What could I do to convince you ???

[Catt]

I can't really put it into words, it's more about how it transmits the feel of what my baits is doing on the bottom. It's like how Tungsten bullet weights feel totally different on the bottom than a lead weight does.

It just aint right  

[Catt]

I guess what all those years of night fishing has taught me is how to really feel what my bait is doing. It's no BS I can feel my Texas Rig with a ¼ oz weight when it hits bottom in 15 to 18' of water. Things just have to feel a certain way and when they don't I know it's time to set hook.

[dodgeguy]

I tried power-pro (50lb) on one of my surf rods for a week in May, and was so dissappointed in it I've been afraid to spool it on any of my bass rods. The stuff frayed constantly, and broke, constantly. Knots also seemed to like to slide out of it. Now this is just casual "chuck the bait and wait while I have few beers" surf fishing, so I wasn't asking a whole lot from braided line, just that it didn't break. But it did. Alot. I couldn't imagine trying to fish this stuff for bass and put the demands on it that I do on mono, it would be a nightmare. But I waill give it a shot, though. I have to! If its as sensetive as everyone says it is its got to be worth a shot, plus I 'm not going to throw it out cause it's too expensive!

 you either have counterfeit powerpro or you are using the wrong knot.a palomar knot with a dab of crazy glue will NEVER fail.

[fishinyank]

Im pretty sure it wasn't counterfit as I got it from Cabelas. But I didnt try the crazy glue, which i have to admit I'm not "crazy" about, you don't need to do that with mono!

[RoLo]

Okay, this will be the last time that I type this.

For the life of me, I do not understand why anyone would have any knot problems with PowerPro Spectra!!

I use nothing but a Uni-Knot with PowerPro Spectra for tying to swivels, to hooks and to lures with treble hooks

(try that with a palomar knot). When a Uni-Knot is used with PowerPro braid, no glue of any kind is necessary (God forbid),

you don't have to wet the line, the line will not break and the knot will not slip.

A 5-wrap Uni-Knot will suffice, but if you're dealing with ungrounded fears that the knot may break, slip or whatever,

just add a couple more wraps. Anything more than 5 or 6 wraps is a waste of time, but if it makes you feel better, go for it.

When changing a lure during the middle of a hot bite, I usually tie a quick "four-wrap" Uni-Knot, and it has yet to fail me.

Roger

[Fish Chris]

Well, I'm glad to see that this thread has gotten back to a more comfortable, "to each his own" attitude" :-)

Bottom line is, braid has just made my whole fishing experience night and day, better than when I used to use mono. I'm simply convinced that guys who have all kinds of problems with braid, like breaking off for no apparent reason, tip wraps, knots slipping, etc, have just not learned how to use braid to its fullest potential..... or maybe I should say, they have not made the changes neccessary, when coming away from mono. The fact that I have had such great success with braid, proves that a very positive experience with braid is "possible" for anybody, even if this is not what the next guy has experienced for himself.

Now, while I did give a few examples myself, of situations in which braid is not the best choice, these situations are very rare, with braid being the best choice (certainly for myself, anyway :-)) 98% of the time.

Peace,

Fish

[Catt]

We pride ourselves in producing a very high quality braided Spectra line. The Spectra fiber that we use is manufactured by Honeywell fibers here in the US. They are one of three companies in the world making a Gel Spun PE fiber. The other two are DSM (Dyneema) and Toyobo (Dyneema). Western Filament was the original manufacturer of braided PE lines for use in fishing. We introduced this type of material for fishing purposes in 1990 only two years after the fiber became commercially available. We have been braiding fishing lines since 1938 so we are hardly in business to make "junk" and do not plan on filing bankruptcy in the near future.

Our TUF Line XP is 100% spectra fiber with no cores or fillers. The lines are made on a standard Maypole style braiding machines just as Power Pro and Whiplash. Our lines are all rated at straight pull strength and not at the knot. Our lines on average break at approximately 20% higher than the rated strength on a straight pull. We normally see a loss of 35% strength at the knot. Typically a 50 pound XP braid will break at 40 pounds at the knot. I know that the Japanese braids are very small and round with a tightness not found in US braids but is it necessary to have this expensive of a braid? We have found that most US anglers cannot tell the difference or will not pay the price for a tightly braided PE line compared to one of mid-tightness.

I am not sure if this answers the questions posed by the forum but hopefully it will shed some light on the subject. Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks.

Best regards,

Rex Nelson

Western Filament, Inc

[the ohh face]

I didnt have time to read all the posts on this thread so i dont know if anyone has mentioned it but it seems that most good braid is a LOT more expensive than comparable strength of any other line. That is a pretty good reason for me to stick mainly to mono.

[.ghoti.]

OK that's it. I'm gonna give his braid stuff another shot. After seeing what RoLo and Avid had to say; two gentlemen whos opinions Ive come to respect, I'm not going to be totally pig-headed about it. Besides my sweetie just brought home two spools of Spiderwire she picked up off the clearance rack at Wally world. One spool each of 30 and 40lb test. It must be a conspiracy.

I just finished rebuilding two older Quantum reels. I think the # is EX600, or something like that. I had broken the slide cam on both by overtightening the screws during the re-assembly process, completely dorking up the magnetic cast control. They are both in fine condition now. These are wider spool reels than most of mine, and hold quite a bit of line. I'll spool them up halfway with some elcheapo mono, and top off with the braid. I'll use the 30lb test on one reel and the 40 on the other. Went out to the garage and dug out two older Berkley rods. Both are 7' rods. One is medium power, one is med-heavy. The medium rod will get the 30lb test and the med-heavy rod will get the 40. They're both about 7 or 8 years old, IM6 graphite, and what I'd call moderate action. If I could remember what the rod names where, I'd tell ya, but I don't. One may be a Bionix or something like that. The other I don't recall anything regarding a name or series.

Will these rods be OK to start with using the braid. I really don't want to buy more just now.

I probably won't have any results to report until next year.

Good luck,

GK

[dodgeguy]

do yourself a favor and bring the spiderwire back.replace it with sufix or powerpro.if you don't do that you will get a false impression of what braid is like.

[senile1]

Just a note to the PowerPro users of which I used to be one.

A lot of guys love PowerPro.  I loved and used PowerPro exclusively for braid applications until early this summer.  Dodgeguy got my attention with his posts on Sufix Performance Braid so I bought a spool.  I'm still using some 10 lb test PowerPro on one of my spinning reels because I had a spool left, but I'm using Sufix for all my braid needs now.  When I respool that reel I'll be using Sufix.  It beats PowerPro with less fraying, better casting, and flows much smoother through the line guides.  You may disagree but its worth it to try out a spool if you haven't.  

[Catt]

Here are some interesting facts about braid, along with a test of whose is strongest

http://www.floridasportsman.com/gear/051148/

[justtrying]

Here are some interesting facts about braid, along with a test of whose is strongest

http://www.floridasportsman.com/gear/051148/

WOW,   ...thanks Catt for pointing out that test.

for instance:    i'm using 10 lb power pro on my ultra lite spinning outfit.  it's a 7' rod w/a shimano sustain reel.  i can cast mini lures (beetles, roadrunners, etc.) a LOONNGG way & have yet to have one break off.  now i know why..24 Pound breaking strength!!!!  with a TWO POUND diameter, No Memory,  i mean, MAN, what more could you want?   i've used it quite a bit & it shows No shedding, fraying, or anything negative.    .....i may take it off & replace it.....but, Not Today!  LOL

BTW, Thanks Chris for beginning this thread.  this is the kind of thing that let's you see & evaluate what will actually help make your fishing more productive.