Southern bro’s, do you use fluro leader when wormin?

[BlackwaterPark10]

Been trying to force myself this summer to throw a lot of speed worms, 10” worms and other bigger worms. Been mainly throwing Gambler 7” Burner Worms, Bruiser Speed Spade 8.5”,  and Bruiser Big Nasty 14”. 
 

Do y’all use a fluro leader or go straight braid ? 
 

My setup is a Fitzgerald 7’3 Heavy, Curado, 30lb Fins XS braid, 3/16oz tungsten, 4’ 20lb fluro leader and 4/0 Trokar Pro V worm hook. 
 

Fishing in the Eastern Central Florida area (Garcia, Kissimmee, Stick Marsh, Okeechobee, Poinsette.) 

[Teal]

I use floro.  I DO NOT USE TROKAR ANYMORE.  GARBAGE HOOKS

[Dwight Hottle]

Straight braid for FL. 

[Jrob78]

Straight fluoro unless I'm pitching/punching into thick vegetation, then I will use straight braid. I'm not a fan of leaders or braid for worm fishing.

[Russ E]

For worm and jig fishing I use straight fluoro. Personally don't like leaders for baitcasters.

I use leaders for spinning finesse setups, but run straight fluoro for worm/jig fishing with baitcasters.

I agree with @Teal Trokar worms are garbage. Make a nasty hole that gives the fish much more chance to throw the bait. Pickup some good mustad or gamakatsu hooks. You will lose less fish.

 

must be summer. worms on the brain.. trokar hooks not worms.?

Edited August 3, 2020 by Russ E
brain phart.

[BrianMDTX]

Neither. I’ve been using YZH. But...I do not have to punch heavy vegetation. 

[Teal]

30 minutes ago, Russ E said:

For worm and jig fishing I use straight fluoro. Personally don't like leaders for baitcasters.

I use leaders for spinning finesse setups, but run straight fluoro for worm/jig fishing with baitcasters.

I agree with @Teal Trokar worms are garbage. Make a nasty hole that gives the fish much more chance to throw the bait. Pickup some good mustad or gamakatsu hooks. You will lose less fish.

Dull as crap after one outing or a few fish

   I'll stick to gammys and mustard ultra points

[Bluebasser86]

Straight braid in Florida for sure. I'd bump the size you're using up considerably also. 50 is typically considered the minimum there, 65 and even 80 are often used.

 

Also agree on the suggestion to toss the Trokars. Awful, overrated hooks.

[BlackwaterPark10]

1 hour ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Straight braid in Florida for sure. I'd bump the size you're using up considerably also. 50 is typically considered the minimum there, 65 and even 80 are often used.

 

Also agree on the suggestion to toss the Trokars. Awful, overrated hooks.

I’ve honestly never lost a fish from line break at 30lb and like the castability. I know a lot of people use 50 for everything non flipping but I’ve never needed to I guess 

[Angry John]

I worm fish with 12lb yhb.  I punch with 50 or 65 lb braid.  I only run leaders on spinning rods for finesse.   I almost never use flourocarbon anymore.  When trout fishing or dropshot in trout waters that are gin clear.

[Mike L]

10 hours ago, Jrob78 said:

Straight fluoro unless I'm pitching/punching into thick vegetation, then I will use straight braid. I'm not a fan of leaders or braid for worm fishing.

Ditto

 

Also, As you can see there is not a lot of love on here for Trokar hooks. 
I won’t use anything else for punching. 

Make your own choices. 
 

 

 

Mike

[new2BC4bass]

Not from Florida, but when I visit there I always have at least one reel with braid.  My brother-in-law uses straight 40# Original PowerPro.  He has caught double digit bass....on his cheap, cheap spinning rods/reels.  The shame of it all!    His favorite rod is an unknown yard sale special. 

 

I'd guess at least 90% of our casts are into or at the edge of lily pads and other fine flora using mostly weightless 10" ribbontails.  I always use straight braid (30# or 40#) for this as well.

[crypt]

no...................

[roadwarrior]

3 hours ago, Mike L said:

As you can see there is not a lot of love on here for Trokar hooks. 
I won’t use anything else for punching. 

I fish a variety of hooks, but Trokar is probably my favorite.

 

[greentrout]

on spinning straight braid with a shallow spool ... bait caster mono all the way ...

 

good fishing ...

[OnthePotomac]

All of my plastics are fished on 15lb Seaguar Invizx.

[Fin S]

Braid to mono for worms, but I don't fish the kind of water you do.

[Southernbasser]

I recently read an article about big worm fishing. In the article, Stacey King, Terry Bolton, and Mike Mclelland each state they use fluorocarbon. They use it because they drag the worm along the bottom. 

When worm fishing, I use flouro for the same reason. As far as hooks, I only use Gamakatsu and Owners hooks. 

[Ogandrews]

I’m from the opposite of the south but I use braid to a leader for everything except frogging and punching. Majority of the time I’m using mono as the leader but I’ll switch to stretchy floro like sun line fc100 when there’s a lot of pike around. I greatly prefer braid to leader, especially for bottom contact stuff where sensitivity is so important. I could go on for hours about why braid to a leader is better than straight floro/mono for me but to keep it simple I like it because of better sensitivity, better casting distance/less backlashes, better hooksets, ability to switch out leader material/diameter on the fly, better control of the fish, ect...

[Fishing_FF]

It depends....

 

Great answer, huh? Almost a non-answer. 

 

If it is a moving bait like a swimbait, swim jig, or speed worm, I'll throw it on straight braid (30lbs). A weightless Senko or Florida rigged beaver thrown in heavy cover is another straight braid application (30lbs unless I'm punch then it is 65lbs). 

 

Texas rig dragged or hopped on the bottom, ball and chain, wacky rig, and finesse techniques in open water or light cover, I'm going with straight fluoro in the 8-20lbs range. 

 

Previously I used braid with fluoro leaders, but due to the weak knot issues of fluorocarbon, I eliminated the extra knot to have one less failure point.