What Pound Test Braided Line For A Baitcaster And What Rod To Pair With It

[LeakyWaders]

I’m looking at buying a Shimano SLX MGL 70 baitcaster that comes with a 70 sized spool meaning it will hold very little heavy pound test. How problematic would it be to put 10lb braided test on it? Would the lighter line cause the line to dig in at the spool? I plan on using this to throw small cranks, jerk baits, weightless plastics mostly light lures. Would I be better off throwing 20lb or 30lb braid on this reel? If I throw 20-30lb braid on it I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to use a medium action rod to really toss those lighter baits and get the action I want in fear of the line test eventually being too much for the medium action rod guides. 
May be over thinking it but hey, figured I’d ask and see what y’all have experienced.

[PhishLI]

1 hour ago, LeakyWaders said:

I’m looking at buying a Shimano SLX MGL 70 baitcaster that comes with a 70 sized spool

My brother has his spooled with 30lb Daiwa J8 and it holds all the line you'd need.

[NorcalBassin]

Welcome to the boards and congrats on the new reel! 10# braid is very light for a baitcaster and carries a lot of risk for digging in since it's so thin. I'd also recommend 30# braid with an 8-10# mono/fluoro leader of your liking for those baits.

[waymont]

I only fish braid to leader, I think you would be best served with 30lb braid to start. Sufix 832 and Daiwa J Braid grand are two great ones to check out.

Both are smooth and have great line management.

[Captain Phil]

30 pound braid with a quality fluorocarbon leader.  

[FrnkNsteen]

I agree with what everyone above said, though I personally don't like throwing braid with treble hooked baits, so I throw my cranks and top water on 10, 12, or even 15lb flouro or mono depending what the bait is (flouro for deeper cranks and mono for shallower cranks and topwater).

 

I don't mind braid for weightless plastics but always feel like flouro or mono give me more slackline sensitivity if I'm letting a weightless plastic sink down slowly. I reserve braid for when I am slow dragging a senko or texas rig.

 

I have a few of the SLX MGL 71s (lefties) so I commend your choice. I think you will find the 70 size SLX doesn't limit you like you think it does. I have never found myself wishing it had more capacity or lacking in casting distance. Quite the opposite in fact..... They cast like a dream. I am using mine for jerkbaits (12lb flouro), small topwater poppers like a small Chug Bug (12lb mono) shallow cranks like an OG Tiny (12lb mono) and even texas rigged worms and creatures (14-17lb flouro).

[FrnkNsteen]

Oh,.. And as for rods I have my SLX MGLs paired with:

Dobyns Sierra 682C with a Chugbug

Kistler Jerkbait Special with a jerkbait

Bird Dog 6'9" Jerkbait rod with a jerkbait

Daiwa 6'9" ML Regular with OG Tiny

 

Just bought 2 more and tentatively have them on  7'1" Legend Extreme and GLX rods with texas rigged worms to try out this spring. Our flood control reservoirs are pretty vegetation free so will be testing them for more open water and around laydowns.

[BigAngus752]

22 minutes ago, FrnkNsteen said:

though I personally don't like throwing braid with treble hooked baits,

^^^+1^^^

30lb minimum for braid on BC.  12lb Yo-Zuri Hybrid for all trebles. Your braid won't forgive you if you get "bass fever" and try to horse a fish on trebles.  Mono or hybrid can help keep a fish pinned, especially if your brand of rod is a faster kind of fast.  

[Captain Phil]

The best rod and reel combo I have ever found for throwing soft plastics is a Shimano 6' 10" Zodias Rod and a Chronarch 150 HG reel with 30 pound braid.  It's so sensitive, I swear I can feel the fish before they bite. 😏 

[LeakyWaders]

On 3/19/2024 at 6:46 AM, FrnkNsteen said:

Oh,.. And as for rods I have my SLX MGLs paired with:

Dobyns Sierra 682C with a Chugbug

Kistler Jerkbait Special with a jerkbait

Bird Dog 6'9" Jerkbait rod with a jerkbait

Daiwa 6'9" ML Regular with OG Tiny

 

Just bought 2 more and tentatively have them on  7'1" Legend Extreme and GLX rods with texas rigged worms to try out this spring. Our flood control reservoirs are pretty vegetation free so will be testing them for more open water and around laydowns.

Hey man, my MGL 70 is still in the mail btw. Just wondering, if I were to make a long cast with a normal sized crankbait that dives 3-5ft would it spool me? My only concern at this point is that when casting things farther than flipping and pitching range I won’t have much line left on the spool.

[FrnkNsteen]

5 minutes ago, LeakyWaders said:

Hey man, my MGL 70 is still in the mail btw. Just wondering, if I were to make a long cast with a normal sized crankbait that dives 3-5ft would it spool me? My only concern at this point is that when casting things farther than flipping and pitching range I won’t have much line left on the spool.

 

Depends what line you are running. Capacity is listed at 105yrds of 10lb, or 85 yeards of 12lb.

 

Can you cast a normal crankbait 85 yards? I've never had an issue with outcasting my capacity on mine. My normal casts are maybe 30 - 40 yards (90 - 120ft) at the most.

[Aaron_H]

2 hours ago, FrnkNsteen said:

 

Depends what line you are running. Capacity is listed at 105yrds of 10lb, or 85 yeards of 12lb.

 

Can you cast a normal crankbait 85 yards? I've never had an issue with outcasting my capacity on mine. My normal casts are maybe 30 - 40 yards (90 - 120ft) at the most.

 

I bet I could throw a crankbait over them mountains....

 

 

I've got 30lb PowerPro on one of my SLX MGL 70s, holds way more than enough for a bomb cast.

[LeakyWaders]

I appreciate all you guys. Thanks for the info. 
🤜🏻

[JediAmoeba]

On 3/19/2024 at 7:00 AM, BigAngus752 said:

30lb minimum for braid on BC.

Since when? I run 20 on a few and 10 on my bfs. 

 

As long as you get it tightly wound on the spool, it's not an issue