🇬🇧 British Made Furled Leaders - from Deepest Darkest Cornwall 🇬🇧

by Richard Fieldhouse

Morning Chaps & Chapesses,

As the river season is nearly upon us, I thought it would be good to concentrate this week on what I would consider 'Early Season Essentials', items which should be in and around your fly box for those early season trips.

The top of the 'early season' list for me, is something a little odd that many of you may never have come across before - a furled leader. 

Early season is all about getting the correct presentation - especially to wild fish which may never have seen a fly before. Weather conditions when fishing in the early season can be a little hit and miss - just like your casting technique - so having the ability to perfectly present a fly in any weather is essential.

That's where a furled leader comes in ...

As luck would have it we have just received a large parcel from Luke Bannister containing lots of his hand-made (in Cornwall) stunning Furled Leaders - for those of you who ordered one of Luke's rods, they will be arriving with us tomorrow and be with you later this week.

Here's a quick message from Luke:

Since I have taken over the making of Furled Leaders from Rod Dibble, who some of you will no doubt know. Over the years Rod developed some excellent tapers and has been kind enough to pass on all of his leader designs, as well as his Furling boards, so that I can continue to make them in the same way. The range goes from the Mono which is the leader that I have made for some time, through to the highly regarded Ultralight & Super Delicate which were developed with the help of a quite extraordinary fisherman - Stuart Crofts." Luke Bannister

If you want to know more about furlies, read on McDuff ...

There are several reasons why you should choose one of Luke's furled leaders when fly fishing in the early part of the season, instead of a standard monofilament tapered leader:

  1. Improved accuracy and delicacy: The soft, flexible nature of a furled leader allows for a smoother transfer of energy from the fly line to the fly, resulting in more accurate and delicate presentations. This is especially important when fishing with smaller, lighter flies, where even the slightest disturbance in the water can spook the fish.
  2. Better turnover: Furled leaders are designed to turn over flies more smoothly and efficiently than monofilament tapered leaders, which can be especially helpful when casting large, heavy flies.
  3. No memory: Unlike other tapered leaders, furled ones have no memory whatsoever. Just unravel it and you're ready to go.
  4. No knots: As furled leaders have no knots they cause less disturbance of the water surface when retrieving any line.
  5. More durable: Furled leaders are generally more durable than monofilament tapered leaders and can last for many seasons without breaking or wearing out. This can save the angler money and time in the long run, as they won't need to replace their leader as frequently.
  6. Customizable: Furled leaders can be customized to suit the angler's specific needs, with different lengths, tapers, and materials available, some even have built-in indicator sections. This allows the angler to tailor their leader to the type of fishing they will be doing and the specific species they are targeting.

Overall, while monofilament tapered leaders can certainly be effective, furled leaders offer several advantages that can help improve an angler's success on the water - especially in the early season.

But which Furled Leader should you choose? Here's a quick run-down of how to make your decision.

Furled leaders are generally chosen based on the line weight you will be using:

As for choosing the correct length for your furled leader: as a general rule of thumb, take the overall length of the leader you currently fish with (including tippet) and divide it by 3, that is the length of furled leader to choose - i.e. if the overall length of your desired leader (including tippet) is 12ft, then go for a 4ft furled leader etc.

To fine-tune it a little further, also consider the fly you will be using if it's big and bushy (like a daddy long legs), then go for a slightly longer furled leader than the formula above. For example, fishing a big bushy fly on a 5wt line with a total leader length of 12ft, use either 5ft or 6ft mono leader.

Note: I would never go for a furled leader that is less than one-third of the overall length of the leader, even when fishing size 18 and 20 dry flies. But then, I'm not that blessed in the casting department!

It always pays to have a few different lengths handy, just in case you need to change tac midway through your session on the water.

Our Furled Leaders from Luke Bannister are now back in stock and available again for only £8.50 each - a bargain for the quality and improvement in your fishing pleasure. Just click on any of the above images or buttons in this email to view Luke's furled leaders in more detail.

Give one a go, you will not be disappointed!

Early Season River Fishing

Our FLY: series of books have now been restocked, ready for the new river season starting.

We've taken a subject within Fly Fishing - in this case "Early Season River Fishing" - donned our budgie smugglers and done a deep dive into it:

In this book, you will discover how to identify the species of insects which are commonly found in UK rivers between March and mid-May. How to then imitate them with the most common fly patterns. This book also discusses the type of conditions you can expect to face and the various tips, tricks and techniques used the fish them.

Book Details:

Number of Pages - 78
Format - A6 (10.5cm x 14.8cm)

This book also includes leader configurations that use multi-fly rigs to get the best from the early season conditions.

Each of our FLY: series of books is available for only £9.99. Click on any of the green buttons above to view (and buy) our FLY: Early Season River Fishing book.

Small Streams & Small Flies = Early Season Success

Another of our FLY: series of books which have now been restocked, ready for the new river season which is nearly upon us.

This book contains a detailed analysis of how to approach fly fishing in small streams, using small flies throughout the season.

This book also discusses the type of conditions you can expect to face on small streams and the various tips, tricks and techniques used the fish them.

Book Details:

Number of Pages - 78
Format - A6 (10.5cm x 14.8cm)

We've also included leader configurations specifically designed for use on small streams with smaller flies.

Each of our FLY: series of books is available for only £9.99. Click on any of the green buttons above to view (and buy) our FLY: Small Streams & Small Flies book.

Get prepared, and ready for some fun!

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