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When we look at our terminal tackle, we once again have technology to thank for improving our rigging and catch rates. From the days of linen line in the 1940s and ’50s, we’ve come a long way with the advent of space-age products like monofilament, hollow-core Dacron, and today’s plethora of solid and hollow-core braids. These materials let us increase line capacity with backing, swap fresh top shots without respooling an entire reel, and create wind-on leaders that make rigging and short-handed fish handling far easier—straight to the gaff or tag stick without needing a wireman.
The DuPont Company played the largest role in these developments. Monofilament was created in 1939 but wasn’t widely adopted until after World War II, when industrial demand eased and costs dropped. As the name implies, it’s a single filament, melted from polymer and extruded through a die to a set diameter, then stretched through rollers to determine breaking strength.
Dacron and braids, by contrast, use multiple fibers woven together (multifilaments). Dacron is itself a DuPont fiber and is still useful in fishing today. Braids combine materials such as Dacron, spectra, Dyneema or nylon, which are woven into lines of varying strength and color. Ancient societies used similar weaving techniques with plant fibers to create rope and cordage.
We can thank the heavy-tackle anglers of the 1950s through the ’70s for identifying the limitations of linen, testing the potential of Dacron and mono, and driving the need for the blended systems we use today. Big-game fishermen at Cat Cay battling giant tuna used linen with success, which they had to strip from reels nightly to dry. However, without care, it was inconsistent and rotted if left wet. Dacron solved some of those issues but lacked stretch. Monofilament offered stretch, but the large diameters required for heavy tackle limited reel capacity and diminished the ability to fight fish off the edge in the deep water off the Bahama Bank.
Enter Wind-Ons and Top Shots
This same issue confronted crews chasing giant black marlin in Cairns, Australia. Capt. Peter Bristow once told me how the wind-on leader was born in the early 1970s. Capt. Peter B. Wright was prepping for the black marlin season when his brother Phil, set to deckhand, broke his hand. With no wireman available, Wright brainstormed alternatives. He began serving Dacron into itself to create loops, then tested inserting mono up inside. The Dacron gripped like “Chinese finger cuffs,” locking onto the mono. After much pulling and testing, he put it to use, and the wind-on leader was born.
From there, the concept evolved into what Wright called “fronts,” or top shots. Captains realized Dacron such as Magibraid, which was coated with lanolin to prevent dry rot, provided capacity but no stretch, while mono supplied forgiveness and better abrasion resistance than Dacron. The combination quickly became the standard. Using Dacron as backing meant anglers could swap out a 100-yard mono top shot after a few fish without replacing an entire spool of line—cost-effective, efficient and reliable. What began out of necessity has become the industry go-to: multifilament backing paired with a monofilament top shot. Captains and anglers can tweak specifics for species or fisheries, but nearly everyone relies on this proven setup for its ideal blend of stretch, capacity and versatility.
Accepting the Change
Change is inevitable, and in April 2017 the IGFA made, at the time, a controversial adjustment to how line class is determined for world records. Previously, if a fishing line was attached to backing, the record was classified under the heavier of the two.
The new rule states: “Backing is permitted. The catch shall be classified under the breaking strength of the first 5 meters (16.5 feet) of line directly preceding the double line, leader or hook. This section must be a single, homogeneous piece of line and may not exceed 60 kilograms (130 pounds).”
The change shifted focus to just 5 meters of line, which some top captains thought gave an advantage to new records over the previous rule setup while offering new opportunities for record chasers. Effective April 1, 2017, it remains the foundation of modern record fishing.
Innovation and technology never stop. Electronics, boatbuilding and terminal tackle—lines, leaders, swivels and hooks—are always evolving. Finding the best components and combinations remains central to how we fish.
Setting up Your Reel
Below are several examples of backing and top-shot combinations. While these can serve as a good foundation, adapt your setups according to your specific fishery and application. We’ve omitted 130-pound, heavy-tackle outfits as those can vary widely from fishery to fishery, and what’s effective in one region may not translate to another.
Light-Tackle Setup
- 20- to 30-pound-class reel
- 400 to 500 yards of 30-pound spectra (8-pound mono diameter) backing
- Connected to 200 yards of 20- to 30-pound monofilament top shot
Medium- and Heavy-Tackle Setup
- 50- to 80-pound-class reel
- 500 to 600 yards of 80-pound spectra
- Connected to 150 to 200 yards of 50- to 80-pound monofilament top shot
