whats braid for?

[ohihunter2014]

I found every size of fireline for $3 and I'm itching to buy it to stock up but what technique is it good for? running 2 baitcasters on Berkley lightning shocks and a president spinning reel and ugly stick catfish combo.

[Dypsis]

Everything.

[RoLo]

8 minutes ago, Dypsis said:

Everything.

 

   X2

[ohihunter2014]

7 minutes ago, RoLo said:

 

   X2

 

17 minutes ago, Dypsis said:

Everything.

I read mono is best for cranks to not rip the hook out but ive never set the hook really hard. one of the baitcasters I'm getting comes with braid. just trying to use the best stuff possible.

[RoLo]

17 hours ago, ohihunter2014 said:

 

I read mono is best for cranks to not rip the hook out but ive never set the hook really hard. one of the baitcasters I'm getting comes with braid. just trying to use the best stuff possible.

 

It is true, a small treble hook will tear out more easily than a large single hook,

but there are several ways to cushion applied tension:

> Fiberglass or composite blank instead of a graphite blank

> Moderate-fast tip instead of a Fast or Extra-fast tip

> Reduced drag-setting (blatantly overlooked)

> Nylon, fluoro or copolymer line instead of braided line.

 

That said, it's not necessary to deprive yourself of 'ALL' above options to reduce treble hook tear-out.

 

Roger

[Bluebasser86]

FWIW, Fireline is a fused line, not a braided line. Doesn't handle as well on casting gear for me, and a little stiffer on spinning gear, but it's still fine line, exceptional if you can find it for $3 a spool. 

[Fishing Rhino]

It's not good for fishing in the rocks unless you use a long mono or fluoro leader.  It's tough to cut unless you use serrated scissors.  Or, if you want to see how weak it can be, a dental floss cutter will cut it cleanly and as easily as dental floss.  But in vegetation, it really shines.  It will cut/saw through lily pad stems like butter.  Fight  a good size bass in a lily pad bed and it will cut through them like a scythe.  Unless the fish fights directly toward you or away from you, braid will cut down every pad stem it touches.  It can clear a small bed of pads in seconds.

 

It's great for casting, but it's tough on the rod's eyes.  You can use heavy test line with not much of a casting penalty on spinning gear.  It will cut grooves into the regular guides on econo rods. Fifteen pound test braid will cast better than six pound mono or fluoro on a spinning reel.

 

It can also do a great job of slicing into your flesh if you don't pay attention when tying knots, or if you try to haul a decent fish over the side by grabbing the line.

 

It will snap a rod on a hookset with less effort than mono.

 

It takes more care when filling a spool with line.  If you don't use any mono backing, or a couple of wraps of electrical tape on the spool,  it is possible for the spool full  of braid to spin inside the spool, or, for the spool to spin around the braid, with very little strain on the line.

 

A decent fish can easily spool all the line off the reel with very little effort.  The line may be tight to the spool when you first load it, but when the line starts to slip, it happens very quickly without warning.

 

If the spool has eyes in the axle of the spool run the line through the holes, rather than around the outside of the spool when you fill the reel.  That will prevent the spool from spinning inside the coil of line.

 

Braid is a great line as long as you understand its weaknesses and characteristics.

 

 

[soflabasser]

Braid is good to use for frog fishing and fishing soft plastics in areas with heavy aquatic vegetation,but mono is better to use in areas where there are alot of rocks since mono is much more abrasion resistant than braid near rocks,concrete structures,etc.

[ohihunter2014]

4 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

FWIW, Fireline is a fused line, not a braided line. Doesn't handle as well on casting gear for me, and a little stiffer on spinning gear, but it's still fine line, exceptional if you can find it for $3 a spool. 

whats the issue on casting gear? I was going to use it on a baitcaster

[Bluebasser86]

10 minutes ago, ohihunter2014 said:

whats the issue on casting gear? I was going to use it on a baitcaster

It doesn't lay well on the spool mostly. Likes to dig into itself. I believe Fireline was designed for spinning gear though.

Just issues that I've personally had, you might not experience any problems. I haven't used it in years either, so those problems may be a thing of the past. 

[Smokinal]

4 hours ago, Fishing Rhino said:

It's not good for fishing in the rocks unless you use a long mono or fluoro leader.  It's tough to cut unless you use serrated scissors.  Or, if you want to see how weak it can be, a dental floss cutter will cut it cleanly and as easily as dental floss.  But in vegetation, it really shines.  It will cut/saw through lily pad stems like butter.  Fight  a good size bass in a lily pad bed and it will cut through them like a scythe.  Unless the fish fights directly toward you or away from you, braid will cut down every pad stem it touches.  It can clear a small bed of pads in seconds.

 

It's great for casting, but it's tough on the rod's eyes.  You can use heavy test line with not much of a casting penalty on spinning gear.  It will cut grooves into the regular guides on econo rods. Fifteen pound test braid will cast better than six pound mono or fluoro on a spinning reel.

 

It can also do a great job of slicing into your flesh if you don't pay attention when tying knots, or if you try to haul a decent fish over the side by grabbing the line.

 

It will snap a rod on a hookset with less effort than mono.

 

It takes more care when filling a spool with line.  If you don't use any mono backing, or a couple of wraps of electrical tape on the spool,  it is possible for the spool full  of braid to spin inside the spool, or, for the spool to spin around the braid, with very little strain on the line.

 

A decent fish can easily spool all the line off the reel with very little effort.  The line may be tight to the spool when you first load it, but when the line starts to slip, it happens very quickly without warning.

 

If the spool has eyes in the axle of the spool run the line through the holes, rather than around the outside of the spool when you fill the reel.  That will prevent the spool from spinning inside the coil of line.

 

Braid is a great line as long as you understand its weaknesses and characteristics.

 

 

Wow Rhino, I've been using braid for the last 25 years; since the very first Spiderwire first came out and literally have never had a single issue you mentioned, except for an occasional slice in the skin which I have had with mono and fluoro as well. I'm not saying these aren't accurate but, from my experience with it, very very limited.

I could write a longer dirty list about fluoro.

[.ghoti.]

I'll give a simple answer to the original question.

 

Nothing!

[Mike L]

All lines have thier place..Braid is the only one you can use for all presentations.

May not be the best to use in all, but certainly not the worst in any. 

 

 

 

 

Mike

[Fishfisherson]

12 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

FWIW, Fireline is a fused line, not a braided line. Doesn't handle as well on casting gear for me, and a little stiffer on spinning gear, but it's still fine line, exceptional if you can find it for $3 a spool. 

Try soaking it in warm water to losin it up befor spooling 

[Angry John]

2 hours ago, Mike L said:

All lines have thier place..Braid is the only one you can use for all presentations.

May not be the best to use in all, but certainly not the worst in any. 

 

 

 

 

Mike

The worst line for jerkbait fishing.

[BassGirl71]

I use braid quite a bit.  As others have said, you have to be careful in rocky areas, as rock will cut your brain fairly easily.  But I use it for flipping and pitching almost exclusively - other than in really clear water that is highly pressured.  I also do not use it or cranking, as others have said.  I like the stretch of mono for that.  One thing I do see people do quite a bit, though is to use a lower pound  test of braid on a bait caster, and that is somewhat a recipe for disaster.  When you set the hook hard, a 20-pound, for example, will cut into itself and cause you a bunch of issues.  I never use anything under 50-pound on my bait casters (15 or 20 for spinning reels), and I usually prefer 65-pound.  I also use braid as my main line for a Carolina rig and even a drop shot rig.  Then I use Master's Mono for a leader.

[Team9nine]

2 hours ago, Fishfisherson said:

Try soaking it in warm water to losin it up befor spooling 

 

Fireline is made from Dyneema which has almost zero water absorption. Soaking it in water does nothing for it other than get it wet, and since its fused (and hydrophobic), it does that pretty poorly, too. The water soak trick only works well with nylon based monofilaments.

 

-T9

[RoLo]

2 hours ago, Fishfisherson said:

Try soaking it in warm water to losin it up befor spooling 

 

 

A solution that would actually work is to switch from Berkley Fused Fireline

to Berkley Trilene Braid (an excellent braided line)

 

Roger

[NYWayfarer]

Regular braid, not fireline, is great for fishing in dirty water with heavy vegetation. I rarely fish this type of water so it's no wonder I have few reels loaded with braid. I fish clear open water for smallmouth and prefer Fluoro and mono in that order.

 

You can pull up a stump with the right rod and braid. Fireline is its's own beast. It's a braid that wants to be a mono, it's neither and not a favorite of mine as its cost does not match its quality. If you got it for $3 I would say it's a good deal.

[Mike L]

1 hour ago, Angry John said:

The worst line for jerkbait fishing.

 

Point taken John..

 

I guess I should have been clearer.

My point was it can be used for any and all presentation's but certainly not ideal for all either. 

 

 

[Angry John]

Braid is a wonderful tool that works better in some situations better than any other type of line.  Many people try to tout that it is the be all end all line and its not.  Thats the entire reason people tie on leaders.  Then there are those that feel fluorocarbon is the best thing since sliced bread.  It has its strong points as well but i am happy i am not limited to one type of line because one size fits all does not work for me!!!!