Braid

[mallycarroll]

Can anyone help with the following.

I'm new to fishing and currently using 18lb line with 50lb shock leader. I have heard of this braid line!!

1. Is it any good :confused:

2. I've heard of people using 65lb right through(no leader) :confused:

3. If I was to use it can I use 18lb and 50lb leader? (will it join well) :confused:

Please any advice and also any good makes

Happy new year to you all

Mally

[Gillies]

Hi

 

In my opinion (for boat fishing) to answer your questions:

 

1. Yes, its fantastic and gives you much much better bite detection and does not drag in the tide anywhere near as much as mono of the same diameter. You feel in much more direct connection with a hooked fish, but due to the very little strech nature of braid you feel every tug of the fish, and if drag on reel is not set correctly hooks can come out of a fishes mouth slighly easier than with mono since there is no stretch. I throughly recommend it for boat fishing - unless you are only doing inshore fishing over reef in very shallow waters etc.

 

2. I know people whom just use 50lbs right through, and swear by it.

 

3. You can join them very easily, there was a posting on here a few weeks back regarding this.

 

If you are talking about beach fishing, well I don't know - as I've never tried it. I do hear tales of anglers complaining that due to it's lightness that the wind easily catches onto it and leaves it wrapped around the tip after casting, which can be annoying.

 

Some friends I have used to use it for inshore spinning, but since they were usually spinning for Pollack - and tackle losses over snaggy ground were high they stopped using it, as they were loosing so much line - and the stuff is not cheap.

 

Gillies

[H.A.]

Great for many boat applications .....always use 15' of mono shock-absorber which should be about 5lbs less than the braid bs.

 

Not good for uptiding ......

 

not at all good for distance casting from the beach.

 

Popular amongst lure anglers, particularly with light line F/S.

 

 

If you are prone to the odd over-run with a multi, forget it!

 

[ 01. January 2004, 02:33 PM: Message edited by: H.A. ]

[JimLad]

Hi

 

I've just started using it from the beach (65lb whiplash straigh thru) - I'm really impressed in some ways but still learning about how it acts and think as with most things it has advantages and disadvantages...

 

I've found :

 

Advantages

1. Fantasic bite detection due to no stretch.

2. Seem to be able to cast enormous distances compared to mono - I guess due to the thin diameter.

3. not noticed any windy problems as mentioned above - apart from xmas day sprout induced ones

 

Disadvanges

1. Seems to cause breakaways to breakout easier and hold the bottom less well with considerable tide movement/swell - could this be down to no stretch in the line? Basically I had 2 rods and the mono one held fine but the braid one seemed to keep breaking out of its own accord.

2. Expensive compared to mono.

 

Other comments

I've heard that braid tends to 'bed in' on multipliers and isnt therefor very usable on multipliers used from the shore beachcasting - anyone else heard or experienced this? I'd like to try it on my ABU 6500 but its an expensive experiment - anybody else use it? At the moment I only use it on a fixed spool reel.

 

Cheers

 

Jim

[Newt]

Re your list of Disadvantages -

 

I do agree the breaking loose of weights is due to the low stretch of the line.

 

More expensive? Not really when you consider how often you need to respool with mono if you fish often vs how seldom you need to respool with braid. For me it works out to cost less.

 

Re braid on casting reels:

 

I only have one egg beater reel and I use it with a heavy spod rod. Otherwise all casting reels (Abu C3 6500 and some 7000s) and all but one spooled with PowerPro.

 

It does bed at times but usually only when I've been stupid. DO NOT pull for a break using this line unless you have a good stick or similar to wrap the line around. If the line on the reel takes the strain, it will bed horribly. But casting or playing a fish doesn't seem to cause the problem for me. I suspect it could with power casting heavy weights though since the pull is directly on the spool rather than at an angle as it would be with an egg beater. With weights of up to 3oz plus the weight of the bait I haven't had problems though.

 

I do keep one casting reel spooled with mono but only use the rig when trolling lures in fresh water. Too often I'll get a lure hung on some bottom obstruction and not be able to stop or redirect the boat until there is a great deal of strain on the rod/reel/line. Did it once and the line bedded so badly I had to cut it all off. As mentioned above, my stupidity.

[Salar]

Two more comments - if you get a tangle with braid you can forget about untangling - unlike mono which has some spring, braid just clumps together and is almost imposdsible to unravel particularly if tightened up and wet. Second comment - it can be prone to damage and sudden breakage. I had a recurring problem with breakages and tracked it down to a tiny nick in the tip ring which was catching the line and damaging it, which was infuriating as I lost a couple of very good fish before I found the cause of the problem. I would recommend using mono for the last two metres to avoid damage from rocks or snags, and also to act as a slight cushion against shocks that might tear out a hook or grip weight. Anyway good luck with it. If you have access to US tackle suppliers braid is much cheaper over there. I stock up whenever I have to make a trip over.

[Guest stevie cop]

I don't fancy using braid from boat or beach. I like the safety net of a bit of stretch in the line.

 

But I wouldn't mind trying it for my lure fishing. How does it perform when used on a small fixed spool reel? Are wind knots and line twist a problem with braid?

 

Cheers.

[madmax]

it's really interesting to see a lot of ppl getting to grips with braid.

truth be told, USA and Australia have been using it for years.

 

just a quick look at how they tackle up including what rods they use, will save us all that learning curve.

that's if your going to use braid properly.

 

for fishing gear try :

http://www.basspro-shops.com/servlet/catal....OnlineShopping

this shop has some really good deals from time to time, keep an eye on it.

as for me I love it.

 

got some nice rods from there, a few years ago now, that work like the stretch in mono.

it's ever so funny to use these whippy rods at first, but after you've fought and landed a big fish with them you'll see them yanks aren't so dumb.

I'm not talking conger, more like bream/bass from the boat.

 

using braid is like um.. not using a rubber! ; )

OPPs soz.

[chappers]

Just one note to those using braid on the beach.

Please do continue to use a mono shockleader as having no stretch it can crackoff easier than you think, a shockleader relies not only on the breaking strain of the line but also on the stretch in it and a sudden jerk on 65lb braid can easily impart more than that.

Be safe!!!

[John E Ashford]

Whitby:- Wrecking

Braid with 2 to 6ft of Mono, with a less BS, at the business end. Terminating with your Rig, Pirk Etc. This will save Braid in a Wreck Hookup. You can feel the contours of the sea bed drifting, The hook will be set quickly, in that big Cod, as there is no stretch in Braid.

 

Weymouth:- Portland Race

Braid all the way through the Boom then connected to 6 to 12ft Mono Trace. You will feel the bottom and Bass, as if they were at the end of your Rod Tip.

I have been told of Braid cutting through plastic booms but not experienced this.

 

Weymouth:- General Fishing

Braid all the way terminating with a Mono 2 Hook Paternoster Rig. You will feel every nibble and bite of the fish. Good for Black Bream.

 

Rhyl:- Rough Ground & Wrecking

Braid all the way through the Boom then connected to 6 to 12ft Mono Trace. You will feel, on retrieving, every nibble and bite of the Pollack.

 

Blackwater to Swansea:- Uptiding

Mono all the way.