Braid or Mono?

Oh well here we go, 40lb braid for me if its allowed on the fishey, failing that mono 25lb Red Ice.

A man who uses both, how do you find the braid? Watched evo get a 35 on 35lb braid and i thought his rod was going to go. Bust his reel though, he says it is ok but i am telling you one of the gears has lost some teeth.

I fish the braid wherever possible, i love the feedback it gives you when scrapping with the cats you can feel every twist & turn they do.
There is no need to strike with it just pick up the rod & hold on.

i switched over to braid only a few months ago i have spare spools of mono if the venue dictates but if i have the choice i would use braid every time. not just do you have much more fun when playing the fish but i have more confidence with the strength, abraision and diamiter, i also find tieing knots alot easier they are alot stronger and donot pull out as there is no give and the line doesnot distort under pressure like mono when you pull your knots tight.
The only problem i have found is that braid pusts alot more strain on the rest of your setup, as karl mentioned i had my clutch set up for mono and my reel took a real pounding and has done some damage.
When using mono i used snap tackle to quickley change hooklinks this idea has quickley been bined as they just crumbled under the extra pressure, luckely the cat was over the top of the landingnet when it gave way.
I have ALSO found that when connecting braid to leadcore always use a swivel as the braid will cut through the spliced hoop of the leadcore.
One last thing when setting up i always place my spools in the lake to wet the braid as wet braid is easier to handle than dry and will prevent birdnesting when casting. chris

i usually use 17lb big game mono, but i had to replace he line on my spools a couple of weeks ago and the shop didn't have any, so im on the fox illusion flurocarbon in 18lb at the moment. it seems a bit like an inbetween as it has far less strech then mono but it does have som and it sinks like a stone which makes it easier to fish slack lines.

it's well worth the money in my opinion.

I have been using braid for years where ever allowed and wouldn't be without it I started using it about 10 years ago in America before it appeared over here, it was for sea fishing back then and very thick.
I glue every knot though just to be double sure. I use 18lb and fill the spool (no backing line). I have never heared of soaking the braid before fishing, but you should put less line on a spool when using braid ie. don't fill the spool to the rim this stops any birds nests. Use a good quality reel so it lays the line well and buy the best quality braid you can afford so you get a good round one, flat baids are the ones that cause the problems and spool damage.
I have Interline rods that where designed for braided line and they are fantastic, no rod rings so you get a perfect curve when playing a fish. Mind you they tend to cause a bit of discussion where ever I go.
Evo is spot on with his terminal tackle observation end everything in a swivel (hook links etc) and make your joins with good quality links so you can change without knots , sleeve joins to stop tangles.
If you get a tangle in braid double check the braid at the point of the tangle before re casting as it is easy to damage when picking out a tangle and sometimes it is almost unnoticable until you get that big cat on and it parts (seen it happen too many times to people not experienced with braid).
Its very scarey until you get used to it as you feel every little twitch of the fish and if you brush a snag it feels like the fish cutting through your line with a hack saw lol. On the up side if a big cat weeds you up a little the braid will often cut its self free under pressure.
Never strike a run, you just pick up the rod lift it high while it's still running and wind into your fish, much more civilised and leisurely than all this frantic running to the rod and sweeping it over your shoulder. Makes you look very professional and laid back on the bank every one will think you are the local expert lol.
If you are on a budget do one reel at a time as you can afford it don't be tempted to buy cheap braid! you will regret it and its an expensive lesson. Stay away from micro braid I have found it to be vastly over estimated breaking strain wise I sent some back last year and the manufacturer had to concede that it was breaking at HALF the specified breaking strain they kindly replaced it with normal braid AND refunded my money so I won't mention thier name it would unfair.

i love using x line for my carp fishing thats an in between really i did use braid for a year for carp but it was heart stopping stuff i had to change . but i am now using 20lb big mae on 2 rods and 25lb diawa sencor clear on the other this rod is the one near the snags thats for shore

They say you either love it or hate it! If we have the fish in and you are near me and I am lucky enough to hook one, remind me to let you have a go its an experience mate. Especially on my rods a real thrill.
Eric

im using 30lb theseus tuff braid at the mo but having probs when free lining as it tends to float i will keep it for my live bait rod but im now after some sinking braid i have found the fox submerge+ in the leslies of luton catalouge but its 70quid for 500m. any other options lads? evo

eBay every time braid goes abuot 5 quid for 300m or 1000m for 10-15 quid plus postage. obviosly prices will change but its defo worth a look, m8

I always used to use Berkley Fireline for my carp fishing - but this was years ago - probably more than 10, I still use braid for my limited seafishing as its great in deep water and my catches have been consistently better than those using mono - I have recently replaced all the line on my reels and was thinking about going to braid for the cats but have stuck with mono (I'm using soft steel) - i did end up with a few knackered rings when carp fishing with braid and to be honest the kind of places that I am fishing at the moment are not that snaggy and i'm not fishing at distance to warrant the use of braid.

20lb Diawa infinity mono for my carp and cat fishing but i do use 50lb braid for my pike fishing

How do you find that soft steel mate? I was gonna try it for a year and binned it after a month, the diawa is far superior i think, it stands up to nearly everything. that 21 the other week locked me solid in some tree roots and i got it on the bank, had to strip 20 yards of after but it got the fish on the bank.

upgrading my line over winter lads wat line do ya's recommend

berkely triline big game in 18lb counts for a lot of big fish, m8. i'm on fox illusion but that's only because i got it really cheap, it's really good if your budget is a bit bigger.

If its mono your are after mate i would not look any further than Berkeley Big Game 20lb in green, makes no difference but i prefere the green, or my favourite is the diawa infinty duo in 20lb. Both these monos will stand up to a real beating. that 21 i got the other week took me around 2 or 3 sunken branches and it still got banked. I could feel it around the tree and it came out. Had to take 20 yards off after but at 15quid for 800 meters you cant go wrong. As for the braid mate i dont use it but the lads on here will be able to help.

na a dont use braid tryed some berkley pro 20lb braid had it on for three hours then chucked the lot in the bin. it cuts the fish to much if they role onto it, so its mono for me

just looked at the daiwa on the net might try that

Its great stuff mate. Only ever been snapped once on it and that was by a real beast of a fish. Nothing much i could do about it.