Well Spring is approaching, last year I lost a lot of Jerkbaits to the toothy critters. So this year I was thinking about trying out a leader. Does anyone else use a leader? Does it take away any of the action? 

I use fluoro leaders for bass sized jerkbaits.  Play with the hooks and split rings on the bait to get it to hang the way you want in the water.  A husky jerk 10, 12 or 14 hangs pretty good out of the package tied to a fluoro leader, even with a snap on the bigger ones.  12 to 17 pound gets the job done without killing the action.  Alberto or back to back uni to the mainline and whatever knot you like to the lure.  I avoid the steel leaders they sell in the store like the plague.  Those things will kill the action and cause the bait to take a nose dive on the pause.  They also break fairly easy when you attempt to pull a snag loose.  I check the leader and retie after almost every toothy fish.

I've tried it and it shuts the bass off... Ive come to the conclusion that between northern, musky, and walleye I'm gonna lose a ot of baits every summer.  Thats why I don't through pointers, and vision 110's lol

You could try a Cortland Toothy Critter Leader. I normally only use them with my Megabass or other high dollar crankbaits though. I assumed that it would hurt a jerkbaits action but i could be wrong.