Power Pro?

[BigAL]

Do you/can you fill the whole reel with Power Pro? Or back it with mono? Or vice versa? I'm assuming that stuff is less prone to getting bit through by those big blues? Was out Monday night and everyone we hooked up with bit/snapped right through 25 1b mono with 2ft of 45 lb wire leader. Closest one my friend reeled right up to the boat, and as I leaned down to scoop him up the big guy jumped, gave me a nice kick to the face with his tail and SNAP, away he went!

[Hotrod]

Power pro all the way   Back the reel with a couple layers of equivalent size mono.  Tie them together with a uni to uni knot   They have pretty good instruction in the pack.

[Hunter 2]

I like power pro too. 

[Pfishingruven]

Sufix is good stuff too, but none of the braid will not stop the bite offs, unfortunately.  I back my reels with a 20 or so yards of mono and then add the braid, too.  I use a a shock leader of mono on top of the braid as well, so the fish are always in contact with mono one way or another.  I am surprised they were going through the wire.  Try heavier mono, 50# or heavier wire, 60+#.  Those gators really can do a number on your tackle.

 

[Hunter 2]

I use flourocarbon leaders. But blues still get through em, no problem.

[BigAL]

thanks guys!

[Stray Cat]

Even if you use power pro you should use about 10 to 15 ft of 40lb mono for a shock leader.

[ped579]

I agree with all suggestions.  I have used Power Pro for a couple of years now and the stuff is amazing if you treat it right.  Like Rod said use a mono backing, enough to cover the spool's spindle and them wind on your braid.  This will prevent slipping of the braided line.

[MarshHawk]

If you don't feel like messing with the mono backing you can put a rubberband or electrical tape on your spool first.  The braid won't slip on it.

[ped579]

Never tried the rubber band but the electrical tape I have heard bad stuff getting it off if it gets wet and all the sticky stuff gets stuck to the spool.  I would just use the mono backing and not worry about the tape.

[Capt. Mike]

The rubber band and or tape seem to make a mess of things. The little bit of mono is really inexpensive.

Now if we can only get Rod to follow his advice and pack his reels out with braid. 

[Hotrod]

All Braid

[BigAL]

What do you guys mean by "shock leader". Just a foot or two of mono on the end as an actual leader? Would i still add a wire leader to this while fishing for blues? Any suggestions on knots for the "shock leader"?

thanks

[ChrisL]

Something I read recently suggested the shock leader (for surf casting at least)be mono heavier then the braid.  Length should be 4-5 wraps of the spool, past the rod tip, plus 2-3 feet.  The knot suggested was the albright. 
I set up my bait rod this way last week in an effort to prevent the braid from snapping while casting.  I use 30lb powerpro and used 60lb mono.  One the first outing with it, it was fine as far as casting, etc.  Didn't catch anything that day, so I can't comment on that aspect.   

[Stray Cat]

http://www.marlinnut.com/knots/albright.shtml

Use the improved albright knot to attach braid to mono. Its shown on the site I have listed here. Its pretty easy to do.  I use 10 to 15 feet of mono. The reason for the mono leader is for a little stretch (shock leader) and its easier to tie you hooks to. Attach your wire bluefish hook to the mono. When bluefishing its good to always use wire otherwise you'll be losing alot of tackle.

[Bucktail]

Shock leaders are used for various reasons, both in the surf and from a boat.  Since you mentioned boat fishing in your original post, let's stick with that.  I especially like a shock leader for jigging.  I like a little longer leader than Stray Cat.  I generally use 15' to 20'.  I put enough on to have about 8' or 10' from my rod tip with a few wraps around the spool.  Line test would depend on the fish I'm targeting.

Here are a few reasons as to why I like shock leaders on a boat:

1.  Abrasion Resistance   Don't believe the claims the braid manufacturers make about abrasion resistance.  A 40 lb. section of braid is going to wear and break well before a 40 lb. section of mono or fluorocarbon will.  When a fish takes you under the boat and the line is scraping on the hull, you'll be glad you had that extra length of leader.

2.  Line Stretch  When you're fishing with a high modulus graphite rod and braided line there is not much give.  That's a great thing when feeling for bites and for setting the hook.  It's not so great for playing a fish.  Both mono and fluorocarbon stretch. (Yes fluoro stretches too.)  I feel like that little bit of cushion is important for when a fish makes a last minute surge at the boat.

3.  Something To Hold Onto  If you've ever tried to grab a piece of braided line while the other end is connected to a 15 lb., "Mad as hell!", thrashing bluefish, you already know what I'm talking about.  I was out fishing with a couple of guys from this site (who shall remain nameless), just last fall.  Both of them had their lures tied directly to the braid.  When those blues came up it was a nightmare!  I have no fear of leadering a 20 lb. bluefish, king mackerel or whatever.  But I definitely don't want to grab straight braid!

4.  Visibility  Most of the time this is not nearly as important as the first three.  Of course there are days (and species) on which it may make a huge difference.  Fishing for bonito, little tunny and king mackerel are examples of when I like a fluorocarbon leader.  For stripers and bluefish I mostly use mono.

Hope that helps!

[Stray Cat]

Well explained Bucktail 

[gottog]

I like a little mono backing personally, but have used tape as well without any problems.

Easiest connection knot is the uni to uni.  Plenty of other knots out there such as slim beauty, alberto, albright, red phillips, etc.

A true shock leader usually involves a very long length of mono that is heavier than the main running line. if you're using a 9' rod it would be about 18' of mono.  Used to cushion the cast when fishing light lines and has to be long enough that it will go around the reel a few times.

I use long mono leaders but generally go with the same # test rating of my braid or slightly weaker.  My fishing isn't really from shore, more from the boat.  I like having the long leader to make rigging easier, get out of tangles quicker, allows you to grab it incase you need to lift a fish up and adds some abrasion resistance.  To me, braid or any superline like Fireline(my favorite) when under pressure can be cut very easily with anything sharp. Just look at kid's safety scissors that can cut it like butter.

The only problem with using much heavier mono leaders is that if it's twice as strong as your mainline, if you hit a snag the connection knot will fail first.  I use 30# Fierline and have had my knots hold with using 60# mono, but Fireline is way under-rated in it's strength and you would have to compare it to say 50-60# Power pro.

[MarshHawk]

I have never used a shock leader surf fishing but I have snapped off a few rigs when I try to throw extra far. I always was afraid the knot would wear going through the guides. How long does the knot hold up? When you are using higher lb tests  does the larger knot affect your cast very much?  I know that at times I have had to top off my reel and the knot joining the lines can catch the line coming off the spool. 

[gottog]

Generally, with a true shock leader it's done with conventional gear.  The connection knot could cause some issues on a spinning reel, but I've used them and no real ill effects.

I have no issues with the knot going through guides on either type of setup.  Knot just has to be tied and trimmed properly.  They hold up for awhile but I generally change mine often, depending on how many times I have to cut back on the leader.

If using heavy lines and have small guides on the rod, that may cause you to loose some distance, but would depend on individual setup.