To Braid Or Not to Braid

[Touchy - R.I.P.]

G'Day Gang, Starting to heal up well after the OP & looking to my fishing gear,My Mud Isl. snapper reel,Shim.Tss-4 needs new line,Braid or Mono,If braid what size/colour.Iv'e not used braid much but hearing good reports so thought I'd throw the above query into the ring.Cheers Touchy.><> ><> ><>.

[MTpockets]

Not a braid user myself, so cant help there touchy.
But was interested in what OP you had and how far are you away from getting out fishing again?
cheers
Les

[philip_thomson]

braid is top stuff because it is so strong with such a thin diameter. i have caught some fish were without braid i would have lost the fish. eg. when it rapped me around the anchor and kept ripping line of the reel. it is good stuff however the price tag is large. i normally buy my braid when it is on special at the brisbane boat show. if you look around you will find some on special. as for size and colour im not 100% sure what you should use perhaps 20ib or 30ib. colour im not sure if it plays much of an effect but im sure someone can help you there. with braid you can also put alot more on than you could for mono because of the thin diameter.
hope this helps you a bit i certaintly would reccomend using it.
cheers philip

[out2llunge]

We use braids almost exclusively for muskie (big toothy fish) in Canada. I use 80 - 100 lb. test.

If you try it here are a few tips...

1. Use a mono backing, it will save you unnecessary overfilling the spool.
2. Use a short length of mono before attaching the braid to the spool. Use a uni-uni knot for tying the braid to the mono.
3. If you tie the braid to the spool, use some electricians tape to hold the knot in place - braids will slip on the spool.
4. Reverse the braid after a year to use the other end before throwing away.
5. Wind very tightly on the spool or when trolling, let out a LOT of line and then crank it in again. This prevents the line from cutting into itself (and creatinga birds nest on the spool) when casting.
6. Braids have almost no stretch...good and bad.
7. Use a palomar knot to tie your leader or wire trace.

[Billo]

For an area like mud , braid is definately not a requirement .
In deeper water it is practically a must these days as the belly of line from the current hasn't got the elacsticity of mono ...
You can imagine with 100m of line off the reel with mono ...a tiny peck wouldn't be felt as it would be absorbed by the length of line that has formed the belly due to water tension ...Braid has virtually no stretch and a bite can be felt like it was only 10 metres under the boat .

The reason why i don't like using braid all the time in shallower waters is because i like using light tackle where it can be done.
If you were to use braid under 10kg , the diameter is that fine that you find it starts biting back into the spool..leaving you with a not so smooth free spool !

On the other hand , it is strong stuff ...and i like using it where ever i would use over 10 kg line classes as the diameter is that much finer !

I think in the shallower stuff it is more of a preferance to the angler , and not so much of an advantage / disadvantage factor

If i was bottom bashing with cut baits i would probably stick with 6 - 8 kg mono ( give em a chance )....if live baiting i would step into the Braid .

I have found Platypus super braid to the best i have used ....it is expensive ,but 9 times out of ten in shallower in shore conditions you really don't need much ....i generally run a 15kg mono backing with about 100 metres of braid over the top ...i haven't encountered a fish yet that has stripped it ....not that i haven't been trying #

10Kg Braid should suffice most of your bottom bashing ...though i would step up to 15 kg if chasing larger Cobia / Kings etc

as for colour ....i haven't played too much into it , but the green platypus offers doesn't seem to throw them off the bite !

[Sportfish_5]

Touchy

Have been using braid on both my TSS4s and have not had any probs at all. Using Platypus Superbraid on both of them, one runs 10kg the other 15kg. Colour doesn't matter too much IMO as they fade after a while anyway. Good allround set up for bottom bashing in Winter and throwing slugs in Summer (casting length is much further than equiv mono when chasing macks/tuna etc). The only mono I run know is on my trolling outfits.

Make sure you get yourself a good pair of gloves as well to save your hands from cuts when lifting fish into the boat if not gaffing or netting

Cheers,

Greg

[Touchy - R.I.P.]

Thanks for the imput fella's,Im still weighing up my options but will be certainly giving the braid a trial,Les, I'm 4 weeks into the rehab thingo from a hip replacement,They tell me 6weeks & I can get back behind the wheel,(didn't say if a car or boat wheel he!! he!! )I'm off work for 12 weeks so I will see what finnie things I can chase before getting back to work. Cheers Touchy.><> ><> ><>.

[MTpockets]

bugga work mate, chase the fins, chase the fins......
My father in-law is recovering from a knee replacement and poor bugga is laid up and cant fish.....
know what ya goin thru touchy.
get well soon
cheers
Les

[webby]

Go the braid mate, you'll need it where i am taking you

[Cloud_9]

i use braid on all my reels from 4lb for bream/bass to 30lb on offshore gear. all fireline.
have tried bionic braid found it to be very much like fireline whiplash, very supple
like cotton. your hands dont like it much but i just use different leader depending on what your fishing for, the length of the rod is the length of the leader.

Cheers Cloud 9

[lukebrooksby]

I use braid on all of my reels, the two brands that i use are Fireline and Platil the reason why i use Fireline is because it is avaliable in lesser pound ratings for my bream fishing and i use the platil braids on my heavier rods/reels. Braid is certainly an advantage in deeper waters, but the main factor when deciding wether or not to use braid is usually the cost. I highly reccomend braid in deep water scenarios, so if i was you that is where i would start and if you like braid and if it suits your fishing needs perhaps then you could spool your other reels.

[agnes_jack]

Go the braid!
There are a few things to think about though. If using it for trolling, you need to allow for the no stretch factor in that when a speedster hits, you must allow for the no stretch or it may result in pulled hooks. Somewhere in the system there needs to be some shock absorber, either a rod with a forgiving tip section, or a nice stretchy shock leader such as braid buddy or both. The other thing is because of the super sensitive feel, it is easy to go for the strike too early before the fish has time to swallow the bait properly when bottom bashing, especially with the livies. Always use a reasonable length of mono trace for abrasion resistance and to handle fish close to the boat. I also believe that the braid is very visible so the mono helps in that regard as well. I use braid for a large percentage of my fishing in light and heavy line classes
but I always take into account the above factors. Overall I love the stuff!
Hope that helps a bit.

Regards, Tony

[hiflyer]

I have a simple answer for anyone considering using braided lines for the first time. DO IT! The reason is simple, you will know if you like it for the situations you are fishing in. Personally for bait fishing with braided lines I prefer a rod with a fairly soft tip, however this is only a personal preference. I have for example, fished 6lb fireline on rods ranging from a Sabre 110 (a very soft 1-2kg glass rod) through to a 1-3kg IMX Loomis (fast action, high modulus graphite. mostl I prefer the Sabre for baitfishing and the Loomis for lures, although for soft plastic work I prefer something in between! These rules do have exceptions though, for certain species or situations!!!

My point - braids performance in a situation is affected dramatically by the type of rod used. If using the mentioned reel on a traditional? snapper rod, say for example a 7footer with a gutsy butt and soft tip (a Sabre 270 is a good example), braid would work wonderfully, even in shallow water.

Believe it or not I have fished 6lb fireline on this rod too, and it was fantastic on school mulloway! 10lb on this rod would have been better suited, but I wouldn't hesitate to fish 30lb braid through it either.

Just give it ago and decide for yourself.

Cheers #

Adam

Oh yeah, both fused lines (fireline etc. and true braids like bionic braid are worth trying. I prefer fused lines on spin tackle as do many, and I have heard that many people prefer braid on overheads. Try both over time and decide what you like best - ther is a difference!