So I have been wanting to experiment with braided line after the ice is gone. My boy and I fish willard for cats and mantua for trout, bass, and bluegill. My questions is if I need to use a mono leader. The reason I was thinking I would like braided line was that it has a smaller diameter but stronger than mono. If I use a mono leader, I would have to use a lesser pound test. Especialy on Mantua. Do those out there that use braid tie hooks and lures right onto the braid?
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I have been using braided line ever since it has hit the market. Most of the time I just tie it right to the lure and don't worry about it. If I am fishing with a real slow retrive and the water is clear then I will put something between the braid and the lure.
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If I'm fishing a top water frog or if I'm fishing murky water at a place like Cutler, I tie my braid directly to the hook. Most of the places I fish have very clear water, so I use a fluorocarbon leader. For me it's not about having super strong line as much as the fact that it has no stretch, which gives amazing sensitivity and makes setting the hook much easier. I mostly use it on soft plastics and jigs. I love it for deep water drop shotting as you can feel every little tap and hookup rates are good despite having a lot of line out. Sometimes I will use it for hard jerkbaits if I want a really erratic action. I just have to make sure my drag is fairly loose and I use a softer action rod so I don't tear out the trebles. The other thing I like about braid is that since the diameter is so thin, you can cast much further. Power Pro is my favorite braid that I've tried so far.
For catfish I would tie directly to the line since they don't rely on their eyesight as much as other game fish.
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flourocarbon leader
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I'm a fan of the braided; love how you can feel everything; super strong and lots of control too. I always use a flurocarbon leader. Now, the size of the leader depends on the water clarity. Murky=1ft. Crystal clear=up to seven feet.
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When I'm fishing lures I use a small snap swivel and hook right to the lure. When using bait, I'll use a leader & hook it to the swivel simply because I'm too damn lazy to tie to the line. I might miss a few that way but fishing for me is more the experience of getting out & fishing. Now don't get me wrong, catching makes a helluva fine icing on the cake. I also like eatin' some of them, 'specially channel cats & the spiny ray types.
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PP 65# test Braid is the line of choice we use for all soft water fishing be it Walleye, Panfish, or the beast. We also use snap swivels attaching to lure or worm harness when after Walleye and Panfish. We seem to catch fish with a swivel and not just tying lure to the line.
Also have yet to have a break off when after the PV beasts.
Also for the beast without a doubt flourocarbon (FC) leaders. I was sold on these types of leaders as when casting and bringing your lure in you see nothing but the lure. But the price to buy FC leaders we said the heck with that and now make our own for FC leaders casting and trolling...haven't had one fail yet and have saved $$ as flourocarbon leaders can get pricey.
Don't think you'd go wrong with a braided line at all on the soft water...its finding the brand and size you desire and going from there.
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My jury is still out on braided. I love it for trolling, but for casting... not s'much, yet. I'm still a fan of the Silverthread. But, I got an email a while ago featuring some big fishing expo of new stuff. The number one thing of the year was some hybrid line with braid and something else. I'd intended to try it, but I had a hardware crash and lost the info. Any idea what brand or kind of line that might have been?
Thanks
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I have been reading about a new line being put out by Berkley. I think that it was called microfil or something like that.
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