favourite mono for twisted leaders Help

[Gareth Branicki]

Moving from lbg  high speed spinning to gt popping is a rather steep learning curve . I am now finally moving on to twisted leaders as i went for pr and fg knots which i can now manage however am only beginning to learn how to do a twisted leader.  Mono  differs between brands some are too supple and some to stiff fo from the research i have done . so basically asking which are everyones favourites brands for this particular application.
any help would be greatly appreciated for spinning i have always used various florocarbons so my knowlege of mono leaders is not the best

brands i have considered are the ygk castman asborber, varivas shock leader , both jinkai normal and plus ,  jigging master and penn10x  which i hered is very stiff would really like some input line weight only looking at around 80lb

cheers
gareth

 

[Warwick Joyce]

Hi Gareth, I would recommend Galis leader. But whatever brand you use in my opinion the best mono's to use for twisties are softer ones, you can really get a neat tight twist into them. I think that helps the most as it works really well as a long shock absorber.
I would steer well clear of harder mono's and flurocarbon for twisties.
Some people like their twists looser and a harder mono would be ok for this, but I like them nice and tight. I think they look so much neater.
Is your mainline 80lb? If so you could stick to 80/100lb mono twistie but it largely depends on the grounds your fishing.

[Andrew Poulos]

Depends on how much you wish to spend. I have been using black magic supple and its been fine for me. Never had any issues, and its the same leader I use for spinning off the rocks and LBG. Also used Jinkai. Penn 10x works but is really stiff....

[Chris Young]

I've now moved away from twisted leaders in favour of single but I allways used Black Magic either supple or std in 80-120lb for twisties. 90% of the time it was 100lb. I too liked em tight 

[Gareth Branicki]

Thanks for all the replies i will give both the black magic and the gallis a go and see which i prefer  mainline i am using is 80 so looking around 80 or just slight heavier for the twisted leader. Thanks for the info greatly appreciated
cheers

[Peter Childs]

Gareth, like Chris, I've moved away from the twisties a lot more these days and prefer singles.  For singles the Galis and Jigging Master have both been good 130, 170 and 200lb. 

I found I was getting a few bust offs at the knot in the twisties with PE6 in particular (which I use a lot of), I think the thinner diameter braid combined with the soft leader was actually cutting into the end loop (very frustrating).  I reckon the casting is also much smoother with singles, as well as being easier to check the leader for nicks and abrasions whilst you are fishing.

For what's its worth, soft leaders like Galis, Jigging Master and Shogun around 100lb have worked for me for twisties - be careful with 80lb there is not a lot of thickness to resist the braid biting in!  Lets face it, with a twisty, theres not a lot of point in skimping from 100 lb to 80 lb, it's still going to look like a twisty in the water.

[Chris Young]

Peter, you should not be getting broken off at the knot like that, when your catspaw is tightening it should tighten around the twisted section not tight up into the crutch of the loop.

Gareth, if your running 80lb braid I would suggest 100lb for your twisted leaders, one thing worth noting is make sure the swivels you use on the twisties fit through the top guide on your rod

[Angus Hulme]

whatever brand you use in my opinion the best mono's to use for twisties are softer ones

G'day Woz,

I am currently in the process of making some twisted leaders for our trip north in two weeks, and I was told by my local tackle shop to use the harder mono version of the Black Magic brand. Having made 4 leaders thus far, it seems pretty easy get a decent twist going with this material. I am using the 130 lb stuff, and twisting an extra 4-ply section about 30cm long at the business end for extra damage protection. Seems to twist up nice and tight.

I also thought that given the GT's tendency to try and rub you off in the coral, a harder leader material would give a little more abrasion resistance than softer mono?

one thing worth noting is make sure the swivels you use on the twisties fit through the top guide on your rod

Why is that Chris? A swivel would cause damage to your runners in no time, I'd have thought? At any rate, the only swivel in the system is going to be right in front of the lure, so wouldn't be needing to go into the top guide? Or were you being facetious?

Cheers
Angus

[Chris Young]

Sorry Angus I should have explained better, the swivel goes onto the business end before you start the 4 twist If you are pre-rigging spools for quick change over, the swivel will need to go through the guides when changing spools 

[Mark Harris]

I am very much a fan of single strand leaders these days as well and think Sunline 150 lb and 180 lb is the absolute best.

When making twisties I always used Galis.

[Nathan Cefai]

Hi mate,for many years I have used Shogun for leader as single or twisted...easy to twist,soft texture and one of the best for GT popping..Jinkai is another favourite of mine,also for twisted I used 125lb Ande,perfect for Abrasion when fishing around reefs..Shogun is well priced and comes in 100m.

[Peter Morris]

Hi mate,for many years I have used Shogun for leader as single or twisted...easy to twist,soft texture and one of the best for GT popping..Jinkai is another favourite of mine,also for twisted I used 125lb Ande,perfect for Abrasion when fishing around reefs..Shogun is well priced and comes in 100m.

Yes the shogun is quite good.

Nathan...How did your NC trip go..?

Pete

[Warwick Joyce]

whatever brand you use in my opinion the best mono's to use for twisties are softer ones

G'day Woz,

I am currently in the process of making some twisted leaders for our trip north in two weeks, and I was told by my local tackle shop to use the harder mono version of the Black Magic brand. Having made 4 leaders thus far, it seems pretty easy get a decent twist going with this material. I am using the 130 lb stuff, and twisting an extra 4-ply section about 30cm long at the business end for extra damage protection. Seems to twist up nice and tight.

I also thought that given the GT's tendency to try and rub you off in the coral, a harder leader material would give a little more abrasion resistance than softer mono?

Angus, if your getting a good twist into it then by all means use it. I just liked the softer mono's as they are easier to use. I'm getting (rough measure) 1.5 turns per cm of finished leader using 130lb. Maybe closer to 1 turn in the 170 and up.
I have been sticking to singles lately using the FG (f#*kin Good) Knot to 200lb gallis. Trying to encourage shy fish.....
The harder leader will definitely be far better in abrasion resistance.

Cheers

[Gareth Branicki]

thanks for all the replys think i better consider moving up to 100lbs on twisties  due to peters recommendation since im running pe 6 .  Chris thanks for the info on swivels as ive got an 18000 with s spare 20000 spool  so quick changing might be handy . As for single reasonalby  happy with my pr knot still unsure on how well i tie the fg  although I am sure i will learn the hard way if my knotting skills arnt up to scratch lol . 
cheers