spoolin up

[M1dwestF1sh]

I know I got about a month before I start getting line on all my reels but what do you guys plan on running this year? Last year I ran almost all my reels (spinning and baitcasters) with flouro. I was thinking about switching some to braid with flouro leader but I like how flouro sinks. What do you guys plan on using?

[Jeff13]

I use a lot of both I guess. Depends on the technique, lake I'm fishing, and baits I'm using.

Both have their advantages and disadvantages.

I use the braid to Fluoro leader a lot. I have just Fluoro on only a few setups.

[Bagman101]

About 75% of my rigs are spooled with 6/20 braid. I also have a few spooled with 10lb Iron Silk. None of the water I fish is pressured enough to justify the need for flouro, imo.

[MuskieFever]

I run braid on every setup except dropshot. Tried 2 setups with fluoro last year and didn't like it. I use a fluoro leader from time to time. The castability of braid is unmatched, and you can use it for a full season and sometimes more.

[RK]

Hiya -

I run a mish-mash of braid, fluoro, and mono...

Braid - 65# for flipping and pitching in really heavy cover, for frogs, and 40# for spoons, and swim jigs around cover. I also have one spinning rod rigged with braid for skipping docks, etc., and one with 10# fireline for fishing small jerkbaits.

Fluoro - I use 20# fluoro for flipping and pitching, and I use it more and more all the time. I'll aslo use 16# for lighter cover pitching, blind pitching weedlines, etc. I have 16# on my jig rods, 12# on my cranking rod, and 10# on one lighter casting rod. On my spinning rods I use 8# for jigs and tubes, 6# drop shotting.

Mono - I use 17# mono for squarebills, spinnerbaits and buzzbaits plus bigger topwaters, and 14# for poppers, etc.

So I use all three. Both braid and mono are kind of getting pushed aside by Fluoro for me though. Still use heavy braid for thick slop and mono for topwaters and where a little stretch is beneficial like spinnerbaits/buzzbaits, but beyond that I don't use a lot of mono bass fishing anymore.

Most everything else is fluoro these days. Fluoro can be awesome - if you pick the right flavor for the job. I don't use the same fluoro for jigs as I do for cranks for example. Not even the same brand actually. Have also come to the conclusion that with fluoro, you pretty much get what you pay for. The premium fluoro is just better...again, as long as you're using the right one for the job. The mitigation for the cost is good fluoro lasts way longer than mono. I used to respool mono once a month, but I can fish a season on one fill of fluoro as long as I don't kink it on a backlash.

[TurnUpTheFishing]

I run a bit of everything. I dont care for braid that much and only run it where I thinks its most necessary. I have one slop/frog rod with 50 lb. A dock skipping spin rod with 20 lb and a thick vegetation baitcaster with 50lb. My other rods are a mix of fluoro and copolymer. I use fluoro on most setups but have a few setups with copolymer for situations like topwaters, jerkbaits, spinnerbaits and some cranks.

EDIT, too slow, Ill just sit down here in RK's shadow.

[mainbutter]

I run braid on all my rigs, it doesn't deteriorate like mono does and I'm not sure how fluoro reacts with UV light etc.

Most of the time I tie on a small section of fluoro leader. I probably start with 18'' and can retie it down to 8'' or so as I change lures. This gives me some protection against pike and a little bit of line invisibility at the connection. I figure if 6 month old babies don't have the concept of object permanence down, fish probably aren't that great at it either, and a few inches is pretty good.

[bassfshin24]

I run mostly Fluoro as well. I switched my jig rod out from all braid to 20lbs Fluoro this year. I will still have a rod with Braid on for really heavy cover jigging. I do have a couple rods with mono on them for spinnerbait and topwater as well.

All my spinning rigs this year are 20lbs braid with fluoro leader. I've liked it so far so I will see how the first few months go with this setup.

[RK]

I run braid on all my rigs, it doesn't deteriorate like mono does and I'm not sure how fluoro reacts with UV light etc.

Most of the time I tie on a small section of fluoro leader. I probably start with 18'' and can retie it down to 8'' or so as I change lures. This gives me some protection against pike and a little bit of line invisibility at the connection. I figure if 6 month old babies don't have the concept of object permanence down, fish probably aren't that great at it either, and a few inches is pretty good.

UV doesn't bother fluoro, but heat definitely does. Not something you want to leave in a hot vehicle for example. Also have to be careful cinching down knots as the friction can weaken it.

The reduced visibility of fluoro gets a lot of attention and I'm sure it can't hurt. In clear water jigging a deep weedline I've seen fluoro get more bites that straight braid by 10 to 1, using identical lures and with two anglers switching rods after every bite. But, might have seen similar results with braid vs. mono. I think it was more the braid being very visible than the fluoro being invisible... I do like fluoro though for other reasons. It's tough, I love the sensitivity which is better than mono. That isn't marketing hype either it's just physics. Fluoro is more dense. Braid has zero stretch so it's more sensitive if there is tension on the line, but you can't feel slack line bites with braid. With fluoro sometimes a slack line bite will rattle the line in the guides.

I also like that braid sinks, especially jigworming on spinning gear. The line doesn't lay on the surface and blow around on a windy day, so I can get away with a lighter jig. Also get a little more depth out of cranks with it. I'm rarely worried about getting max depth, but a denser fluoro actually lets me fish a slightly heavier line and still get the same depth, so I can fish 12# fluoro rather than 10# mono and still get a bait down just as far. Nice when you're rooting fish out of deep coontail in August.

[RK]

I run a bit of everything. I dont care for braid that much and only run it where I thinks its most necessary. I have one slop/frog rod with 50 lb. A dock skipping spin rod with 20 lb and a thick vegetation baitcaster with 50lb. My other rods are a mix of fluoro and copolymer. I use fluoro on most setups but have a few setups with copolymer for situations like topwaters, jerkbaits, spinnerbaits and some cranks.

EDIT, too slow, Ill just sit down here in RK's shadow.

What kind of copoly do you like? I tried some a while back and hated it, so I went back to mono. But I like the idea of it.

[Todd S.]

I use 15lb yozuri hybrid on the majority of my jig and worm rods, i like it.

[RuddyDuck]

Do you mostly order the Yozuri online or do any Stores sell it? I want to try some, but I'm a brick/mortar guy and can't seem to find it anywhere. I know places use to carry it a few years ago.

[Todd S.]

Online, TW. I don't think I've ever seen it locally. If anyone would have it I would think Thorne's, but i couldn't tell you for sure.

[bucketmouth64]

I'd like to try Hi-Seas line that's copolymer center and fluorocarbon on the outside. Not sure if this is new, but I saw it on a fishing show and was interested in it. Haven't seen it around any local stores, hopefully I'll see it at the sport show. If the line isn't new anyone use this?

[TurnUpTheFishing]

What kind of copoly do you like? I tried some a while back and hated it, so I went back to mono. But I like the idea of it.

I mostly use Gamma copolymer. It has served me well for the past several years. Honestly, I havnt experimented too much though. I bought a bunch really cheap and am still burning through it. The only other copolymer I can remember using is Pline and I prefer the Gamma.