using braid for live bait rigs

[kapp]

I have a new rod and reel for live bait rigging and thinking of spooling up with braided line. I use braid in some jigging situations

not all and at times i prefer it. Rigging is my prefered way to fish lakes but have never used braid, I've always used mono and why mess with success. My thoughts are 10 lb strength line and use a 6lb mono leader,

but i am thinking of using 20 feet or so of mono before leader just to soften things up some.keep in mind this rig will mostly be used deep.

is the extra mono neccessary? would like your opiion on rigging using braid for live bait rigs.

thanks

[tunrevir]

I'd switch to the braid and then use a leader of florocarbon or mono of your choice on the business end. Bear in mind, the longer the leader the more feel you will lose from the braid, but standard snell lengths of 3-10' won't take much feel away.

Tunrevir~

[Fish Head]

I would prefer mono to fluorocarbon for my leader while rigging. For jigging and spinner rigs I prefer the fluoro, but not rigging. I don't see any need for a 20 ft leader either.

I have one of my rigging rods set up with braid and the jury is still out on that. I think I might like the mono better.

[JohnMickish]

Here is my take on the whole mono/braid live bait rig.

When live bait rigging, the critical step is when feeding line. This is the point where any mistake can cause the fish to drop the bait.

"Rough" braids like Power Pro have a feel when going thru the guides. I feel that if I can feel it, the fish can too, and drop the bait. Braid also has a tendancy to wind itself pretty tight onto the spool and can cause some tension when peeling out the line. IMO these are the times fish are lost.

"Smooth" braids like the new PP or Fireline do not have as much drag and eliminate that part of the problem but the smoother braids can wrap themselves even tighter onto the spool. Reel in a heavy fish with a spinning reel and the braid can dig into itself pretty easy.

Flourocarbon eliminates the rough drag and digging in but the stiffness can cause it's on issues.

The above lines have zero stretch, which is good and bad. Solid hooksets are a plus but they can also pull the hooks out of the boney mouth of Mr. walleye. The rod selection also becomes more important when using braid. With the zero stretch a softer rod is needed.

I use mono. Live bait rigging is the only place I do use mono. I feel that the smoothness of this line is what does it for me. I use a long (7'6") rod to help with the line pick up and take care of the stretch.

10 pound XL with an 8 lb leader is my ticket.

[Jeff13]

John-

Great points you make about the braid. I have never tried it but a buddy did and had a difficult time with hooking fish. I believe he was ripping it right from the fish.

Question for you. You use 10lb mono for your mainline I read. Do you then use floro or mono for the leader?

[JohnMickish]

Yes, I use 10 lb mono for the main line. For the leader, I use 8 lb XL mono and I highly advise against using floro as the leader for live bait rigging if you are using leeches. The reason is;

Floro is stiffer than mono, even the softest floro is still stiffer than the softest mono, and florocarbon sinks. When using leeches the floro traits will just kill the natural swimming action of a leech. You want your presentation to be as natural as possible.

Now if you are rigging big creek chubs in the rocks you can get away with floro because the chub is strong enough to overcome the resistance, and the floro will give you added protection against chaffing in the rocks.

[workin4bait]

I personally do use braid on my livebait combo,but I almost never "feed" line to the fish.I use a 7 foot rod and when I feel a hit I just drop the rod tip back and when the rod is at the back of the boat I set the hook.I miss very few fish,I think most people "feed" too much line.

Workin'

[BTL]

It seems like no matter how much line I feed a walleye, it's always barely hooked in the lip.

Tiny perch, rock bass, and cigar walleyes will be gut hooked no matter how quick I set the hook. Never fails :-P