Fireline Crystal

[Anderoo]

I'll only be using it on a pin. It will be mainly used for smaller fish in small rivers, but there's a river near here that I haven't fished for chub, and I think there are some big ones. I don't think my favourite big baits+quivertip will work there, I think trotting will be the way to fish it. So I wanted a line that I could use for that too, with a heavier rod.

 

I've no idea if it will work or not, but once I've tried it out I'll report back I just want one pin for everything, basically.

[Dick Dastardly]

If using a fixed spool I reckon the drag would need setting pretty slack to compensate for the lack of line stretch(buffer) to help stop hook pulls.

 

Never found it to be a problem.The only stretch I have in my set up is a short length of mono I actually build the rig on and the mono hook length.The float is always on the braid so both the line doesnt get drowned and in case of a snag I always get the float back. I think the fine forgiving tip on the match rod stops this.

[Tigger]

Never found it to be a problem.The only stretch I have in my set up is a short length of mono I actually build the rig on and the mono hook length.The float is always on the braid so both the line doesnt get drowned and in case of a snag I always get the float back. I think the fine forgiving tip on the match rod stops this.

 

 

You may well be right Budgie. I never had a problem using power pro and a 18inch bottom attached via a micro swivel when fishing for grayling. Thing is that was in quite a large open river and obviously the fish weren't exactly monsters so I don't know if fishing for larger fish using braid with virtually no stretch in hit and hold type spots will possibly cause hook pulls.....it just crossed my mind, but I'm most likely talkin through my crack LOL.

[Rusty]

so I don't know if fishing for larger fish using braid with virtually no stretch in hit and hold type spots will possibly cause hook pulls

 

Blimey looks like I may be able to contribute with some real experience of catching fish.

 

I've caught Barbel and Chub of about 4 1/2 pound trotting with braid and just a mono hooklength, it didn't feel as if any more cushioning was needed. The rod was a 14' Drennan float rod so that would've helped.

 

Plumbers will be along in a minute to trump my 'achievements'.

[lutra]

Blimey looks like I may be able to contribute with some real experience of catching fish.

 

I've caught Barbel and Chub of about 4 1/2 pound trotting with braid and just a mono hooklength, it didn't feel as if any more cushioning was needed. The rod was a 14' Drennan float rod so that would've helped.

 

Plumbers will be along in a minute to trump my 'achievements'.

Yes but doesn't Plumbers likes using it with his nice soft tipped Harrison,s? Would you want to use it with an Avon rod? I,m not sure I would.

[Tigger]

Blimey looks like I may be able to contribute with some real experience of catching fish.

 

I've caught Barbel and Chub of about 4 1/2 pound trotting with braid and just a mono hooklength, it didn't feel as if any more cushioning was needed. The rod was a 14' Drennan float rod so that would've helped.

 

Plumbers will be along in a minute to trump my 'achievements'.

 

 

Where they hit and hold stretches of river or could you give and take line Rusty ?

[Rusty]

Where they hit and hold stretches of river or could you give and take line Rusty ?

 

The Chub were from a stretch where I couldn't give line and had to hold but the Barbel was (note singular) from a much more forgiving section so probably not representative. The braid/mono combination felt fine in those situations but I haven't yet tried 'static bait under the rod tip in a load of snags' type stuff.

Edited January 22, 2010 by Rusty

[Dick Dastardly]

Ive always used braid on the Itchen fish ins and as you know Ive had several grayling over 3lb from there.Ive lost very few (litterally 2 or 3 in the half dozen or so times Ive fished there) Cant use braid at Timsbury and the grayling there are a lot smaller (many below 8ozs) and I loose as many as I land!

 

Ive also had chub to 4lb on the same set up.

[Tigger]

I wonder what the breaking strain to diameter is of fireline crystal ?

[Anderoo]

The bit of water I have in mind for the Avon rod/big chub fishing is fairly open, not snaggy or difficult, which is why I think trotting and regular feeding of maggots is the way to go. If it was snaggy and 'chubby' I'd be using a quivertip.

 

I might not even end up using the Avon rod, if my normal trotting rod is able to cope with the bigger fish, I'll use that. None of my trotting is 'long trotting' - usually 15-20 yards max, often less.

 

When I went to the Itchen I was using my trotting rod and a pin with mono on, and I lost a lot of grayling. Changing to a bigger hook helped a lot. But it will be interesting to see how I get on with exactly the same tackle except with braid this time.

 

Tigger, have a look here (on the drop-down list) for BS to diameter comparisons: https://www.tackleuk.co.uk/berkley-fireline...yds-p-3068.html

Edited January 22, 2010 by Anderoo