Braid confusion with bait-caster, advice please?

[Richard Barrett]

I've two new baitcaster reels, both low profile. One is for light fishing an Okuma helios air, the other an Abu Garcia revo s.  On the light outfit, I use a rod rated up to 15 grams, the other up to 28 grams. Both 6'2'' length.  Hope it all helps with my question.

 

I'm confused. I'm being told I should use braid of a high breaking strain because the diameter is thin. So 30lb braid that has a diameter equal to 12lb mono as it will make casting easy, without birds nests.  Others are saying I should use fine braid 10lb as thin as 2lb mono line.

 

The other reason for the heavy braid is you get your lure back more often, so I'm told.

 

I'm not a total novice with a baitcaster, but also not a master and have a lot to learn.  Can someone put me right on what I should be doing with braid?

 

I fish for perch, zander, and pike all in modest sizes, sadly we don't have bass in the UK.

 

Thanks in anticipation.

 

Richard.

[Raul]

30 lb braid is not 12 lb test diameter nylon, it's more like 8 lb diameter nylon so it's pretty thin. As like anything in this sport, there are no rules as which is best, I don't fish for pike, zander or perch since none of those species ia available in my country but I seriously doubt you can go fishing for pike or zander with 10 lb test braided like and trying to tie a leader good enough for them to 10 lb braid is easier said than done.

[Richard Barrett]

Raul.

 

Like I say, the fish are modest. The perch are big, but the pike max out at around 18lb, the zander 10lb max.

 

But still its not the answer I need really about diameter and casting? 

 

I do use 8lb to 12lb normally for these species, with a trace or wire.

 

So are you saying I should match the braid strength to the species like I would on a spinning outfit. Or should I worry about the birds-nests? What do you do? 

 

Thanks.

[islandbass]

Generally speaking, the thinner the line, the farther you can cast. Bird's nests won't be your issue you can make a birds nest with any line.

 

However, and generally too for braid, is that the thinner it is, the greater a chance it has on a baitcast reel to "dig" into itself.  That is the "problem" for anglers who don't know how to manage their braid at the thinner end of the spectrum so that the easiest and most convenient thing is to use a braid with a thicker diameter.  Doing so lessens the occurrence of this "line dig."

 

With that said, different anglers will have more or less ability to minimize this line dig.  Some can use 20# braid which has an equivalent diameter to 6# mono with no issues of line dig, while other anglers cannot.  Some anglers have line dig problems with 30# braid, which has an 8# mono equivalent diameter and others won't.

 

Because it is a case by case basis for anglers, only you will know after trying this out for yourself.  Personally, I can use 30# braid with virtually no line dig issues. 

 

This line dig, as far as I know is not an issue on spinning reels, or at least it has not been for me.

 

If you normally use 8-12# mono, then it would seem fitting to use 30-40# braid.

 

Another "downside" to braid for me and it is not really a bad thing is, 30# test can be very difficult to break if I have to and if you're not careful, braid can cut through your skin like a hot knife through butter.    

[Scarborough817]

i have been catching pike on 50 lb braid with no issues i wouldn't go lower than that

[Richard Barrett]

Ive gone for 30lb on the light outfit and 40lb on the other. Both Spider Wire Stealth, it looks nice stuff and seems to cast ok. Thanks all for the advice.

[NHBull]

In most cases the actual breaking strength of braid is significantly higher than its rated strength.  I have never witnessed the "digging in" that some talk about. I believe line management probably takes care of that.  I seldom fish in the sal and also hit the open water for strippers and have never used anything over 20 lb and that is for 40 inch strippers..

 

Most here will say to go with 30 lb. To each his own.

 

For me, spinning reels, CB and finesse techniques get 10. Everything else gets 20

[Scott F]

I don't use anything over 20lb braid on my baitcasters and haven't experienced the line digging in. One of the big advantages of braid is its thin diameter. Using a thicker line just so it matches the diameter of mono doesn't make sense to me. If, you fish water where your line gets dragged over rocks or is prone to abrasion, thicker braid will survive better. Abrasion is not an issue for me so the thinner line that allows lures to run deeper is my choice.

[Deleted account]

I don't use anything lighter than 30lb braid on bait casters because as others have stated, you get into handling issues, and to a lesser extent abrasion resistance. From a breaking strength point of view, 10 lb is strong enough for most fresh water applications, I have caught some large fish with it on spinning gear.