How many strands do you think a braided line should have?

[Kirtley Howe]

I admit to having limited experience with braided line.  So far, I am not very fond of it.  The braids I have used have been 4 strand.  I see some brands have more (6, or even 8 strands), and a couple are advertised as being "fused".  My questions are  1) Are more strands better? 2) What is the best material for a braid to be made from, and why? 3) Are "fused" braided lines better than regular stranded braided lines, and if so, how and why? I am not really looking for advice on what brand to buy. I am really looking for advice on the type of braid to buy, and why you recommend that type. Assume, for the sake of argument that money is no object  (yeah, like that is really a thing). Thanks! 

[Finessegenics]

I don’t have the knowledge to honestly answer any of those questions. I can only talk about what I have seen first hand with the different braids. From my experience the 8 strand braids are smoother and more limp than the 4 strand. If you run regular power pro through your fingers and then an 8strand like suffix 832, you will know what I mean. In theory the 8 strand should cast further then but I haven’t noticed a difference in my fishing. 
 

I actually prefer the 4 strand. The 8 strand has been more prone to weird breaks in the line and especially wind knots. The wind knots are probably my fault though. Just something I’ve noticed. I have some 8strand in 50# that I will put on a frogging rod this season. We’ll see how that goes. 
 

Hope this helps. We have some line gurus on here who get really technical so hopefully they chime in. 

[PressuredFishing]

In a nutshell, more strands Is quieter less noisey won't burn through stainless steel line guides as fast, and won't dig into wood as much as a lower strand. Low strands are good for cutting through vegetation. I only use low strands because I proudly hate braid because of price, digs into spool, leader knots,  is terrible around wood and rock, ruins stainless steel guides, and knots poorly in comparison to nylon style lines. I only use it for frogging when I have to

[WRB]

You all don’t know what you talking about.

Braid isn’t made of strands, it’s like wool yarn fibers twisted to make up a strand. The yarn is spooled on a bobbin. Up to 4 bobbins are loaded onto a single spindle carrier. The carriers make up the braid. 4 spindles with 4 ends(bobbins) or more spindles currently up to 8. Braiders have up to 120 carries. Fishing line commonly uses 1 to 4 spindles to per carrier depending on the Braid diameter. 

Tom

[Jig Man]

https://www.saltstrong.com/articles/4-strand-vs-8-strand-braided-line/

[Finessegenics]

4 hours ago, WRB said:

You all don’t know what you talking about.

Braid isn’t made of strands, it’s like wool yarn fibers twisted to make up a strand. The yarn is spooled on a bobbin. Up to 4 bobbins are loaded onto a single spindle carrier. The carriers make up the braid. 4 spindles with 4 ends(bobbins) or more spindles currently up to 8. Braiders have up to 120 carries. Fishing line commonly uses uses 1 to 4 spindles to per carrier depending on the Braid diameter. 

Tom

i think OP would be better served by answering his question rather than arguing semantics 

[MickD]

I have been using braid for many years and have always found the higher the number of strands (yes, Hitena calls them strands, Daiwa calls them carriers, Power Pro calls them fibers, but we all know what we are talking about regardless what we call them) the better the performance, smoother, longer casts, fewer wind knots.

 

Hitena Pureline is my favorite now and has 12 strands in the pound tests above 14.  Pricey, but a great line that lasts many years for me.  Hitena silky has 16 strands in pound tests above 14.

[dodgeguy]

There's one answer to this question is and it would be Sufix 832. It's 8strands and cuts through weeds fine. I've been using braids since the early 90s and over all it's the best Ive used.

 

 

[T-Billy]

9 minutes ago, dodgeguy said:

There's one answer to this question is and it would be Sufix 832. It's 8strands and cuts through weeds fine. I've been using braids since the early 90s and over all it's the best Ive used.

 

 

I'll second that. I fish lot's of wood and rock with it too. Great abrasion resistance and the best handling braid I've found. I quit looking. 832 does everything I need a braid to do and does it well, and at a fair price.

[MN Fisher]

4 minutes ago, T-Billy said:

I'll second that. I fish lot's of wood and rock with it too. Great abrasion resistance and the best handling braid I've found. I quit looking. 832 does everything I need a braid to do and does it well, and at a fair price.

X3 - I've dumped all my Power Pro and gone to 832 for all applications.

[LCG]

X4 for 832. Literally threw away a bunch of older braid spools yesterday to simplify my line choices. 832 is the best all around braid for a reasonable price. Usually find it on sale which is always nice.

[dodgeguy]

I buy spools of high vis yellow and color the end black.

[Deleted account]

"Eleven, most blokes fish with line with 8 strands, then if they want to go higher, where can they go? nowhere. This line goes to 11"

[MN Fisher]

6 minutes ago, Deleted account said:

"Eleven, most blokes fish with line with 8 strands, then if they want to go higher, where can they go? nowhere. This line goes to 11"

I'll see your 11 and raise you 2.

 

Sufix 131 - "Built with 13 fibers (12 HMPE fibers + 1 GORE® Performance Fiber in core)"

https://www.rapala.com/sufix/braid/131-braid/sufix-131-braid-fishing-line/Sufix+131+Braid+Fishing+Line.html

 

Basically the 'big brother' to 832. Ya, it's up there with Smackdown in price, but comes in 6# to 80#

[dodgeguy]

If it came in high vis yellow I'd try it.

[MN Fisher]

1 minute ago, dodgeguy said:

If it came in high vis yellow I'd try it.

Just Lo-Vis Green for now...they might add more colors in time.

[Catt]

1 hour ago, LCG said:

X4 for 832

 

X5 for 832

 

I've fished braided Cotton, Dacron, Micron, Suture Material (Silk), Micro Dyneema®, Kevlar, & Spectra.

[Big Rick]

45 minutes ago, dodgeguy said:

If it came in high vis yellow I'd try it.

Here you are, sir. At Tackle Warehouse. 

[MN Fisher]

4 minutes ago, Big Rick said:

Here you are, sir. At Tackle Warehouse. 

I think he was asking about the 131, not the 832 which does come in several colors.

[WRB]

4 hours ago, Finessegenics said:

i think OP would be better served by answering his question rather than arguing semantics 

I see where you all are getting the strand from, another term used in fishing incorrectly. In the braiding world what you refer to as a strand is called a end. Carrier like a 4 braider with 2 bobbins having 1 end could be called 8 strands or a 8 carrier braider with 1 bobbin could be called 8 strands.

Too confusing then use strands.

Tom

[Kirtley Howe]

Everyone seems to be ignoring my questions. I didn't want brand names, though I do appreciate the answers and suggestions. I wanted to know what material was best for braid and why. I did get some good answers about number of strands (let us not argue about semantics), but still not much on my other questions. Any more thoughts out there? Thanks.

[roadwarrior]

https://seaguar.com/freshwater/new-lines/smackdown-stealth-gray

 

Since its introduction, Smackdown has been setting all-new performance standards for castability and performance. This amazingly thin diameter line is made with 8 ultra-thin, micro-weave strands in a round, smooth-casting profile for smooth and exceptionally quiet, laser-like casts. And you get exceptional knot and tensile strength with unparalleled abrasion resistance.

 

This is the very best braid on the market. What is most notable to me is the uniformity, perfectly round. 

 

[Catt]

16 minutes ago, Kirt Howe said:

I wanted to know what material was best for braid and why

 

Ya really only got two choices Micro Dyneema® or Spectra. Ain't a whole lotta difference between the two.

[MN Fisher]

12 minutes ago, Kirt Howe said:

I wanted to know what material was best for braid and why.

Three basic materials are used in modern braid...though two are very close to each other

 

Dacron - Polyethylene terephthalate, also known as PET plastic

Spectra - Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (HMPE)

or

Micro-dyneema - another HMPE, slightly different formulation.

 

They're all polymer plastics, drawn into strands and woven. None is really any better than the other, the main differences lie in the specific manufacturing process.

 

Berkley Fireline (fused line) is also made of Micro-dyneema, but instead of being woven together, the strands are laid down and fused into a whole. It's a bit larger diameter per pound test than woven braid because of the manufacturing process.

 

Really, it's personal preference which you use as they all have pluses and minuses.

 

As RW said, Smackdown is the current leader...but I'd look at Sufix 131 as well...lots of panfish guys up here swear by it for both diameter and suppleness.

[MN Fisher]

Back to the original question.

 

4-carrier and 8-carrier braid may be the same (or close) diameter for a given line-test. The difference is that the individual strands of 4-carrier are going to be thicker than those of 8-carrier.

 

With thicker base-strands, the 4-carrier isn't going to be as supple as the 8-carrier...11-13 carrier braids are even more supple.

 

Main issue is price - the more strands the braid has, the higher the cost to make...and that cost is passed on.