Tapered Shock Leader Question

[GoneFishing]

Hello, i recently moved on to using shockleaders for the first time and decided to go for the tapered shockleaders. I didnt think much about it and just went out and bought a spool of 5 tapered shock leaders, 13m in length tapering from 60lb all the way down to 16lb.

This wouldnt be a problem but...

My mainline is 20lb and the low diameter end of the shockleader (16lb) connects to this thats 4lb difference in the line. So what i want to know is should i have got a tapered shockleader for example that tapers down to 20 then it will be 20lb connected to 20lb rather than 20lb mainline connected to 16lb which tapers up to 60lb.

I am concerned about weakness in the line which is why i am asking this.

Will it be fine am i just nit picking? or not?

Thank You

[excarper]

Sounds like the easiest thing to do is to change your main line to 16lb. Theretically you do have a weak link. You would need to set your front drag by pulling on the 16lb part of the shockleader not your main line or you could crack off or get broke up if you didnt. So many people make the mistake of setting the clutch wrongly by using the leader and not the mainline to set the drag, thats fine if you are fishing six inches out and you still have some leader on the spool! In coarse fishing the heavier line is nearly always the mainline and the trace or snood is a lighter line. So pull on the lighter line to set the clutch. I have never used a tapered leader i presume its so you can tie a neater leader knot but may be wrong.

[paul p]

Welcome to the forum. I presume its shore fishing. Bin the taperd shockleader weak link. 15lb mainline 0.35m dia, 70-80lb shockleader lenght of your rod+ 8 turns on to your reel and tighten your drag mate if its shore fishing because if you dont before you cast you could loose a finger. Now if you do hit a good size fish and you are playing him in close well you can let it off to play it but tighten it up b4 you recast. Tight lines. Paul

[bassmanrob]

There's an easy answer to this.

Simply cut about a foot or so of the end of the leader off. You've then got one that tapers from 20lb to 60lb instead of 16lb to 60lb.

[paul p]

You can do that also.

[geejayy]

Originally Posted by bassmanrob

There's an easy answer to this.

Simply cut about a foot or so of the end of the leader off. You've then got one that tapers from 20lb to 60lb instead of 16lb to 60lb.

spot on m8, just cut off the tapered end till diameter matches your main line as a rough estimate

[GoneFishing]

Thanks for the replies :) helped me alot.

What i have decided to do is keep the 20lb mainline on and go for a full 60lb shockleader to save me hassle with possible weak points in the tapering shock.

Luckily i had bought a spool of 60lb shockleader this morning which i was going to use for rigs so i was able to cut a length off that spool, attach it to my reel and theres still plenty left for rigs and more shock leader so all is good! (plus it was cheaper)

Thanks for your replies :)

[excarper]

PS dont overfill your spool with too much mainline if your using a fixed spool reel. I made that mistake when i started and when you open the bail arm no matter how hard you trap the leader against the rod butt the leader will coil off the end of the spool if there is no lip left. This will cause tangles and crack offs. Try and leave 2mm of lip on the front part of the spool.This will stop the leader sliding off the end and causing problems. Tight Lines!

[paddy2k7_red4life]

welcome to the forum

[bigfin]

Just a little simple tip I do, when attaching a new leader or mainline. I always do a simple flick cast of 20-30yds this will help tighten your knots and line to the spool on retrieval. As I backcast I want the knots/line to be tight and safe, its a powerful casting style and if done wrong could be dangerous.