Fishing Line For Bass Fishing - Monafilament Vs Braid
Fishing Line
- What Color of Line Should I Use?
- How Is Fishing Line Weight Measured?
- What Pound Test Line Should I Use For Bass?
- Why Should I Use Monofilament Line? Braid Line?
- Which Class of Fishing Line Holds Up Better?
How many times have you gone to Bass Pro or other sporting
goods store and stood there looking at all of the line while asking
yourself these kind of questions? Most of the time the wall runs the
length of the store with nothing but line staring back at you.
Based on what I have used in the past and what I use
now, I will attempt to walk you through the miles of fishing line out
there.
Two Main Classes of Fishing
Line
Fishing line in my books comes in two different classes,
what we call Monafilament, and Braid or Braided.
In the monafilament you have Fluorocarbon, CAJIN, Fluoroclear, lo-Vis, Clear Blue, Moss Green, Magnathin, and Fluorescent.
Braid Line, you have Camo, High performance, Invisi-Braid,
Moss Green and new lines coming out everyday.
The fishing line brands I have mentioned above can all be found on my site and
save you a trip to Bass Pro, not to mention having it delivered right to
your door.
The fishing lines above are what I call Fresh Water lines, however
have seen some used in saltwater.
The companies that make the line you will see most often
are Stren, Berkley, and Bass Pro.
Alright, I think I have covered most of the different lines
and now, let's move on to "What I have used in the past and what I use
now."
Monafilament
Fishing Line I've Used
Original Stren Fishing Line
I believe the first line I ever used was made by Stren
and was in a purple box called Original Stren. It is a
monafilament line that I used for many years, for both day and
night fishing and at the time, it served most
purposes.
Magnathin Brand Fishing Line
While I was working at Bass Pro, I got to talk to a Stren Rep.
and he advised me to try the Magnathin monofilament brand made by
Stren.
It is a thinner diameter and will make
long cast with ease. It has more strength to haul in those hogs even the
meaniest fighters.
What is so great about the Magnathin is
you can spool your reel with 12 pound test and it has 10 pound diameter.
So I made the change to Magnathin for years and here again, I used it on
all my reels.
For the anglers that do not know: the lower the diameter you have on your
reel; the farther it will cast. This does not mean to fill the reel
up with the smaller line even though you can put 50% more on the
reel.
Stren Clear Blue Fluorescent
Fishing Line - For Night Fishing
Then I went to Stren Clear Blue Fluorescent 17 pound when I
was fishing at night. This line when using a Blacklight will
help you see the slightest little tic or bite.
It looks like an anchor rope under the
blacklight. I used this line for mainly nightfishing so I could see the line.
The blacklight does not just light up the line but also the bank, so it
will give you a idea how far to cast the lure.
How Is Fishing Line
Weight Determined?
The way they rate the line is to hook it up on a machine and
slowly start to apply weight on the line and measure it to the point
it breaks.
So line that is rated at 10 pound test will go just a little
bit over ten pounds and then break.
Stop and think. A fish is not going to give you a slow rate of pull on the line and at times they
might even lunge away from the boat. That would create a weight
greater than what you are fishing with and it breaks.
So you ask what do I do now?
The most simple rule is to up the pound test, then think back
in the part of this article where I said the lighter you use
the farther you can cast. This means you will lose some of the
casting distance when you start using a heaiver pound test.
What Pound Test Line Should I
Use?
If you decide to use or need to use monofilament fishing line until you become a skilled caster, I guess the best way to steer you in
the right direction would be to list it like this:
1. Pan fish - 6 to 8 pound test Monofilament
2. Bass - 12 to 17 pound test Monofilament
3. Catfish - 20 pound test Monofilament
Again monofilament is cheaper than braid as you will discover.
What Color of Line Should
I Use?
I hear all the folks talking about the fish not
being able to see the line under the water. (Fluorocarbon), (Cajun
Red), (Moss Green), (Clear) and the list goes on. Stop and think
the fish are not after your line, but what is tied on the end of
it. I have never spooked a fish because of the color line I had on
my reel.
Reasons To Use
Monofilament Fishing Line
- Monofilament is a lot cheaper than
braid
- If just starting off fishing, get use to casting
with the monofilament. Then when you get real good at casting,
move up to the braid.
- Monofilament does has a stretch to it which is recommended when throwing topwater baits because you want a little stretch when setting the hook.
Three Enemies of
Monofilament Fishing Line
There are three things that are enemies to monofilament line and they are:
- Water, monofilament line will absorb water and become heavy
after constant use.
- Sunlight, will break the line down and it will become brittle
and start to break after being left on the boat dock or your boat
deck. When the fishing rods are not being used, make sure they are
out of the weather.
- Rocks, I do not care what they say about their line
being resistant to abrasion. You run it across enough rocks that
line will fray and evenutly break. That is why you see folks
re-tieing their line often. Even when you do catch a very large bass,
I recommend you cut it and re-tie the lure on
again.
My Introduction To Braided
Fishing Line - What I Use Now
After years of using monofilaments, I was introduced to the Power Pro Brand
of Braided Fishing Line.
PowerPro®
Braided Spectra® Fiber Micro Filament Line - 100 yards - 65 lbs. - Moss Green is my present fishing line of choice even if it is
more expensive.
Keep in mind the same braided fishing line has been known to
last more fishing seasons than monafilament line. Remember my money saving tip: Don't select braided fishing line until you are skilled at
casting.
I still use the blacklight, but the
sensitivity of the braid is beyond your wildest dreams. I do not know how
many fish I let go by that I did not even feel pick up the
lure.
I use 65 pound test line and have never
lost or had a fish break my line since I switched.
The Power Pro does come in a bright Yellow that you can use
at night, under the black light, but due to the sensitivity I choose not
to use the yellow, because I can feel the fish and do not need to see the
line.
I like the moss green due to water clarity in the Mid-South where most of the
water has a green tint to it.
Power Pro has no stretch to it and you have got to
be able to be on the upper level of casting. The reason is, when
you either hang a big Bass Hog or get hung up the line does at
times dig down into the reel, and can cause a back lash on your
next cast if you are not watching it close.
Power Pro is made by Spectra and comes in 10 pound to 250 pound
test, and you can have it in Moss Green, Hi-Vis Yellow, and
Red.
I will be going more indepth about
braided line in another article.
Again, in my opinion, the color of the fishing line does not play a factor in hauling in the bass hog or crappie slab.
Hopefully, the information above
covering the basics will help you select which class
of fishing line to
purchase.
Don't Forget A Fishing Line
Spooling Station
If you are the type that does not like to tinker
building little things like my version of Home Made Spooling Station, they do
have them on the market already built like the Berkley®
Portable Line Spooling Station.
If you have questions, use the
link Ask Steve and I'll be
happy to try to help you.
Keep the Hooks Wet!
Steve McGoldrick
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