The Great Fishing Line Debate (Braid vs Mono vs Fluoro)
- By: Joseph Simonds
- on
If you’ve ever wanted to learn more about fishing line, you’re going to love this video.
We’ve got all the Salt Strong fishing coaches aboard here for this great debate and we’re diving into every little aspect of fishing line you could imagine.
We talked about broad questions like, “Is braid better than mono?” down to very specific questions like, “How many strands of braid is optimal?”
One of the great things about this debate, in particular, is that our newest team member, Mark, is a former professional bass angler and tackle store owner.
His style of fishing is the complete opposite of Luke, Tony, and Wyatt’s style, so it makes for a well-rounded debate where all sides are argued.
Here’s just a taste of the topics we cover:
- Braid vs mono for main line (you won’t believe what Mark says…)
- Fluoro vs mono for leader material
- The best line color (and if it even matters…)
- How to avoid wind knots
- How often to change your line (hint: it’s not as often as you might think)
- The top mistakes people make when spooling up their reels
- And much more
You can watch the video version of this podcast below, listen to the audio version by clicking the play button underneath it, or listen to it on iTunes, Stitcher, or Spotify.
P.S. Don’t forget to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, or Spotify and leave us a review!
The Great Fishing Line Debate [VIDEO]
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The Great Fishing Line Debate [PODCAST]
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Related Podcasts:
- Could Monofilament Leader Line Be Better Than Fluorocarbon Leader?
- Tackle Tuesday (LIVE Q&A Topwater Lure Edition)
Mentioned Videos & Articles:
- Unbelievable Snook Catch (All Caught On Film!!)
- Wind Knots: How To Remove & Prevent Them (When Using Braided Line)
How Braided Fishing Line Is Made [VIDEO]
What a process!
Definitely makes you appreciate braided line more.
Conclusion
I hope you learned as much about fishing line as I did in this episode.
Have any more questions about fishing line that we didn’t cover?
Have you experienced something different than what we talked about in this podcast?
Let us know in the comments below!
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STOP WASTING TIME ON THE WATER!
Do what the “SMART ANGLERS” are doing and join the Insider Club.
Here’s what you’ll receive today when you join:
- Weekly fishing reports and TRENDS revealing exactly where you should fish every trip
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- Exclusive fishing tips from the PROS you can’t find anywhere else
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I should have watched the video before I placed an order for floro.
Hey guys great job. I just wanted to suggest that since you are going through all this work, you should go ahead and include the copolymer lines like P-Line and silver thread so in the future if the subject comes up, you want feel obligated to re do all these test over. Thanks a lot and I hope all is well.
I disagree with the sentiments about mono – try catching mangrove snapper in clear water with mono or braid to the hook – then try it with Floro – Floro wins for me every time. Everyone has an opinion – I’ve been fishing with all types of lines for over 52 years now – I like the power pro -floro combination in Tampa bay. My opinion
Thanks for posting the helpful comment Michael! What lines were you using when you did the snapper test?
In Texas, bait casters on 6’6” rods with fast tips are king in the wading community. All my reels are loaded with Suffix 832 30# braid with 2-3’ of fluorocarbon 20# leader. With Super Spook Jrs. and larger topwaters, I am consistently throwing them 50 to 60 yards no problem. Even with 1/16 oz. or heavier lead heads I get 50 yards casting. We have a LOT of Redfish in our bays that really test our braid on bait casters, and I can assure you that with the drag tightened down to stop them, the next cast comes off the spool as smooth as the first cast. Make sure to not over cast. Just a smooth motion cast will get you distance.
Just like golf… smooth technique beats power with bad form.
Amen. our reds down here in Texas put braid to the test and I will use it in wad fishing with a bait caster. However, win fishing from anywhere else I will use a spinning reel with 20 lb. Mono. It stretches less than fluro.
Assuming you are meaning using 20# mono for shock leader instead of fluorocarbon, I agree with Luke and it saves you a lot of money. However, if you are meaning 20# main line using mono on spinning reels, you will get a lot less distance with mono compared to braid. I go with 20# braid with a shock leader of 20# mono on my spinning reels.
What a great video. I am 68 yrs old and the new technology is new to me. Thanks guys keep up the good work.
Thanks for making time to leave the nice comment Jim!
Great topic, great panel, great discussion!
Here are a couple things I’d like to toss into the conversation.
Regarding using straight fluoro line…. It sinks so its terrible if you are using topwater baits. Also, yes, it is sensitive… and doesn’t stretch… initially! Fluoro resists initial stretch better than mono, but once that max stretch point is hit, it fails. So if you hang up a bait and have to pull on a significant length of line to break it, you have probably ruined that length of line. If you pull hard on a fish and end up breaking it off, you have probably ruined the line. You can see when this happens because the shape of the fluoro will actually distort. Straight up old-school mono will not do that.
I agree, Sufix is one of the better mono lines. Even the dirt cheap Sufix Pro Mix is awesome. MSRP for 330 yards of Pro Mix is $5.99! 1000 yard bulk spools, $10.99! Its GREAT line.
The best of both worlds is a copolymer line like P-Line Fluoroclear or Yozuri Hybrid. It has the feel and fishability of mono, with less stretch like a fluoro. Sufix Advanced is another copolymer that is new this year that I am still testing. The jury is out yet.
I live on Lake Michigan and we fish for Salmon and Trout that can exceed 25 pounds. Despite the size of the fish, the air-clear water and the keen eyesight of the fish force us to use clear mono lines no greater than the 8 or 10 pound test range. Braid is too visible and isn’t an option unless you run 10 or 12 feet of mono leader… and then why bother. Line is so critical here because you are potentially catching a fish weighing 3X the breaking strength of the line. We are constantly looking for new alternatives.
I saw an article once where the captain stopped using braid because he said that the fish could hear or feel braid either coming through the water, or the vibe it sends out as it travels through guides. That would be an interesting study!
Great discussion, and I hope you will continue this topic with this panel on another episode some day.
Thank you,
Marc
Thanks for making time to leave the helpful comment Marc! Yes, more line debates coming soon for sure.
Listen to Andy Mills latest interview with Captain Mark Krowka. At 49:00, his thoughts and observations regarding braid. Very interesting!!!
What platform is that on (youtube, podcast, website, etc.)?
Can the video above be broken down into topic segments?
Unfortunately not. But we have many individual videos on the various topics we discussed that you can find in this feed from our articles about fishing line and line experiments: https://www.saltstrong.com/article_categories/fishing-lines/
I had posted the How its made video, but i scrolled down and see you’ve already got it
Luke, Want a real eye opener, do your abrasion test using spectra. Spectra has absolutely NO abrasion resistance.
Here’s a test on braid vs. mono for abrasion: https://www.saltstrong.com/articles/braid-vs-mono-abrasion-strength-experiment/
Have been doing line and knot testing since 2004. Regarding your abrasion test ,
Mono vs. Spectra, some one may object that the line diameters are not equal. Agreed,,, that in practical usage lines of equal test should be compared. But ,,, to satisfy the naysayers ,,,,using a like diameter spectra may improve abrasion resistance by “Maybe” 1 turn but be assured it will fail very quickly.
Above are some suggestion for testing stations. The abrasion station on the right has the line being tested attached to the top of the vertical support the other end of the line is attached to a 3 lb wt. the dowel is chucked to my rod wrapping machine set on dry which rotates the dowel at about 8 rpm. Much more consistent then your present method. But if that is all you have, great, it works good enough. The line and knot ABS testing station on the Right uses a scale that has a hold feature that records the breaking point and hold it until it is reset. A very handy feature, would not test without it.
Keep testing you have just scraped the surface. There is a lot to be learned.
Thanks guys, that was almost as entetaining as it was informative. Loaded with “pearls of wisdom and experience”. Great podcast!
Thanks for making time to leave the nice comment Randal!