I see a lot of talk about degreasing leaders so that the leader is below the surface when casting dry flies to make it harder for the fish to see (is that correct). So how do I degrease a leader and should I only degrease when using dry flies, if not why?

MT,

Grab yourself some Fullers Earth & Washing Up Liquid, and mix till you create a fairly thick, almost putty like paste.

Take a pinch between your thumb & finger, and run it up and down your leader. This will allow your leader to sink below the surface easier.

Little Tip:

Put a small lump of degreasant above the cork handle of your rod, this eliminates the need take the tub out your pocket every 10mins.

Then, when needed

Just simply, grab your dry fly, give the line a quick flick so its lying over your rod, and the leader is on the degreasant, place your thumb ontop of your leader, and simply pull through.

This will allow it to cut through the surface tension of the water, and less likely to spook any inquisitive trout.

Other than that, use Flourocarbon when fishing dries.


Hope some of this helps


GC

If you don't have easy access to fullers earth you can buy ready made degreasant like Ledasink, £1.50 a tub, or Orvis Mud for about three times that. Quite a few on the market to choose from.

SharkeyP

__________________
Often thinks not travel widens,
Stay at home the Trout obliges.

like geordie/sharky say Fullers Earth And Detergent is what you want but I think fullers earth is hard to get a hold of now. If you cant get it use the leeda sink it,s made from the same stuff and you can add your own detergent. Personaly I work it into a 2" square of cotton and wet it when needed then put it back into 35mm spool tub with a little hole in each end to prevent it rotting,

ledasink, more expensive than making your own but works well.

Do keep it out of the sun though!

Nah.It can still be got easy enough
http://www.fishingwithstyle.co.uk/fullersearth.htm
I saw a suggestion recently that a little Vim added to the mix helps in taking the shine off the leader as well ...I'm not sure about that as Vim has bleach in it iirc . For those who don't know Vim is an abrasive scouring powder used for kitchen etc cleaning ...similar to Barkeepers Friend

__________________
Previously known as molley
and
Don't call me "mate" .

lol sorry for the out of place comment, but i thougt this thread had something to with politicians and their pockets !

also add some glycerine to keep it soft ...........

__________________
WHEN YOU LEAVE THE RIVER, TAKE NOTHING, AND LEAVE ONLY FOOTPRINT'S!!!

THA CAN TELL A YORKSHIREMAN ,BUT THA CAN'T TELL HIM MUCH !!

Loon 'Snake river mud' IMO is the best stuff

__________________
Fish and visiting in laws stink after three days!!

If you find yourself fishing and don't have any of the above recipes simply reach down and grab a handful of mud. Run the line through 2-3 times and guess what-it sinks!