(Q)  Who can benefit from using a furled leader?

(A)  Everyone who casts a fly rod and wants to improve their skills.

Among our field testers are professional guides, master casters with all the credentials, intermediate and beginning anglers. One thing that is common to all is they agree that TN Trout Bum furled leaders are the only leader they want on the end of their fly line.

We make brightly colored leaders for practicing distance and accuracy which benefit casting competitors needing to readily see their leader's location from a distance. These are also great for practicing and we have used them on the river and caught fish.

(Q)  What are the uses for thread and monofilament leaders?

(A)  Thread leaders are used primarily for dry fly fishing since they more readily absorb floatant for riding on the surface.  Monofilament leaders can be used in the same manner but are more suited to nymph and streamer fishing where a sinking leader is preferred.

Tippet materials are more suited for floating monofilament leaders as opposed to regular fishing line monofilament.

(Q)  What are the types of materials that you use to make leaders?

(A)  We build these leaders from all name brand monofilament including: Stren, Berkley, Ande, Courtland, Bass Pro, and Rapala. Monofilament and thread materials are chosen for their physical properties as well as their color. How stiff or limp a material is governs how we utilize it in producing our leader and whether it is combined with another or used by itself. Elongation under stress and breaking strength are other considerations taken into account.

Clear Fluorocarbon and Monofilament will appear white after furling. This is due to the light refractive properties of the clear strands. Since light is passing through instead of being absorbed by color, the white you see is a reverse prismatic effect in that it is collecting the full visible light spectrum and combining it to make white.

(Q)  Does a colored leader spook fish?

(A)  A solid color or multicolor leader does not alarm fish if a proper presentation is made. You see this everyday with anglers using brightly colored fly lines that float over more fish than they are aware of. Our field tests indicate that tippet length is more important since fish are focusing on the fly so intently that they are oblivious to anything outside their cone of vision.

For anglers who are skeptical we produce our leaders in camouflage and natural color patterns to blend with what the fish are used to seeing.

(Q)  What are the benefits of a furled as opposed to a solid mono leader?

(A)  Furled leaders, due to a combination of properties, produce a smoother transfer of energy from the fly line to the tippet and fly. The coils of a furled leader act as a spring and a larger diameter is always turning over a smaller one. A solid mono leader has no coils so all of its energy must come from you through your rod and line. This is evident when an angler's line hand slips resulting in the solid mono leader piling up into a bird nest.

A furled leader will lay off to one side if your line slips instead of piling up. This results in a cast that can still be fished or easily recast.