Steel leaders visible

[Esox fisherman]

Do fish care about steel leaders I haven’t caught anything jigging the past 2 seasons but at the same time im fishing a spot that main fish is pike (perch are inconsistent)

[ran7ger]

they sure do.  i run steel on tipups for pike and that's it.  i'll live with the odd bite off for the increased bites.

[hardwater diehard]

IMO the less hardware you can fish with/can get away with the better..direct tie to leader line as opposed to snaps and swivels etc ..also if jigging all that hardware impairs the lures action making it unnatural ...also having to heavy a line can  do that as well..smaller weight/size lures require a smaller line diameter/pound test . Sure you can up your line weight or add hardware to save your lures from bite offs but your going to sacrifice some fish. I do use a ball bearing swivel off my main line on both my spinning reel pan fish setup and my tip ups.

[Esox fisherman]

I don’t use them on tip ups but wondered as ive seen 2 bass eat a senko with steel leader in 2 ft of water and not care (first one went for it 3 times and missed it twice due to bad hook)
Some people say it does others say it doesn’t and personally unless pike season closed me not using a steel leaders is rarer then a total solar eclipse and have done well open water

[Esox fisherman]

I don’t use them on tip ups but wondered as ive seen 2 bass eat a senko with steel leader in 2 ft of water and not care (first one went for it 3 times and missed it twice due to bad hook)

Will 8 lb seaguar abrasx ice hold up

[esox_xtm]

All steel leaders ae not created equal.

This:



Is NOT this (imagine a hook on the snap end):



And using a leader as pictures above will certainly catch probably zero panfish regardless of what you hang on it.

[Esox fisherman]

All steel leaders ae not created equal.

This:



Is NOT this (imagine a hook on the snap end):


 
Thx Will 8 lb seaguar abrasx ice hold up
And using a leader as pictures above will certainly catch probably zero panfish regardless of what you hang on it.

[esox_xtm]

Thx Will 8 lb seaguar abrasx ice hold up?

To pike? No.

[Esox fisherman]

How do you not get bite offs while still catching other fish

[esox_xtm]

That's just it. You don't... Best bet might be tie your own steel in 8# stranded wire. Very thin and flexible while offering modest protection against biteoffs if you're really good and don't horse. Forget those that wanna sell superline as a "great pike leader". You'd be better off with mono or fluoro.

[SirCranksalot]

some guys I know use 30-40 # fluoro for a leader---comments?

[Esox fisherman]

some guys I know use 30-40 # fluoro for a leader---comments?

Heard people go as lite as 20 100 i got is too stiff and some guy told me to get 60 lb for tip ups

[esox_xtm]

some guys I know use 30-40 # fluoro for a leader---comments?

Might for pike but never for pannies or walleyes...

Next question. 

[primepin65]

Heard people go as lite as 20 100 i got is too stiff and some guy told me to get 60 lb for tip ups

Didn't we answer all of these line questions the last time you got on the site? If everyone is telling you that you should not use a steel leader while jigging for panfish, why would you argue with them?

I run 10lb mono and fluoro for my leaders for pike and pickerel. Rarely get cut off and if I do get cut off, oh well! I don't keep pike.

There is no "one lure/size/reel/rod/bait fits all" presentation that you can use to catch every single fish successfully in every body of water you might fish. I have rods set up specifically for panfish/perch, walleye, and pike. I don't take every rod out on the ice with me every single trip, since I might not be on a lake that has pike or walleye. I have different lines on those rods, based on the fish I'm targeting. I have 3 different line weights on my different panfish rods, in case they are being finnicky. Sometimes I will use a single jig all day to catch my limit on gills/perch and other days I will change lures 25 times to get a handful of fish for dinner. I have tip-ups with a single hook and others with a treble. Some lures are tungsten and others are lead. Some glow but most do not. I'll have the same lure in the same color pattern in 4 different sizes.

Sometimes you need to figure out what works for you on your own. This site has YEARS AND YEARS of posts covering every single thing you have asked about. I bet it has been asked 150 times a season what the best line options are for XYZ species since this site was created. Hell, I've been a member since 2006 and have probably asked a bunch of questions over the years, but it all came down to what worked for me.

[SirCranksalot]

Might for pike but never for pannies or walleyes...

Next question. 

I see what you did there!! ---That was a serious question!

[esox_xtm]

I see what you did there!! ---That was a serious question!

Sir... It was serious answer! Serious! 

[SirCranksalot]

OK---here is the serious question: How likely are pike to be able to cut thru 40# fluoro?

[Esox fisherman]

OK---here is the serious question: How likely are pike to be able to cut thru 40# fluoro?

Extremely easily
I think i saw something about how to catch pike without leaders but i cant find it

[PikeKing23]

I have been cut on 40# and 50# flouro.  I now use 60# flouro or tie my own steel leaders.

[Esox fisherman]

People use 20lb fluorocarbon ive used steel in open water from what I remember I depends on when and how you hook them and how you fight them

[esox_xtm]

OK---here is the serious question: How likely are pike to be able to cut thru 40# fluoro?

My experience suggests it may be minimal. I've seen 80# sliced with barely any pressure, 130# cut over half way and 25# cut through just from the drag from weeds while freespooling. However, I been reading recently about excellent success live baiting pike with 20# in open water situations from sources I've trusted for cutting edge (no pun intended) stuff for years. Not sure if I can go there but I'll play with it if the situation is right.

As an aside, you may have a better than average chance with female pike which are generally larger as opposed to males. Why? Ask most any taxidermist about winter pike vs summer ones. I've spoken to a few and all have noticed fewer teeth in large winter pike than their summer counterparts. My guess is development of huge egg masses taxes other bodily functions and those replaceable teeth suffer the most. It also explains the tendency toward dead bait (soft and mushy) as the season progresses. Mind you, I've never read this anywhere and it's been received skeptically when I ask sources more knowledgeable than myself.

Now for another wild card. The battle rages between steel, mono and fluoro: stiff, invisible, kinks, this is good but better than, etc. Stumbled across this the other day and  if you're into plastic leaders might make you take pause:

Here's a link to the site that has a pile of other abrasion testing and other good stuff albeit salt water related: Abrasion Testing

[Esox fisherman]

For that tests mono weakens under water so if the line was submerged the results would most likely be different

[Papa Sly]

For that tests mono weakens under water so if the line was submerged the results would most likely be different

the other thing if I dont think he was testing leader material, just regular line which makes a huge difference.

[Esox fisherman]

It can depend
Also i caught my only fish on the ice this year on a tip up Only using straight braid

[Esox fisherman]

Also i dont get why other fish mind the leader on the ice they dont in spring summer or fall

[Reinert]

Also i dont get why other fish mind the leader on the ice they dont in spring summer or fall

   depends on how the baits being used and leader type, if you're casting a spoon the fish has less time to analyze everything compared to a slower moving winter fish looking at a suspended bait.

[SirCranksalot]

agree---if you are casting or trolling I don't think it makes much diff----strikes are reaction strikes. My bud says he has even caught rainbows with a steel leader.

I have caught quite a few pike w/o any leader. It's usually the smaller "hammer handles" that steal my expensive lures!

[RuralMT]

Perhaps the pike I chase are less savvy than those in the Midwest, but I prefer spider wire when chasing them.  Even when I target them with a fly rod during the spring/early summer, I'll tie a 2 foot section of braid on the end of my leader and it works well...for me at least.  Yes, the braid will wear out after several fish, but as others have mentioned, my articulated streamers retain their action which is lost when a steel leader is used. 

[esox_xtm]

the other thing if I dont think he was testing leader material, just regular line which makes a huge difference.

Guaranteed it is leader material. The mono is good ol' Ande hard mono leader material and the other both Seguar and Yo-Zuri fluoro leader material. This guy is a big time saltwater dude and certainly knows the difference. Though you are right to wonder 'cause lotsa folks don't.

[Esox fisherman]

Guaranteed it is leader material. The mono is good ol' Ande hard mono leader material and the other both Seguar and Yo-Zuri fluoro leader material. This guy is a big time saltwater dude and certainly knows the difference. Though you are right to wonder 'cause lotsa folks don't.

Use those guys advice for a lot of things
Thing is mono weakens underwater so if they do tests after the lines have been submerged the results will differ so id stick to fluoro