01-31-2008, 09:19 PM
[cool][#0000ff]If you go fishing for pike, and want to recover your lures, don't fish with straight mono...or even straight braid. Braid holds up to pike teeth only slightly better than mono. Use wire. I hate it too, but I dislike "unplanned" disconnects where the fish swims away with a favorite lure. I have landed pike with straight Excalibur, but I have also had "biteoffs". It is not kevlar or steel.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The only time I MIGHT use braids would be for deep jigging with heavy lures for big fish. The deeper you fish, the more stretch there is with mono. That is the one BIG advantage of the braids...no stretch and maximum sensitivity to bites in the depths. That is simultaneously the big di
vantage. Hard hooksets can break leaders or tear hooks out of the mouths of some fish. Mono and a flexible rod overcome the heavy handed techniques of overanxious anglers.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Most of the vertical jigging I do is in water less than 25 feet deep...and usually about half that. There is negligible stretch in the Excalibur and I can usually stay in touch with what is going on at the other end with little problem.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I have several baitcasters that I use for everything from light ice fishing to heavy catfish rasslin'. Most of my revolving spool reels have either 6 or 8# Excalibur. But, even my "heavy" rigs usually do not have heavier than 10#. I cannot break 10# Excalibur while fishing from my tube. If I get snagged, I have to position my craft over the snag and wrap the line around my (covered) arm and then make a sudden pull. If I don't straighten the hook, or break the line, I often come close to pulling myself under. I have actually had to cut the line at the surface on more than one tough snag. Not likely a fish is going to break it. It will tow me first. And, some have.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The only time I MIGHT use braids would be for deep jigging with heavy lures for big fish. The deeper you fish, the more stretch there is with mono. That is the one BIG advantage of the braids...no stretch and maximum sensitivity to bites in the depths. That is simultaneously the big di
vantage. Hard hooksets can break leaders or tear hooks out of the mouths of some fish. Mono and a flexible rod overcome the heavy handed techniques of overanxious anglers.[/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Most of the vertical jigging I do is in water less than 25 feet deep...and usually about half that. There is negligible stretch in the Excalibur and I can usually stay in touch with what is going on at the other end with little problem.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I have several baitcasters that I use for everything from light ice fishing to heavy catfish rasslin'. Most of my revolving spool reels have either 6 or 8# Excalibur. But, even my "heavy" rigs usually do not have heavier than 10#. I cannot break 10# Excalibur while fishing from my tube. If I get snagged, I have to position my craft over the snag and wrap the line around my (covered) arm and then make a sudden pull. If I don't straighten the hook, or break the line, I often come close to pulling myself under. I have actually had to cut the line at the surface on more than one tough snag. Not likely a fish is going to break it. It will tow me first. And, some have.[/#0000ff]
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