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You might catch an 8 pound 11 oz Bass. Caught her in 6 feet of crystal clear water using 50lb Suffix 832, flipping hook, and a Berkley PitBoss texas rig. She was not on a bed! Caught a ton of Bass on this short trip yesterday, due to the cold front we had in Ga these last couple of day I knew fishing was going to be tough, but once we figured out the pattern it was on!

The last couple of years I have conducted a stretch test of a variety of fishing lines. I have now tested 20 lines – mono, co-polymer and fluorocarbon. My initial hope was to go beyond line manufacturer’s claims of “low stretch” because I found it varied greatly, and find out for myself. I’m just an amateur and not affiliated or sponsored by anyone, but this was an interesting exercise for me. It will influence what products I buy going forward. Like anything in fishing, I don’t think any single product will work all the time. I mostly use braid as a main line but usually tie on a leader for low visibility and abrasion resistance. In these situations I may actually opt for a leader material with more stretch to offset some of the no-stretch characteristics of braid. Other times, like when casting crank baits, I want a line with some give so I don’t tear the trebles out of the fish’s mouth. But then again, I don’t want a long hook set with a line that stretches like a rubber band either… I hope you find the results as interesting as I did, it was kind of a fun way to kill some cabin fever the past couple years… -Fry Here are the results, the primary update this year was selecting certain lines to be tested wet vs. dry ~ LINE STRETCH TEST I used a 12 foot piece of each line and hung an 8 pound weight to see how much each line stretched in inches. Below are the results - least stretch to most stretch. All Lines 8 lb Test Lines Trilene XT (Mono) 21-1/4 inches of stretch Yo-Zuri Hybrid (Co-polymer) 22-1/8 Sufix Seige (Mono) 22-5/8 P-Line CX Premium (Co-polymer) 23-1/2 Maxima Treazure (Co-polymer) 24-1/2 Trilene XL (Mono) 24-3/4 Tectan Superior (Mono) 25-7/8 Berkley Sensation (Mono) 26-1/8 Sunline Sniper (Fluorocarbon) 26-1/2 Gamma Touch (Fluorocarbon) 29-1/4 Original Blue Stren (Mono) 29-3/4 Gamma Edge (Fluorocarbon) 31-0** Bass Pro XPS (Fluorocarbon) 31-3/4* Stren 100% (Fluorocast) 31-3/4* Seaguar Tatsu (Fluorocarbon) 32-3/4 P-Line 100% (Fluorocarbon) 33-0* Seaguar Invizx (Fluorocarbon) 36-0** Berkley 100% (Fluorocarbon) 38-3/8 Line snapped once and was re-tested ** Line snapped twice - length estimated Broken Down By Line Type 3 Co-polymer lines average stretch: 23.4 inches 6 Monofilament lines average stretch: 25.1 inches 9 fluorocarbon lines average stretch: 32.2 inches Line Diameter Line diameter can have an effect on stretch, but 9 of these lines all had the same diameter (.009 inches). Those lines are broken out below. The overall results are similar for the 3 different line types. P-Line CX Premium (Co-polymer) 23-1/2 Maxima Treazure (Co-polymer) 24-1/2 Tectan Superior (Mono) 25-7/8 Berkley Sensation (Mono) 26-1/8 Sunline Sniper (Fluorocarbon) 26-1/2 Gamma Touch (Fluorocarbon) 29-1/4 Bass Pro XPS (Fluorocarbon) 31-3/4* Seaguar Tatsu (Fluorocarbon) 32-3/4 Seaguar Invizx (Fluorocarbon) 36-0** ”Wet vs. Dry” The above line stretch test was conducted with dry lines, which raises the question of whether mono, co-polymer and fluorocarbon lines stretch differently when wet? Two lines in each category were soaked for 24 hours and re-tested. Results were as follows: Fluorocarbon lines Sunline Sniper: dry 26 1/2 inches vs. wet at 27 1/8. Berkley 100% fluorocarbon: dry 38 3/8 inches vs. wet at 39 inches. Co-Polymer lines Yo-Zuri Hybrid: dry 22 1/8 vs. wet at 25 1/4 P-Line CX Premium: 23 1/2 vs. wet at 35 1/8 Mono Trilene XT: dry 21 1/4 vs. wet at 28 7/8 Trilene XL: dry 24 3/4 vs. wet at 36 1/2 Overall observations *Newer Co-polymer lines being marketed specifically as “low stretch” for the most part seem to be accurate (when tested dry). *Fluorocarbon tends to be the line with most stretch. *Monofilament tends to be somewhere in the middle, although those with a thicker diameter (i.e. Trilene XT .011 and Sufix Seige .010) did stretch less. *Line diameter may have an effect on the stretch of certain lines, but overall, lines of the same diameter seem to reflect that Co-polymer and Monofilament lines still stretch less than Fluorocarbon (when tested dry). *Mono and Co-polymer lines tend to stretch more when wet vs. dry. Most “catch up” to fluorocarbon in terms of overall stretch, however one co-polymer (Yo-zuri Hybrid) tested lower than any fluorocarbon either wet or dry. *Fluorocarbon lines tend to break easier when stretched to their maximum breaking strength.

First time throwing the hudd this year and got my first hudd fish. Started throwing it the end of the day and she bit within the first ten casts.

After an arm injury forced me to sit out 2015, I am ready to go. I can lift the canoe, which was the rehab goal. But just in case, I got a kayak that weighs half of what the canoe weighs. Hope to see some of you around this season.

My great grand children will be able to enjoy my current stash.

I cant imagine that it would hurt anything but the label on the spool. Fishing line is made to be used in lake water.

Season's?? Oh Man we're talking years over here! Mike

Had a couple other orders one in today I thought I'd share of hooks, tungsten, Yamamoto, kinami, robo, and zoom

Absolute garbage that should never have the name Ambassadeur pasted on it. Its absolutely a disposable reel. If you need or want a round reel at a budget price look at a factory reconditioned C series at Purefishings web store or a reconditioned 4600C at hookless. As a Ambassadeur collector and user it makes my heart and soul cringe every time I see that chinese sheet metal have the Ambassadeur name on it. Pure Fishings dumbest mistake out of hundreds that they make. The S and SX are rebadged Kalex reels. They had such bad rep and press that Pure Fishing had to bling them up and rename them in order to make them sell to other poor ignorant souls.

Caught 4 today between a SK RES in a shad color and a Junebug Yum Dinger. Rained pretty good, just got this new waterproof Columbia jacket on sale for $60 and really like it. Sorry for inverted pics.

Water will not damage your line. Tom

As an avid multispecies angler, is really hurts to be so far from saltwater where there is so much variety. I've only been to the ocean a few times and caught a handful of species of saltwater fish and none of the more popular ones. I'd love to be able to haul my kayak someone some day and fish some canals or lagoons though. Unfortunately, I'm about as centrally located as it gets.

Any salty dogs in the house? Post up some pics if ya got em! My biggest redfish to date at 50.5" ... Sadly I was on a solo mission and this was the only picture I got of it.. 40" Black Drum I sightfished with a plastic shrimp on super light tackle.. that thing fought me tooth and nail My boy is a junior slayer! We get em at night too! And in the ocean! Saltwater definitely runs through my veins but man I have been a hell of a time learning how to bass fish lately.. it's a great change of pace..

Was walking the dog and picked up one of the rusty railroad spikes from the old line they pulled out years back. Decided I was going to give it a whirl and pound it out into a simple fixed blade. Came out pretty good for a quick college try! Might have to scrounge up a few dozen more!

Caught this fish on a weightless worm i was fishing in very shallow water like less then 1' of water. I probably should swithc my gear but i was using a 7.1:1 gear ratio reel with 16 lbs Sunline Sniper FC line wih a 7'6" medium heavy fast rod. What do you guys think? I need a more sensitive rod for something like that. I really miss my im7 rod and real combo

Picked up one of these before they're gone for good.

We ALL have the problem; it's why we're here. I feel sorry for the wayward souls who haven't found this place. And yeah, I got the archangel on black friday sale, and kp on the bmclassic sale. Have only been out to the park with a casting plug so far. It's a big leap of faith since there aren't any real reviews, but I really like what I see/feel so far.

I let my ex-monster-in-law use a Zebco 33 combo of mine and she somehow managed to throw it so far out that I couldn't find it swimming. I caught it a few years later. I've caught two. Threw one back.

Buying a JDM reel is just the first step down a slippery slope. Wait until you start looking around http://www.hedgehog-studio.co.jp/ . I have almost as much in upgrades and bling on my Metanium as I paid for the reel...lol. But seriously, how hot is this???

Thanks, Catt - Paul Johnson of Berkley did all the original research that you refer to. It was detailed extensively in Bassmaster magazine back in 1979. There might have been others. He also included some detailed explanations in his book. Like you said, things like rod length, physical stature, etc, made no difference. It was pretty much all technique. -T9

Yep! You are crossing over to the dark side!

Nice one! Congrats! She sure is pretty! But you probably would have broken 9lbs if you would have used ***Brand X*** nearly invisible line! Jeff

With the exchange rate, it can be significantly cheaper to buy from Japan...Especially on the higher end stuff. Plus there is the 'cool' factor of having something not many others have. The Japanese retailers have excellent shipping service, packages via EMS are typically at your door in 3 or 4 days at the most. Some sites offer that shipping for free, others charge anywhere from $12-$20 depending on what you buy. Look at the price of a Metanium or other high end reel on TW and then look at the price on Digitaka or Japan Lure Shop....Easy to see why many are going the Japan route.

Recently picked up a Quantum Exo PT100 ($99) and a St. Croix Mojo Bass 7'0" MHF ($89) rod.

I love the Salt. If anything ever happens to my job here I will move straight to the blue water somewhere! My first Blue: Jeff

It wont affect your baits ability to stay on the bottom, the fluoro leader will serve the purpose of disguising the line and thats about it. The fluoro leader can also act as a shock absorber for the braid. Fluoro has a little more stretch than braid so it will help not tear hooks from the fishes mouth.

Don't get me wrong, I love bass fishing too, but the salt is just something else. And if I had a choice, I know darn well which one I'd pick.

I prefer EWG for GP use, I don't have any of the alleged issues with them that some people do. Straight shanks have a time and place for me, like punching or fishing with a large sinker that can and will pop the fishes mouth open like Catt mentioned, but with tungsten sinkers, if I keep the weight size under 1 oz., I usually stick with the EWG. I have fished with a bunch of different guys over the years, and the ones who had the most trouble with EWG and fish getting off, were guys who used stout rods, heavy braid, yet regular wire hooks, and felt the need to come out of their shoes on every hook set. They were flexing the hook AND ripping the bait away from the fish at the same time. I use "super line" heavy wire hooks, and rods with a little give in the tip, and set the hook with a steady but quick and firm upward stroke, and .....................knock on wood.................lose few.

It’s simple geometry Wide gap hooks have the hook point directly in line with the eye of the hook or slightly above the line eye on "extra wide gap" hooks. When you set the hook, the sinker and the front of the lure clear a path for the hook point to escape a bass’s mouth without imbedding. On straight shank hooks the point rides substantially above the eye of the hook and aims for the roof of the bass’s mouth, resulting in a more hook-ups. The extra wide gap hooks do an excellent job of holding fish if you manage to get the hook through the bass’s mouth on the hook set. There are plenty of times when a bass completely takes the bait and even on a short pitch with braided line, the hook flies cleanly out of the bass’s mouth on the hook set. Missing an extra fish every once in a while doesn’t sound like a big deal, but if that fish is the Lunker of a lifetime, losing it is a huge deal.

Louisiana has some big ol pond donkeys too.. and they are as dumb as a bag of hammers.. You can bonk them in the head with a lure 5 feet from the boat and they will still destroy it.. Nothing like that over here.. our reds are so pressured it's like fishing for 30lb bonefish.. they can hear a mouse peeing on cotton

Gee.....guess I just might have to show up for the KY Lake gig Might even have an empty seat. Let me know if anyone wants to go fishing

Fished Monday and Tuesday on the south end hitting Mill and Buck creek. Water was very stained. Best 5 both days 16-17lbs all on T-Rig senkos in Christmas tree color 5-10 FOW. Didn't catch any monsters, just some solid fish. Biggest went 4 1/2 each day. Lots of good deep grass in those areas. I did drag for crappie for about an hour each day with no luck. Weird that I didn't find any crappie. I was catching them in six mile about 3 weeks ago.

Another reason to stick with #12 yozuri for any non braid uses. Thanks for the testing.

Suing to protect the rights of people to use the waterways of our country is far from a frivolous lawsuit. The rivers of this country are supposed to be held in public trust not owned by individuals who try to keep us from using them for fishing and recreation. In Illinois, there are landowners who put up barbed wire across streams to keep paddlers and fishermen off the water. Individuals are not supposed to own rivers and lawsuits are the only way to correct the mistakes that have been made concerning who actually owns the rivers. I wish I had the time and money to sue those in my state that keep us off our rivers.

Go with the medium light.

I'm in the middle of Illinois. Saltwater is a danged long cast for me. Great pics. Awesome fish. I'm jealous.

An artificial live bait that worked well would be awful good but I am always cheerfully pessimistic about them. I think it would turn out to be bitter sweet to use a genuine imitation or an original copy. In the peaceful conquest to catch fish in no random order I believe they are the same difference. ?

Ugh... got food poisoning from a Mexican restaurant by loz on sunday.... I swear it almost killed me. Went to the doc today and got 2 bags of fluid and feel much better. Teach me to go the ozarks and not eat bbq.

Only fish we caught today were really shallow behind the hay grass. Hard to get to. I heard someone slayed them today on a carolina rig off a point. Any suggestions? We on staying on Housen.

Just went to my favorite pond for about an hour, caught ten. All of them came on a bluegill colored red eye shad.

That experiment has been done. Since you are barely generating over a pound of hook-setting force at that distance, and taking into consideration the bend of the rod, the mass of the fish, your stated depth of water and the drag effect on your line in water (and the non straight-line nature of the line in these circumstances), I believe the answer to actual line stretch is very likely less than 2' at that distance. -T9

I would suggest you use lures with the rod that matches its weight range. Also keep what line you have in mind when you make that decision. You got most of the spectrum covered with that though.

For beefier baits ( senkos, frogs, flukes n´such ) your best option is wide gap, why ? because the bait tends to ball up when it slides during hooksets choking the hook gap, straight shanks may not have enough opening.

I've done a lot of bragging on my grandson Aiden & his bass catching heroics, well this is my other 9 yr old grandson Evan Trace. After his first full year of competing in gymnastics he entered the Louisiana State Championship competions on Saturday. He brought home 4 silver medals, 3 bronze medals, & a trophy for 3rd OVERALL!!! Plus he brought home the team trophy for highest team overall score of 62.1 (6 events=60.0 plus bonus skills) with a whopping 11.2 on rings!!!

I have and use both configurations but prefer lefties for the most part and always cast right handed. What ever works for you is right.

thought i would add some updated pics of my tackle that has grown far to much in the off season i picked up some storm twitch sticks and some kvd deep jerkbaits last night. Frogs/Buzzbaits Topwater/Jerkbaits Cranks Jigs/Bladed Jigs Big Baits Big Baits 2

In a new location for job training...hit the local Walmart...hit the jackpot on some clearance stuff. 1/0 Weedless Wacky VMC $3 1/0 VMC Spin shot hooks $3 Gammy Worm Hooks 3&4/0 $2 Trokar Worm Hooks $2 Viscious 8lb Floro $7

About 20 years ago I pulled up to the dock from all day fishing. When I tied my boat up I was looking up at the sky and lost my balance and fell in. Well if that wasn't enough, when I came up my prescription sunglasses was gone. Got the boat loaded and took a Bagley DB3 and started casting for them. On the 10th cast I caught them. That was about a $350 cast.