Steel vs fluoro

[Kevin23]

Ive got an odd one for ya. The past 2 weeks i have been experimenting with different leaders for pike. I have been running one 45# wire, one 12# wire, and one 20# fluoro. All rigged identical, with a blade, beads, and a hook with a shiner or bluegill (all 3 baited the same). I get flag after flag on the wires but nothing on the fluoro. I have caught one fish on the fluoro in 2 weeks, a 27" pike. Ive caught tons of pike, bass, perch, and crappies on the wire (perch and crappies when using fatheads before i could jig up a small gill).

What the heck is going on? Ive tried mixing up the leaders on the different tipups but the steel is still the only ones that get hit!

[Chute82]

Not sure how much pressure your local lake gets but the fish might not be leader shy.  That's my only guess

[Kevin23]

But why are they ONLY hitting wire leaders?

[Chute82]

But why are they ONLY hitting wire leaders?

I have no idea.  Is the steel leader red colored? 

[Kevin23]

Black coated or bronze uncoated, been using both.

[1MOFISH]

fish inactive. steel leaders weigh down minnies?
GOD BLESS
mo

[esox_xtm]

Thanks for posting Kevin. I've said here a million times fluoro ain't invisible or magic. Sure sometimes it seems that you do better but for me it simply this: The good ol' hot/cold hole syndrome. You can adjust your presentation all you want but like real estate, its all about location, location, location. If that happens again swap your cold rigs into the hot holes and see if things change. I know it's hard to mess with success but that is one of the only ways I know of to validate/disprove a theory.

Not that fluoro may have an advantage at times, I just think there's too many other variables to chalk improved fishing up to that one thing. I also think much of the re-enforcement to use fluoro comes mostly from marketing. Why not play up the higher cost item, eh? Sure, I play with plastic but I mostly rig with steel for or in pike waters (which is just about everywhere in these parts). If I'm targeting non-toothy species I may also use something other than steel and live with the eventual biteoffs.

[Knife2sharp]

There may be something to that, the floro makes them livelier. I was using floro last year when the northerns on the lake I fish were quite active. This year was slow and I only caught 3 northerns, and 2 of of them yesterday. On a few occasions other people around me had either had flags or caught fish.  Since the depth and bait was pretty much the same I was starting to wonder about my floro leaders, which are 80lb btw.  I make my own musky leaders with the same material, but I'm wondering if the 80 is too much.   

[Royalkangaroo]

That's strange.  I had the exact opposite happen this weekend.  Prior weekend I ran all 12 tip ups with 20# fluoro, and had 30+ flags throughout the day, but probably 8 break offs.

This past weekend I ran 6 tip ups with 30# wire and 6 with fluoro.  Out of the 6 with steel, ONE tripped during the day but did not take the bait.  All 6 fluoro tip ups were going off all day; only had one break off. 

We also went so far as to replace two steel leads back to fluro and each of those flags had gone off later in the day.

Unfortunately Im learning it's a trade off.  But I'd rather chase flags and chance a break off rather than have no action!  I may step up the fluoro to 30# or 40# for added security.