off the leader. the safest way of fishing is with anti-tangle tube but doesn't always fit the bill with every situation.

[kermit]

Originally Posted by faz

i see that alot of people dnt agree with usin it with anythin but the heli rig, surley if ur set up was in the correct ratio there should'nt be a problem, i use 30lb braid mainline with 45lb leadcore and no more than 12lb hooklink so if anythin should go it would be the hooklink 1st.

Faz, I would agree that your hooklength would go first in a straight pull. However, my concerns arise if you get cut off on a snag or crack off on the strike (or, with braid, suffer a tangle/wind knot during the cast that leads to a crack off). If any of this happens, the fish will be left trailing leadcore.

Mike.

[kevw]

Originally Posted by Bl4cky

i understand what your saying matey but no leadcore rig is fullproof. my argument is that if you do suffer a break with a leadclip the lead should discharge. with a helicopter rig thats not got a rotten bottom there is the chance that the leadcore can kink and prevent the bead from running off the leader. the safest way of fishing is with anti-tangle tube but doesn't always fit the bill with every situation.

Agree Bl4cky no leadcore rig is foolproof and it's all about minimising the risk.

Like you say a break with a leadclip and the lead should discharge, there is a chance with a helicopter rig that the bead will not come off.

Still personally believe the helicopter set up is by far the safest way to use leadcore, and it shouldn't be used full stop for snag fishing.

Pic below was pulled in with a fish from Capes Main Lake by my mate, is a running lead set up that has tangled and the lead is still attached. Irresponsible angling at it's worst maybe, but a real example. There were 2 lengths of mono hanging from the branches with the birds nest tangled at the end, fish was hooked and the mainline got tangled with the mono hanging down from the tree. Had mates mainline broken the carp would have been tethered and we would have had to get a boat out, fortunately the mess was brought in with the fish.

[Deano]

Getting more of a response now but still not the numbers I would like to see.I think lots of leader/leadcore users are not posting how they use these bits of tackle.

I will admit that for the last few years I have used leadcore on most of my setups mainly being helicopter/chod, inline and leadclip.After another discussion I have had to rethink this as has already been pointed out the only setup that really does ensure a fish is only left with a hooklink after a crack off/mainline breakage is a helicopter/chod.

You have the likes of Korda, ESP and TFG promoting and selling leaders to be used with inlines/running rigs and leadclips.Is this right and is this safe?

A guy on the other forum relayed a sad tale of finding an upper 20 trailing a length of leadcore that had snagged around a branch which in turn had snagged on a weedbed.This broke the fishes jaw and he had to kill the fish I would hate to think that I could cause this to happen to any fish and urge others to rethink their setups.

On the otherhand I myself have fished a carp out of a lake that was trailing a rig and line of about 12-15lb.In this instance there was no leader but a mainline breakage had occurred and the line left trailing was enough to snag the fish in a reed bed which it was then left towing about after it had obviously struggled and ripped part of the reed bed up.I think had I not been able the net this fish it would have died. So is any setup 100% safe if we crack off or suffer a mainline breakage??

Its certainly an issue worth thinking about and I may well change my setups now after thinking long and hard about this