Northwest Fishing Reports

I've always used monofilament, was considering braided line. Back in high school a friend of mine's dad used braided line but then it was pretty spendy and I've noticed the prices have come down some. I basically trout fish so would braided line be of any benefit? I hear it doesnt retain memory like monofilament and is a smaller diameter when comparing a simular test monofilament.

well your right it "doesnt retain memory like monofilament and is a smaller diameter when comparing a simular test monofilament."
I bought some 6lb fire line for trolling because I tend to let out a crap load of line when I troll because at certain lakes the fish are spooked by the boat. and the fire line works great for trolling because you get very solid hook sets and you can feel every move they make while they fight. for trolling its very worth while but I do not find it works good for finesse fishing such as casting weightless worms or small lures. I also don't like to use it bait fishing because then I have to use a mono leader.

I also use fireline exclusively for my spinning setups. I use 4# on my light setup & 6# on my med. I have tried 8# & 10# but didn't like em as much, seemed to be stiff or something.

A HUGE advantage of using braid is that it doesn't stretch. Hooksets are MUCH more powerful, especially if you make long casts. Sensitivity is also excellent. If you use a sensitive rod, you'll feel EVERYTHING. The extra sensitivity and hook-setting power really come in handy when finesse fishing with soft plastics. :thumleft:
Because braid is much thinner than other lines for the equivalent #test rating, casting distance is improved dramatically. It also allows you to cast very light lures with ease. I like to use 8lb power pro w/ultralight gear for throwing weightless texas-rigged Yamamoto super grubs. (The diameter of 8# power pro is equivalent to 1# mono.)

Braid has 2 disadvantages:
1) It is expensive!
2) It is totally opaque, therefore it's much more visible to fish than mono and fluorocarbon -- which are semi-transparent.

Power Pro is the best...period!

muskyhunter wrote:Power Pro is the best...period!

That must make the Sufix Performance #2. I use them both.
They make a huge difference when jigging saltwater for Salmon.
For river fishing for salmon I tie in a 10' length of fluorocarbon to be sneaky.

So if I was using braided for bait fishing I would probably want to use a mono or FC leader?

So if I was using braided for bait fishing I would probably want to use a mono or FC leader?

yep, I've done without it but it just doesnt feel right

also it helps to have a mono leader if your fishing for toothy fish or around rocks. a good example is saltwater bottom fishing.

so do you tie the leader line on with a nail knott? im tired of mono and thought about braided. im going to sportamans tomorrow.
stan :viking:

i have two spools for my okumas so i think one braided and one mono for now i can play and see.
stan.:viking:

I've had the best luck with Uni knots because of the size difference of the mono vs braid.

For the sake of being.....well lazy.....couldnt I just use a quick snap or split rings and do double cinch knots to it from both lines? Or pre-made leader that already has the loop at the one end? I know I wouldnt want to use a swivel because then if I was using lures it might kill the action of the lure. or would I want to use a swivel? As you can see I dont fish with lures very much, I usually just attach the line to whatever they came with

I never have the patience to learn that uni knot and I have always just used a swivel i would not use a split ring because its possible you could cut your line on the sharp edges. also go with the smallest swivel you can get away with. another thing I would not worry about a swivel messing with the action of your lure thats a few feet away.

I'm not sure if its the best way but its what I have always done

Ok so bait casters are good for braid but what about spinning reels?

RaMcVey wrote:Ok so bait casters are good for braid but what about spinning reels?

Bill and Rosann G gave my wife a rod and spinning reel for tiger muskies.I put 80lb. stealth spiderwire on it.
It works pretty well.The casting distance isn't as far as my baitcaster....but not much of a problem. The great thing about the line and leader,the smallies and largemouth don't seem to shy away from it. I now take my muskie rods as back up(throw backs)on bass trips.

I bought an okuma chromer reel and spooled it with 30lb braided tuff line and it performed great in the salt lots of power in hook setting and very tough

:viking: just spooled up two of my spare reels for my okumas with 20# braided so i can trade out any time. this will be fun playing with the braideed to see what the diff is.
stan.

ruthven78 wrote:For the sake of being.....well lazy.....couldnt I just use a quick snap or split rings and do double cinch knots to it from both lines? Or pre-made leader that already has the loop at the one end? I know I wouldnt want to use a swivel because then if I was using lures it might kill the action of the lure. or would I want to use a swivel? As you can see I dont fish with lures very much, I usually just attach the line to whatever they came with

the cinch/clinch knots will slip with braided line. Braided line is slick and does not "dig" into itself like mono, and so most mono knots will not work with braid (knots will slip).

If you want to tie mono directly to braid, the double uni knot will work (will not slip).

If you want to tie braid to a swivel or to a lure, use a palomar knot.

BTW I hate braid. It wears grooves into my guides, difficult to untangle (if I get a birdsnest or knots), and wraps around my rod tip.

The biggest problem I have with braid is to remember to reel it on tight or it will dig down into the wraps. The other problem is when you fight a fish, land it and cast again. The braid will have dug in during the fight and your first cast will hang up in the spool. I don't have this problem very often as I don't know how to catch fish.

Shad_Eating_Grin wrote:

ruthven78 wrote:For the sake of being.....well lazy.....couldnt I just use a quick snap or split rings and do double cinch knots to it from both lines? Or pre-made leader that already has the loop at the one end? I know I wouldnt want to use a swivel because then if I was using lures it might kill the action of the lure. or would I want to use a swivel? As you can see I dont fish with lures very much, I usually just attach the line to whatever they came with

the cinch/clinch knots will slip with braided line. Braided line is slick and does not "dig" into itself like mono, and so most mono knots will not work with braid (knots will slip).

If you want to tie mono directly to braid, the double uni knot will work (will not slip).

If you want to tie braid to a swivel or to a lure, use a palomar knot.

BTW I hate braid. It wears grooves into my guides, difficult to untangle (if I get a birdsnest or knots), and wraps around my rod tip.

The biggest factor when using leaders with a braid mainline is the diameter variance. If you're using 50# braid with a 10# mono leader, the diameters are almost identical. If you're using 20# braid with a 10# leader, the diameters are VERY different. I have not had good luck with the uni knot when my leader and mainline are not close to the same diameter. The albright knot is more difficult to tie but it works much better in that situation.

The palomar is definitely a knot for all seasons. It works great with any type of line and it's very easy to tie. Another good alternative is the "San Diego jam", but it's not as easy to tie as the palomar.