All About Knotless Leaders and Line/Leader Connections, with Josh Jenkins

The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

James Hathaway

Bass, Fishing, Bonefish, Wilderness, Flyfishing, Trout, How To, Steelhead, Bluegill, Fly, Orvis, Sports, Salmon, Panfish, Education, Rosenbauer

4.8 • 1.9K Ratings

🗓️ 15 September 2025

⏱️ 98 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

My guest this week is Josh Jenkins [43:59] of Scientific Anglers and originally I wanted to interview him just on knotless leaders—their design, how they are made, and how to modify them. But we soon took an interesting sidetrack into line/leader connections and also a new product he's discovered for fixing cracks in fly line coating so you don't have to buy a new line if your current line is damaged. I get many questions on both leaders and fly lines so I think this one will be interesting to everyone.

In the Fly Box this week, one listener chides me for being reluctant to share my opinion on questions, plus these questions (where I do share my opinion!)

Is there a single weight rod I can take to Belize to fish for bonefish, permit, and tarpon?
What were your personal experiences with the old Power Matrix rod, and which one in the current Orvis lineup is most similar?
I inherited some 1980s-era fly lines in new condition. Are they still good, and how do the tapers compare to modern lines?
Can you explain the terms "skating a fly" and "swinging a fly" and explain briefly how to do them?
Is there any schedule for your tie-offs with Tim Flagler and Cheech?
I love my Ultralight Waders but I worry they won't last as long as other waders.
What is the proper way to store fly lines for an extended time period?
I am a steelheader that wants to fish for trout. Can you skate flies for trout? And when fishing streamers should I swing them or strip them?
What is the origin of the term "gin clear"
Why can't I find a fast-sinking clear line?

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hi and welcome to the Orvis Fly Fishing podcast. I'm so glad you're here.
0:25.6	And my guest today is the great Josh Jenkins.
0:31.6	Josh is head of research and development and product development at scientific anglers.
0:41.2	Who makes all the Orvis lines and lots and lots and lots of other lines and other accessories for fly fishing.
0:49.2	And we originally were going to talk about Nautless leaders, how they're made, how to modify them,
0:55.9	which ones you should choose, and it kind of morphed from there.
0:58.6	We got to talking about line-to-leader connections and a great new way that I knew nothing about
1:03.0	for actually repairing fly lines,
1:07.1	which I didn't think you could do.
1:08.8	But Josh has found a new product that you can actually,
1:12.0	if you get a cut in a fly line, you can actually repair it. So lots of cool stuff in the podcast.
1:18.8	If you're interested in leaders and fly lines, and I'm sure you are, because I get lots of
1:24.6	questions about those things, then I think you'll learn quite a bit in this
1:28.7	podcast. And before we do the flybox, where you ask me questions and I try to answer them or
1:34.8	you share tips, I wanted to tell you about some places you might want to go to on your fishing
1:39.8	trip, either this fall or winter or next season.
1:45.4	First one is an outfitter of the real Baja.
1:48.7	And this is a place I have always wanted to go to.
1:52.0	I've never fished Baja.
1:53.8	And I've heard some wonderful things about Baja.
1:57.5	I love saltwater fishing.
1:59.3	And I just haven't gotten there yet.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from James Hathaway, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of James Hathaway and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.