Maxima Ultragreen vs Rio, etc Tippet

[gray rider]

Is Maxima Ultragreen yesterdays news?

What product compares for flexible soft slack leaders? (I know Rio 5x is now 5lb test, but is it stiffer, etc.?)

And does it really matter?

 

[donkeyhunter007]

All I use for swinging flies in maxima.
Chameleon and ultra green.


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[gray rider]

All I use for swinging flies in maxima.
Chameleon and ultra green.


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But what about typical leaders built up for 10 -20" sized trout?

 

[srock]

I use seagur 5X for a lot for trout and panfish. I also use maxima ultra green or clear when I can find it. I have not used rio. My focus is on quality flourocarbon tippet material connected to a furled leader. It works well, but different persons probably have their own personal preferences. SR

 

[sweetandsalt]

Is Maxima Ultragreen yesterdays news?

What product compares for flexible soft slack leaders? (I know Rio 5x is now 5lb test, but is it stiffer, etc.?)

And does it really matter?

Without getting into leader design which has been discussed at length elsewhere and also not to compare Fluro vs. Nylon, the answer is yes, Maxima is yesterdays mono. Today's advanced copolymer formulations are truer in diameter consistency, take better knots, are stronger and more adjustable to moderately stiff to exceptionally supple. For subsurface techniques, Fluro has advantages and for floating dead drift flies I like RIO regular and soft) and Trouthunters.

 

[moucheur2003]

Maxima is thick, stiff, and abrasion resistant -- the exact opposite of supple and thin with high breaking strength. I use it in 8 lb test and up for sea-run Atlantic salmon that typically run 5 to 20+ pounds. I would not use it for trout fishing.

 

[old timer]

I only use Rio.

 

[sweetandsalt]

Maxima is thick, stiff, and abrasion resistant -- the exact opposite of supple and thin with high breaking strength. I use it in 8 lb test and up for sea-run Atlantic salmon that typically run 5 to 20+ pounds. I would not use it for trout fishing.

Back when I regularly fished for salmon I had already switched from Maxima to Orvis Super Strong to the dismay of Canadian salmon folk. Moucheur, Have you experimented using RIO Fluroflex? Where I swinging salmon (or steelhead) flies today I would be using Fluorocarbon and surely no Turle Bends.

 

[flav]

All the Maxima mono lines (clear, ultragreen, & chameleon) are stiffer, thicker, and more abrasion resistant than pretty much all the mono tippet material out there. Maxima is great for the stiff butt sections of hand tied leaders or as tippet where you want a stiff, strong mono, and don't care about diameter. I use ultragreen swinging for steelhead, but I'd never use it for trout, it's just too stiff.
There are lots of good mono tippet materials out there, I've tried a few and they're all fine. I use Rio right now, but it's because my local shops carry it and I like the way the spools snap together, not because it's thinner or more supple.

 

[old timer]

This might help.

Tippet Shootout - Yellowstone Angler

 

[bumble54]

Oh dear, another tippet debate, the fact is you use what you have most confidence in.
I have had the lot, gave it all away and stick to Maxima, why?, because of it's shock resistance. So many times fluoro has let me down in that respect that I just can't bring myself to trust it anymore.
Yes Maxima is thick but I just go by diameter, I'm not heavy handed and have had no trouble landing trout to 7lb on 5lb Maxima. I have landed carp to 14 lb on a 2 1/2 lb hook length so I know I can trust it. The carp was unexpected, not fished for.
9 times out of ten, in the places I fish, it is not the leader that puts fish off it's the clumsy approach that many anglers have, they are the ones who need all the help they can get.

 

[moucheur2003]

Back when I regularly fished for salmon I had already switched from Maxima to Orvis Super Strong to the dismay of Canadian salmon folk. Moucheur, Have you experimented using RIO Fluroflex? Where I swinging salmon (or steelhead) flies today I would be using Fluorocarbon and surely no Turle Bends.

Haven't used Rio but have used Umpqua and Climax. Frankly I don't think the salmon care that much, although the colored Ultragreen or Chameleon may be a bit better than clear mono in stained water. The guides where I fished last summer (Sand Hill River in Labrador) were adamant about Maxima Chameleon, so that's what I used. It is definitely stiffer than regular mono.

 

[johan851]

All the Maxima mono lines (clear, ultragreen, & chameleon) are stiffer, thicker, and more abrasion resistant than pretty much all the mono tippet material out there. Maxima is great for the stiff butt sections of hand tied leaders or as tippet where you want a stiff, strong mono, and don't care about diameter. I use ultragreen swinging for steelhead, but I'd never use it for trout, it's just too stiff.

This is exactly what I use Maxima for. For the rated breaking strength it seems to be much higher diameter than the Rio tippet I use, but it may also be a little under-specced. I have several spools from 35lb down to 6lb, and I use it for the butt and mid section of streamer leaders or other creations.

The 4-8lb sizes of Maxima are a little hard to use if you trust the breaking strength. They're much thicker than Rio Powerflex of the same rating, and you'll end up having a tippet section of smaller diameter but higher test strength than the intermediate portion of the leader.

 

[sweetandsalt]

In the 90's I wrote a technical piece about leaders and tippets in the Atlantic Salmon Journal. When I criticized Maxima you'd think I'd committed a serious sin. It's like Bayer (I think they still make Maxima) paid off all the Maritime guides. Still I wonder if Fluoro, with its low refractive index and non-stretch properties might not be optimal for swinging salmon flies...but I have not tried it myself.

 

[bonefish41]

The last time I used Maxima anything Ford was President. Salt it's Seaguar Grand Max and Grand Max FX(old), and old with two levels of fluro softer outer...as for fresh my venue is Michigan mostly subsurface and I use Seaguar Grand Max (new)...and so do my guides...as for dries I use RIO, Frog Hair, or Sunline...usually 6lb never lighter than 4lb. and BTW Mr. Bumble...are you still serving watery gruel to the boys and do you still regard the law as an asssss

 

[bumble54]

and BTW Mr. Bumble...are you still serving watery gruel to the boys and do you still regard the law as an asssss

I do hope that is just meant as a reference to Dickens and not an insult, by the way Mr Bumble did not serve gruel to anyone, he was the beadle, he kept order and dealt with petty offenders.

 

[Rip Tide]

I'll use Maxima for building leaders, but never for tippet

To say that it's "yesterday's news" is short sighted.
Maxima is what it is and that's a reasonably affordable material that works very well for the butt and mid sections of a hand tied leader.
If you want to pay more, that's up to you, but the Maxima is for the most part, all you need for leader construction.

 

[bonefish41]

I do hope that is just meant as a reference to Dickens and not an insult, by the way Mr Bumble did not serve gruel to anyone, he was the beadle, he kept order and dealt with petty offenders.

Of course Dickens no insult intended...it was Mrs. who kept to poor house for boys and Oliver but it was his responsibility as Beadle...thus Dickens' respondeat superior husband to wife's conduct...and Bumble's assss retort...chancery/equity courts could trump law courts...but until merged hard row to hoe

 

[gray rider]

Oh dear, another tippet debate, the fact is you use what you have most confidence in.
I have had the lot, gave it all away and stick to Maxima, why?, because of it's shock resistance. So many times fluoro has let me down in that respect that I just can't bring myself to trust it anymore.
Yes Maxima is thick but I just go by diameter, I'm not heavy handed and have had no trouble landing trout to 7lb on 5lb Maxima. I have landed carp to 14 lb on a 2 1/2 lb hook length so I know I can trust it. The carp was unexpected, not fished for.
9 times out of ten, in the places I fish, it is not the leader that puts fish off it's the clumsy approach that many anglers have, they are the ones who need all the help they can get.

So, without the eyeroll , do you think the Rio is indeed stiffer and will not pile in a slack leader like the Maxima Ultragreen. I value opinions.

 

[gray rider]

Thanks for the answers all, but this is the winner that I found:

Soft vs. Hard Monofilament for Leaders | MidCurrent