Steve do you use a nose grommet on your thin needles. If not I would think the wire will split the nose of the plug when you tighten up the tail loop. Sux all that work and junk.

U guy's know I ain't a second rate fumble finger's...everything is just so when building...tail wraps perhaps r far to tight forcing the nose loop to distort the nose gromet to an oval shape thus splitting the wood..no give on the tough wire....doesn't happen on the annealed wire...which is why I'll continue to use it even though it maybe unsettl ing to some.

BB +J..ya you can heat it up...I've had some 316? that was so tough it'd split your finger open trying to bend it around the plyer's,,,cherry red is to soft ...play with it some..count the seconds ....push the wire through the plug,,mark the wire where it come's out of the tail..heat an inch beyond the mark...twist and bend...bob's your uncle.


NIB..no worries about rocks...sand and boat fish only..no rocks in my hunting grounds...angler one has lots of soft wire...me too now...easy replacement.

i've gone thru that with the nose splitting.
It can be frustrating..

second rate FF. LOL

Looking at the web site posted above the only difference between 304 and 316 stainless is alloying materials which give 316 better corosion resistance. I use 316L welding wire and find ok. All I use is a nail in a vice and a pair off pliers.

Poking around through some "oldie but goodie" conversations here.. this one may be of particular interst to some of the newer builders... good, civil and informative... post like this are lacking these days...

Good info here, 5 years later.

I've had plug testers report that fish have split the wood. Never lost a fish on 304L wire. It's easy and almost a pleasure to tail wrap.

Me either... a friend took a bunch of my plugs to Mexico last year and fed them to the roosterfish and other assorted rock and reef dwellers.. the wire( 304L) held fine.. the plugs.. DESTROYED.

My plugs suck, I never catch anything of size, but yet there beefed up like I'm fishing for dinosaurs. Maybe I'm just ignorant :)