braided line

[sperzonkers2]

Hi, all I fish with all spinning reels. Can you use the braided super lines on spinning reels or is it better on conventional level wind reels?

do you fill the entire spool with braid or put on some backing? Thanks!!

[catfish hunter]

use a backing on it and you can use it on any reel you like ... if you are new take a reel to a shop and have them teach you how to put it on ,the knot to connect is important so it is best to learn from a pro

[Pfishingruven]

 

I use braid on an old Penn 710Z Spinning Reel back with a 100 yards of mono backing.  Works really well!  Best change I have ever made.

 

[ped579]

Braid line in my mind can be used on any reel you have.  You will here a lot of opinions on it as to its use but I find off the surf, and that is all I will remark about, I love the stuff.  I changed over a couple of years ago and never went back.

What I do is put a small amount of mono on the reel just enough to cover the spool approx 10 yards, this will prevent the braid from slipping on the spool.  I use 2 Uni knots to attach the 2 lines and fill the rest of the spool with braid.  Why, this way I can reverse the line on the spool and get more use out of it.

I will say I do use a mono shock leader for a couple of reasons, it is a little more resistant to abrasion and when you do land a fish you do not want to grab the braided line and have the fish do a head shake the braid will cut to the bone before you know what happened.

Happy Catching

Paul

[sperzonkers2]

  Thanks all. what pound test do most of you use as most braid line is much thinner than standard mono?

[Vinnym]

You should stay with the pound test the reel is rated for. It's true the dia. is thinner so you can get more line on the reel.

I use mono backing. I think the amount of backing depends on your fishing style(inshore, offshore, surf, etc) and how much braid you want to put on the reel. You do however want to have the reel full.

[gottog]

With spinning reels and braid/superlines, do NOT overfill as that will cause the probability of "wind knots" to increase.

I use Fireline on conventional and spinning reels in various #tests.  Love the stuff.  Quite a few different brands to choose from.  I also like Tuff Line XP.  Basically identical to Power pro, but a lil less expensive and never had any QC problems with that brand.

I too always recommend using a mono/fluro leader attached to the braid.  On conventionals I go with a "shock leader" length, usually about 15'+

On spinners you can go shorter, say 3', but I've used 15' and had the connecting knot on the spool with no problems.  Just gotta make sure it's tight, compact, and trimmed right.

[Luna Sea 5]

all you have to do is back the spool with about 50 yards of mono, then fill the rest with braid.  All i use are penn spinning topped with braid.

[Treebeard]

All great advice so far.. I would agree with GT on Fireline.. nice stuff, especially on spinning reels..The coating allows it to flow smoother off a stationary spool imo and lays down better than an open braid..  As for reels, I've found that models that "cross wrap" like the Daiwa SS or  Shimano Stradics, are an advantage with superlines, as they allow you to keep the spool fuller, with less wind knots or tendancy for line to spill off. 

[ped579]

One thing I have found with wind knots is that the spool that gets a lot of them is usually over filled.  I have found that the spool will tell you when it is right.  Unfortunately it means you will loose a bunch of line.  Filling the spool to the rim can be very expensive.  You can expect wind knots to happen.  So I usually tell whoever is putting line on my reels to fill it so that it  between 1/4 and 1/8th of an inch back of the rim.  I might get one or two but as soon as I cut them off my problem is gone.

Happy Catching

Paul

[IrishAyes]

As far as pound test, 30 pound seems to be the go to test for most guys. It is equivilant in diameter to about 8 pound test mono.

I have all of my fluke reels (I fish for fluke in deeper water mostly) spooled with 30# Power Pro.

For back bay/shallow water fishing you can get away with much lighter. Remember, the lighter/thinner the line, the less resistance in the water, thus less weight to hold bottom.

You will need to practice some with a spinning reel when using braid, as Paul said, it will cut you up pretty good. Make a few easy practice casts to get the feel of it. 

[sperzonkers2]

  Thanks all, is the uni-knot the one you use most th connect mono leaders?

[ped579]

It is for me...

[gottog]

On my lil spinners for tossing bucktails to fluke or winter flounder fishing I'm using 8 or 10# test Frieline.  Other fluke setups have 15# tuf line XP or 20#Fireline.

For tog'n and some other deep water applications, 30# Fireline.

Fireline does take some time to "break in" a bit especially in the heavier # tests as at first it can be a bit wirey.

Uni to uni is good and quick, but quite a few other kots out there that turn out a bit more compact.  Try the Slim Beauty knot.

Oh, and with spinning reels, best tip is to manually flip the bail closed and pull against drag a bit once the cast is done.  Will make sure the line is lined up properly.

[Bucktail]

As far as brands, I have used many of them and most of the lines mentioned with work well for you.  However, recently the best braided line I've found for spinners is Sufix.  It is super smooth and casts great.  I use it on baitcasters and bigger conventionals as well, but it really shines for spinning reels.

Don't be concerned about wind knots too much.  If you use it correctly you should get far less wind knots with braid than you will with mono.  The reason is that mono twists much easier than braid.  That (for the most part) is what causes the loose line and loops to get under the spool which eventually leads to a wind knot.  I use braid all the time in the salt and I can say without a doubt that I can't remember the last time I got a wind knot.

The most important thing is keeping the line tight on the spool.  I will reiterate Gottog's tip about closing the bail manually and then giving the line in front a the reel a slight tug to make sure it doesn't form a loop.  That is something I tell every customer I have who is new to fishing (whether they use braid or not).  I would also add that you should pay particular attention to your line when you are using techniques that cause a lot of loose line (e.g. walking the dog with a spook or pencil popper or hopping bucktails).

Thanks all, is the uni-knot the one you use most th connect mono leaders?

I had used the uni to uni for close to 10 years for connecting the leader.  Last summer, member Darth Baiter posted this little gem of a knot.  It's ties thinner than the double uni, so it flies through the guides a little better.  I've since used it this past fall for casting and jigging stripers and big blues, and also tried it out tog fishing.  So far it has held up well for me (knock wood).

http://njsaltwaterfisherman.com/forums/index.php?topic=7951.0

BTW, if you'd like to know exactly how much mono backing you need to bring the braid up to the proper level on your spool, try this link.  It works!

http://njsaltwaterfisherman.com/forums/index.php?topic=2727.0

[sperzonkers2]

  Thanks for all the info guys. Now if I can fiqure how that calculator would work for loading my fly reels with backing and fly line