Making a Wind on Leader
We painstakingly made a how-to pictorial, frame by frame of how to make a wind on leader and at the end of this we have included a complete how to VIDEO! Skip to the end or watch both. We hope you enjoy our efforts to bring you the best fishing “how to” experience on the web..
Seagaur Yellowfin Tuna Pre-Roll
Yellowfin Tuna Fishing with Seagaur Fluoro Premier Fluorocarbon Leader with the BDoutdoors.com crew
Seaguar Premier Fluorocarbon
To begin tying our wind-on leader we will be using Seaguar Premier Fluorocarbon leader. You should try to match your leader size as best you can with the size of your braided line.
Wind on Leader Materials
To begin, we will need a high-quality fluorocarbon leader material such as Seagaur Fluoro Premier Fluorocarbon, as well as any hollow braided Spectra line of similar size. The tools needed include a hollow rigging needle kit, a piece of emory board, cutting tools, Super Glue and dental floss.
Unrolling the Braided Line
When making these wind-on leaders you can use any hollow braided line as long as the size matches up with the leader material. It is important to unroll the line rather than pull loops off the top of the spool, which can put a half twist in the line and make it difficult to thread the needle through. We will start with about 6 feet of the hollow, braided line.
Unrolling the Seaguar Fluorocarbon Leader
Next we will unroll about 5 to 6 feet of the fluorocarbon leader to start with. For this wind on, we’re using 100-pound Seaguar Fluoro Premier Fluorocarbon.
Picking the Right Needle
We need to find the right size needle in our needle rigging kit that best fits the diameter of the line we are working with. This tool is simply a hollow needle with a point on one end that we use to thread the fluorocarbon leader inside the core of the hollow braided line.
Threading the Needle Through Hollow Braided Line
By pushing the frayed end of the hollow braided line onto the needle it causes the braided line to open up. We then carefully feed the needle through the center of the braided line.
Threading the Fluorocarbon Inside the Braided Line
Typically I go about 5 to 6 feet up the braided line before carefully poking the needle out. I then pinch the fluorocarbon side of the needle and hold it there while I pull the needle out of the braided line, assuring the fluorocarbon does not travel any farther up the braided line.
Preparing to Serve the Connection
Next we will serve the connection point where the Seagaur fluorocarbon leader enters the hollow braided line by reinforcing it with dental floss. The bench tool pictured here helps a lot by keeping tension on the connection, but you can also use two chairs and a couple of clamps to get the job done.
Cutting a Length of Dental Floss
Cut a length of dental floss to wrap, or serve the connection. You can also use smaller braided line to accomplish this step.
Feeding the Clasp Tool
We will use this clasp tool that comes with the needle rigging kit. It should look like the one pictured and have a small clasp on one end. Feed this clasp tool in between the fluorocarbon leader and braided line about a half inch up before poking it back through the braided line.
Pulling the Dental Floss Through the Connection
Make a bend in the dental floss and hook it with the clasp on the end of the tool so you can pull the dental floss back through the connection.
Starting the Connection Serve
Once you pull the dental floss back through the connection you want to make sure the tag end of the floss is about even with the frayed end of the hollow braided line. While holding this tag end even with the end of the frayed braided line, tie a couple of half-hitch knots at the standing end of the floss. This will lock the floss in place.
Wrapping the Dental Floss to Serve Connection
Tightly wrap the floss around the connection working towards the fluorocarbon. I like to throw in an occasional half hitch to lock the wraps while I work towards the flouro. Once you have the wraps going about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch up the fluorocarbon, you then start to wrap back towards the braid and finish it off with a 3-turn Uni Knot to complete the serve.
Glueing the Connection
Once you cut the remaining dental floss off, you are left with a fuzzy connection. I like to use Super Glue across the dental floss to really lock it in place.
Starting the Loop Connection
Now it’s time to make the loop on the hollow braided side that will be used to make the loop-to-loop connection. Start by unrolling an additional 5 to 6 feet of the hollow braided line. Next, take the same clasp tool we used to thread the dental floss and insert it into the braided line about 6 to 8 inches from the tag end. The needle should enter from the side of the braid and work up towards the standing end, about the length of the tool before poking back out.
Serving the Loop
With the clasp tool poked back through the braid, we now take the standing end of the braided line a few inches back and hook it though the clasp, creating a loop.
Pulling the Braid Over Itself to Create Loop
Now pull the tool back out, which will pull the braided line inside out and back onto itself, creating a loop which at this point will be adjustable.
Adjusting the Loop Size
At this point the braided line has been pulled back through itself, creating an adjustable loop. Once we get the loop to a size we want for our connection, the next step will be to bury the remaining tag end of the braided line back into itself.
Burying the tag end
Now take the needle tool that has a small loop on one end and feed it into the standing end of the braided line. Enter the standing end of the line with the needle about half an inch down from where the tag end comes out of the line behind the loop and feed it far enough up the standing end so it covers the entire tag end of the line.
Feeding the Tag End into the Loop Tool
Now take the tag end of the braided line and feed it into the loop end of the needle tool before pulling it back into the standing end of the braid. This will bury the tag end and create a seamless connection.
The Completed Loop
With the tag end of the loop run back inside the standing end of the braided line, we are left with a very clean, very strong, seamless connection.
Cutting the Fluorocarbon Seaguar to Final Length
With everything else completed, all that is left to do is cut the Seaguar Fluorocarbon material to the desired leader length. For this one I am going to unroll about 20 feet for an overall leader length of 25 feet.
Wrapping the Leader for Storage
To complete the process I like to neatly coil the wind-on leader and secure the loops with a tie wrap.
Labeling the Ziplock
Using a Ziploc bag with the pound test and length clearly marked on the outside in permanent marker is a good way to ensure your wind-on leaders are kept neat, organized and ready to use.
Tying a Seaguar Wind On Leader VIDEO
Brant Crenshaw demonstrates how to tie a wind-on leader using Seaguar Fluorocarbon leader. Wind on leaders create a very clean, strong and seamless loop-to-loop connection that reels through the guides easily and can be quickly changed out while fishing for Yellowfin Tuna and other offshore game fish.
