[gillh2o]

I went out this week to fish spring branch creeks in Iowa and try out a new 5wt floating Orvis wonderline with a welded loop. The loop seemed smaller than some Rio line I use. I had to stretch it a bit to attach my knotted 6x leader. I noticed a spit in the loop where the weld would be when I finished fishing. The weather was in the 30s-40s wit a lot of midge and small caddis hatches. I did notice the wonderline seems stiffer than the Rio lines I have used. What's the best fix? Repairing the loop or cutting it off and add a mono loop? Thanks

[Joe D]

Send it back for a replacement... something is askew.

Or, just cut it off and tie on a leader.

[Frank Whiton]

Hi gillh2o,

I would try to repair it first unless you just don't like it. It surprises me that the loop was too small to tye on a leader. It may just have surplus line coating on the joint. Clean it up and add a drop of Zap-A-Gap, Goop, Plio-Bond or Knot Sense. You always have the option of cutting off the loop if it doesn't work for you. Even if you cut it off you need to seal the very end of the line so moisture won't migrate up the core.

Frank

[gillh2o]

Thanks for the input. I called Orvis and they will exchange the line. I went ahead and repaired with marine Goop and see how it holds. It looks like the weld is long enough I may not have to seal the end. And now back to fighting the snow melt in Iowa!

[FlyRichardFly]

I was thinking about the "welded loop" and I got thinking that when I get my new line next week with a loop, I will tie a Uni knot where the leader meets the loop.
This should go through the guides better, and it's also quick to change. When I want to change a leader, I'll just clip off the leader close to the loop and pull the last piece off.
I'll just have to be careful as not to cut the loop with my clippers when I take the old leader off.
If I do cut the loop, then I'll just cut the loop off and use a nail knot.
I used loops before and I really didn't like them.

Years ago, some would use a metal ring that would stick in the end of the line with tiny barbs. Even that was better than the loop to loop.

All this rain has me thinking of new things to try with my fly rod.

I must say that all the fly fishing vids on this site are awesome...... much better than watching the stinkin' TV!

[Fly2Fish]

Originally Posted by Frank Whiton

Hi gillh2o,

I would try to repair it first unless you just don't like it. It surprises me that the loop was too small to tye on a leader. It may just have surplus line coating on the joint. Clean it up and add a drop of Zap-A-Gap, Goop, Plio-Bond or Knot Sense. You always have the option of cutting off the loop if it doesn't work for you. Even if you cut it off you need to seal the very end of the line so moisture won't migrate up the core.

Frank

Hi Frank,

I know this is an old thread and posting, but was wondering which of those glues you would favor for sealing the end of the fly line after cutting off the loop it came with? I'm faced with the same problem, since more and more fly lines now seem to come with pre-made loops and I don't like loop-to-loop connections. While Plio-Bond is certainly more flexible than some of the other fishing glues, I suppose the glue's flexibility might not matter so much for merely sealing the end of a fly line to prevent water absorption.

Thanks,
Neil

[Frank Whiton]

Hi Fly2Fish,

Hey Neil, have you made any trips yet this year? Are you going to try the Deshutes again?

Here is a post I just made this morning. It may not all apply to you but it will save me some typing.

Frank

This is one spot that I thing super glue will work.

1. Take a needle and make a slight indent in the end of the line. No more than 1/16" to 1/8".

2. Hold the line vertical with the tip on top.

3. Take a drop of super glue and put it on top of the indent. If you are using regular super glue you should turn the tip down right after you apply the super glue so it won't penetrate too deeply into the fly line. If you are using ZAP-A-GAP you should not have to invert the tip unless you see it is migrating into the line. Let it dry and if if the end is not 100 percent filled, add another drop. The second drop won't migrate into the tip so it should fill any gap.

Now add your braided loop. The braided loop will protect the tip and you should never get any water migration into the tip. I like to use regular super glue as it penetrates the woven core better. Jiust experiment a little bit and you will figure it out. You could use Pliobond for the same procedure but it may be a little thick.

[Fly2Fish]

Hi Frank - Hope it's not as hot in Florida as it is in Houston right now. Never fished the Deschutes, although I'd sure like to. I'll be going solo up to the San Juan for a week in mid-July, followed by a nine-day mid-September return trip (sans teenage daughter this time) with my wife to the Jackson Hole/Grand Tetons/Yellowstone area. With the summer heat/humidity in Houston, wish I could afford to go up there right now until then!

Thanks for the gluing info. Didn't realize you had just posted this elsewhere or I wouldn't have bothered you with a separate inquiry. Since I'm not using a braided loop but in fact cutting the loop off, do you think Zap-A-Gap would be the preferable glue? For my line-leader connections, I now always use Scientific Anglers' L2L Reconnect leader systems (although I "re-cycle" the leader butts with their reconnect device on the leader butt end into hand-knotted leaders). Using them requires tying an (obviously small) overhand knot in the fly line end that then slips into the Reconnect "cone" for the line end. I'm guessing from your general instructions that I'd probably be wise to first tie the overhand knot since I don't want the glue absorbing into and stiffening so much length of the fly line end that tying a small overhand knot would be difficult. Then before slipping the overhand knot into its cone-shaped connector, make the needle indent in the line end and add the drop of glue (presumably water-proof glue like Zap-A-Gap to waterproof-seal the line end. Because the overhand knot has to be small, it would be important to use a waterproof glue that would not leave a lot of residue (as Priobond probably would tend to do), as otherwise there might be problems in fitting the knot into the cone connector.

I'm sure I've made this more confusing than it actually is, so attached below are pictures of the L2L Reconnect System. The line-end "cone" I was referring to is the green part.


Cheers, Neil