Quick Braid Comparison (PPSS, Sufix, Daiwa, KK) 8 carrier's

[Bassun]

Hey folks -- I have been debating on what type of braid I want to run for next year, and instead of just picking one I wanted to try a mix over the year and see what fits me and my style.  I figured while doing so I would make some notes about the lines and share some observations with y'all.  I wont get into the specifics of the build out, but Mono backer, braid main, and a leader will be the general setup.  This is observations of the braid though, not the setup.

 

I chose four braids, all in 15lb test.

Power Pro Super 8 Slick V2 "4lb diameter" Hi-Vis Yellow

Sufix 832 15lb .22mm Hi-Vis Yellow

Daiwa J-Braid x8 15lb .19mm Chartreuse

KastKing Mega 8 15lb .18mm

In the comparison shots you will also notice:
KastKing Super Power 40lb .30mm Yellow

Ande Premium Mono 10lb pink

 

First I noted the color.  They all seem as though they will show up well on the water.  The Sufix and KastKing had more of an orange color, the Daiwa a nice bright green, and the PP a pale yellow.  To be fair, I'm not sure that it was not an older spool of PP based on the shape of the rubber band on it.  It seemed to be deteriorating - but may have just been an old rubber band.  It reminded me of the color of last years KastKing Super Power Yellow towards the end of a season.  That said, it certainly should show up just fine.

 

Next I looked at the diameters.  Now this is slightly subjective as different colors will appear to be thinner or thicker.  But observationally, the Power Pro appeared to be the thickest, followed by the KastKing, then Daiwa with the Sufix appearing to be the thinnest of all.  Again, all are 15lb test.  I was slightly surprised as the Sufix is reported at .22mm the thickest of all listed.  (PP says 4lb diameter and I could not easily find a stated mm diameter to compare)

 

I next started comparing perceived smoothness.  Just running the line between my fingers.  Here the Power Pro stood out above the rest.  It was not quite as smooth as the Ande Mono, but surprisingly close!  The Daiwa was also very smooth, but not quite as good.  The Sufix had more texture, and felt noticeably stiff.  The Mega 8 was the most textured of all four.  Again based on feel on the fingers.

 

After noting how stiff the Sufix felt, I tried to determine stiffness of the rest.  It was hard to really make a judgement on, but I would say the Sufix was by far the stiffest, the Mega 8 followed while the Power Pro then Daiwa rounded out being the most supple.

 

 

I tried to take some macro pictures of the line, but found it amazingly difficult to get them all into focus at once because of the razor thin depth of field to get a tight macro shot.  The images are not great, but I think give a general idea of the lines up close.

 

The color tone is off in this image, but I was trying to isolate the texture of the lines. From left to right:
KastKing 40lb 4 carrier

Ande Mono 10lb - could not get it to focus at all.

Then the four lines I'm comparing.

Sufix -> Power Pro -> Daiwa -> KK Mega 8

Based on the image, it would appear the power pro (#4) is the thickest, followed by the KK (#6).
The Daiwa (#5) appears to be a bit thicker than the thinnest of all, the Sufix (#3).  This met my original observation.

 

Smoothness, however, is a bit surprising.  Looking at the image, the Daiwa (#5) appears to be the most uniformly shaped of all.  I suspect the additives in the Power Pro (#4) mixed with a very uniform wind make it feel smoother.  The Sufix (#3) and KK (#6) appear to be the least uniform and have the most felt texture as well.

 

 

Based on the observations, and image I tried to rate the lines based on design with smoothness, suppleness, and  diameter being the only factors.

The thinnest two were the Sufix then the Daiwa, KK then Power Pro were the thickest.

The smoothest were the Power Pro then the Daiwa, followed by Sufix then KK.

Suppleness or stiffness (which being too supple can arguably be an issue in itself at times) came in with:
Daiwa then Power Pro as the most supple, then KK and Sufix being the stiffest.

Giving 4 points for "best" and 1 for "worst" the scores would be:

Daiwa 10

Power Pro 8

Sufix 7

KastKing 5

 

Of course, that is purely based on non-scientific testing, did not consider tensile strength or knot holding or any real-world testing, abrasion resistance, life expectancy or anything else.  Literally just looking at and feeling the line.  Basically I was surprised how differently they all felt and decided to dig into it a little.  More of a shared observation then a test or actual ranking - I only did so since I had ranked them in each category lol.

 

 

[Bassun]

Here is a better color version, while not exact and of course will depend on your monitor. 
Sufix -> Po wer Pro -> Daiwa -> Kast King

I hit enter a little too soon, the green is not quite that vibrant in real life.  (at least on my monitor)  The rest, are pretty close.

[sideways2]

Nice!! 

 

Just out of curiosity what did you have for a comment on Ande??

[Bassun]

@sideways2 I actually really like Ande.  I used to run it for my mono before I started using braid as a mainline.  I think it handles well and casts well, and stands up well to punishment.  It does have stretch, of course, but not as bad as say Stren does.  Some people complained about memory, but I personally have not had issues with line memory unless you get way down on the spool and it has been locked in place for a long time.  Think poles you rarely use or backing line that rarely comes off the spool. 

 

Now that said, I have primarily only used their "Premium" line.  I used to always get green or clear, but decided this year to pick up the pink (no real reason other than to have something different).  If they made their premium in the yellow they use for the Tournament line, I would have went yellow.  Regardless, if I were running just mono, I would have probably kept the green.  I've used the "tournament" line, and to me it felt a bit more limp at the same test, but casts better and if I remember correctly had even less stretch.  I actually really liked it, but it is designed for IFGA records and breaks no greater than the listed number.  So it's kind of like running 8lb mono instead of 10lb, for example.  You won't get that little extra umph out of the line - she will snap.  BUT - that is kind of the point.
I used the Back Country one time.  I really liked it for my ultralight - but decided to run strait fluorocarbon for my 4lb stuff (I fished a lot of gin clear water with it, figured it may help...not entirely sure to be honest).  I have, however, landed a carp of about 20lbs on the 4lb Ande Back Country - I was sweating it but it held up fine to getting banged around on stuff as the fish ran.  Lots of fish were caught following that adventure - no issues. 

Never tried any of their other stuff, but considering the number of IFGA records landed on Ande line - I think it's a safe bet that it is a consistent and reliable line.  I was a huge Spiderwire fan for years, then tried Ande and never went back.  There may be better lines that I have not used, but for the price and consistent quality, I really have no desire to try something different.

 

 

[Dens228]

I use PP and Sufix.  I prefer the Sufix and to me it actually feels less stiff than the PP, but really only when it's new, which isn't long. 

But.......on Black Friday at TW I'm going to finally try Smackdown to see if it's worth twice as much. 

[Bassun]

Nice.  Never tried it.  It hurt just buying the Sufix and PP super slick lol.

[Lead Head]

The stiffness will be greatly affected after you use the line. I believe the majority of braided line's stiffness comes from the color or coating. After an hour on the water your observations would probably be totally different. 

 

I really enjoyed the post, the pictures are very cool!

[Bassun]

Thanks

 

I agree 100% on the stiffness changing asap.  Didn't really plan on considering it until it felt so different.  Honestly, I would have expected the super slick to be the stiffest when I thought about it, and that fits what Dens228 had noticed.  To be candid, I suspect I will notice little difference between the 4 in actual use.  It was just something to piddle with lol

[sideways2]

Thanks so much on the Ande info... appreciated!!

 

I've been curious on that line since way back before I took my hiatus. So do you think the Tournament is more abrasive resistant than the Premium?? Or is that Back Country??

 

I kinda like the sound of Back Country LOL!!

[JustJames]

I have tried 3 of your list, PPSSV1, Daiwa Jbraid x8 and Sufix 832. You are right-on on your comments, Daiwa Jbraid the softest and smoothest braid. I had a friend who always use original PP handle it once, he didn’t even know it was a braid line. 
Sufix 832 was my favorite of all three, especially on spinning outfit. The stiffness as you mentioned prevent a lot of tip wrap where J-braid is the worst when fishing in even light wind condition and also the stiffness help to deal with windknot a lot easier than super soft braid line. The stiffness of 832 is no where near original PP and also a lot quieter passing thru guides.

I don’t know if anyone else feel it and this is my main reason, why the 832 is my favorite. It seems the line sink and cut thru water better than other braid line. Doesn’t create big bowl underwater when using light lure.

[Bassun]

3 hours ago, sideways2 said:

Thanks so much on the Ande info... appreciated!!

 

I've been curious on that line since way back before I took my hiatus. So do you think the Tournament is more abrasive resistant than the Premium?? Or is that Back Country??

 

I kinda like the sound of Back Country LOL!!

I would say premium is tougher than tournament.  I'm not sure which is tougher between back country and premium.  I have only ran BC on ultralight rigs at 4lb and premium only at 10lbs.  I haven't had any issue out of either or tried either in opposite roles.  That said, for spinning gear if 8 had to choose only one and get both 4lb and 10lb I would probably get back country.  I was impressed with the 4lb that much.  I actually debated going back to it over flouro this year for my ultra-lights but then found Seaguar Invixz on sale at basically half price and picked it up for this year to try.

 

I think you will be happy with either to be honest.  And at the prices they have you could pick up both and see what works best for you.  Good luck!

[Bassun]

34 minutes ago, Bass_Fishing_Socal said:

I have tried 3 of your list, PPSSV1, Daiwa Jbraid x8 and Sufix 832. You are right-on on your comments, Daiwa Jbraid the softest and smoothest braid. I had a friend who always use original PP handle it once, he didn’t even know it was a braid line. 
Sufix 832 was my favorite of all three, especially on spinning outfit. The stiffness as you mentioned prevent a lot of tip wrap where J-braid is the worst when fishing in even light wind condition and also the stiffness help to deal with windknot a lot easier than super soft braid line. The stiffness of 832 is no where near original PP and also a lot quieter passing thru guides.

I don’t know if anyone else feel it and this is my main reason, why the 832 is my favorite. It seems the line sink and cut thru water better than other braid line. Doesn’t create big bowl underwater when using light lure.

I was kind of thinking about the stiffness last night, initially I was thinking meh probably won't notice much but then I thought about exactly what you mentioned...wind knots and wraps.  Your observation makes perfect sense and I can see it playing out that way.  The last few years I've been running KK Super Power 15, and didn't have many issues with wind knots until the line was ready to be replaced - and even then only when I was bombing out a spoon max distance was it consistent.  BUT, and I think this may be key, I have a habit of stopping the line with my fingers on my spinning gear (which I use primarily) much like one stops a baitcaster.  My nephew had a ton of wind knots on the same gear just skipping flukes and stuff.  

 

I bet your spot on with the 832 naturally being better in that regard.  I suspect its smaller diameter also helps with how you noticed it cutting through the water.  It will be fun to have all 4 rigged up next year so I can see them all in action at the same time!

[sideways2]

33 minutes ago, Bassun said:

I would say premium is tougher than tournament.  I'm not sure which is tougher between back country and premium.  I have only ran BC on ultralight rigs at 4lb and premium only at 10lbs.  I haven't had any issue out of either or tried either in opposite roles.  That said, for spinning gear if 8 had to choose only one and get both 4lb and 10lb I would probably get back country.  I was impressed with the 4lb that much.  I actually debated going back to it over flouro this year for my ultra-lights but then found Seaguar Invixz on sale at basically half price and picked it up for this year to try.

 

I think you will be happy with either to be honest.  And at the prices they have you could pick up both and see what works best for you.  Good luck!

 

 

Perfect!!  Thank you!! 

 

I ordered 3 sizes of Back Country and a 15lb of both this morning!!

 

Almost all outfitted with the two rods I bought yesterday ?

[mcipinkie]

You ever been fishing?

 

It's really fun. 

 

[Bassun]

Nope, just like taking pics of line and contemplating lol