Is monofilament a thing of the past now?

Hi Last year, I spent the day out on the water with Elite Angler SkeetReese and we talked about line selection for various techniques. He told me he rarely, if ever, uses monofilament anymore. Even for things like spinnerbaits where monofilament is often usedfor buoyancy reasons, he'd rather use fluorocarbon. For topwaters,he's taking the more modern approach to using braid on a glass rod. More and more top anglers are moving away from mono, just likeSkeet Reese. Quite honestly, monofilament isn't nearly as useful as it once was.Fluorocarbons today are just as manageable as monofilament. If you currently have coiling problems with fluoro, it's mostlikely brand-related. The good fluorocarbons don't give youproblems these days like they did just 2-3 years ago. I'll get to what the "good brands" are in a second. => What about Co-Polymers? Co-Polymers are essentially hybrid lines (ie. A mixture of two ormore materials). The problem is most people think copolymer lines are a mixture offluorocarbon and monofilament, which isn't true. A Co-Polymer can be a mixture of anything. It could simply be amixture of 3 different kinds of fluorocarbon. I think what most questions about copolymers are about are the"fluorocarbon coated" lines. These coated lines are marketed as having mono-like "handling", butwith an outer fluorocarbon coating, which helps it be less visibleunderwater. While the coating certainly helps "some"... it's just a partialbenefit to what a full fluoro line offers. I suggest using full fluorocarbon lines or full monofilament. Theymay be marketed as "middle-ground" versatile lines, but I'm here totell you that full fluorocarbon is better in almost every instancethan coated lines. => What brand fluorocarbon lines are best? There are two brands that are a notch above the rest. I have tried a lot of brands and one I like is Bass Pro Shop's XPSFluorocarbon lines. I've fished with this for a couple years nowwith great success. I continued to try different brands out of curiosity and found onethat was even better than XPS... That brand is Seaguar. Seaguar makes AbrazX and InvisX (alsoTatsu), their top performing fluorocarbons. All are very good. I use both a lot and don't really favor one over the other too much. Bass Pro Shops runs awesome deals every now and then for its XPSFluorocarbon line, so I'll try to take advantage of sweet deals whenthey arise. If you want the cat's meow, Seaguar makes the best in my opinion. ==================================Kevin's Hot Tip:================================== Stay away from tinted (colored) fluorocarbon lines! Grayce Paul, brand manager of Seaguar shared some really shockinglab tests with me. They've found that the tint causes the line tolose 10% of its strength. Grayce told me, "It's exactly like adding water to vodka..." So don't fall for any marketing hype some manufacturers are usingto sell these "tinted" fluorocarbons. Don't do it! ================================== Anyway, I want you to look at these links below. Look at theexact photos of the brand lines I fish. These are the best fluorolines I've found... Bass Pro Shops XPS Fluorocarbon:http://www.bassfishin.com/likes/xps-fluorocarbon/ Seaguar AbrazX, InvisX and Tatsu:http://www.bassfishin.com/likes/seaguar-abrazx-tw/http://www.bassfishin.com/likes/seaguar-invizx-bps/http://www.bassfishin.com/likes/seaguar-tatsu-tw/ Get some spools and let me know if it isn't twice as good as thebrand you're fishing now. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts,really! Anyway.. I've got to get back to some stuff here. I'll make mybest attempt to answer any questions you may have. I hope you've enjoyed it! Take care! Kevin

I'll reply. Yes and no.

I still believe all the lines we have out there have a good use for certain situations and find myself using all although I will too admit I'm leaning more on the braid/fluoro side.

Mono, for me, is still used for topwaters in clear water (where braid is just too visible and fluoro sinks so...no good!), crankbaits and jerkbaits. Some maybe surprised to hear I use them for cranks and jerks but I use the Loomis crankin sticks and find mono works best with this rod. It's not to say in certain situations that I won't switch to braid, braid with a fluoro leader or straight fluoro but time and again it catches the fish just fine and I'm very much in tune with my baits. I'm also cheap (sometimes...not with reels ) and still have a HUGE spool of Berkeley Inshore left (probably 4000-5000 yards left!!!!).

I also use braid for my spinnerbaits especially in rocky areas where braid will cut. Big Game is my preferred choice and has never let me down. Again, cheap is good and allows me to buy high end rods and reels

If we are talking about fluoro's I have to disagree with one choice from the above...BPS Fluoro. I have NOT had good luck with this. I have broken off a few fish during a tournament when it should not have broke. I'm very good about not breaking off fish and this was the line (in my opinion). For heavy cover I go with the P-Line Halo and everything else either the Seaguar mentioned or Maxima Fluoros. I have not tried the high end Sun or Toray lines but will one day!

Again, these are only my personal opinions and experience. I primarily fish the CA Delta and Clear Lake so my opinions might not be reflective of the cover everyone else is fishing (although I do hit deep clear rocky lakes as well!).

Todd

I know very little about this subject so thanks guys for all the info. I am the cheap guy as well, my wife says it all the time so I guess I am.
I always go with the cheaper line at the time, most often I use Stren. But one of the things I try to fine is the lines with no memory. I guess I need to learn more, but try to stay cheap.

Just to let you know, if you want to go with a real cheap but high quality mono, stick with Berkeley Big Game. It has helped me win lots of money during tournaments and never failed me.

Something to also consider though...if you use spinning gear and do a lot of dropshotting or splitshotting...consider a good quality braid (many out there but my current favorite is the Suffix braid) and then a leader of fluoro or mono (fluoro preferred). Although you spend a lot in the beginning, you will rarely have to worry about changing your line expect for your leader!

Todd

Thank you again Berkley Big Game i will look for it next time.
Question about braid line, do you need to have it spooled on or can you do it at home on your own.
I heard that you need to have someone do it for you so it is tight on the spool is that right.

You can easily do it yourself but here are a few pointers -
Put a piece of electrical tape on the spool itself so the braid doesn't slip. If you just tie it on like regular mono there is a good chance it will slip when you don't want it to!

Use gloves and maybe even a second person to hold the spool for you. It is true you do want to put it on tight (at least the base layers) or you could experience digging in when playing a hard charging fish and it could result in broken lines or even gear.

Last - don't worry about some coating that tends to fall off (especially with Power Pro if you use that). Not a big deal and doesn't affect the line.

Let me know if you need anything else!

Todd

Thanks samuraiti for that bit of info, that will help out I have been wanting to try braid. I had heard the same as 37 did, good to know you can do it yourself.

Good info guys, Ive always used mono. Whats a good set up for the harbours? I want to set up a couple of rods to trash in the salt. Most of my gear now is light or ultralite with 2 to 4lb test.

For the spotties and small Butt's a light rod with some back bone should work just fine, I fish with 6 to 10 test on my reals. Mostly use freshwater bass set ups.

jeffcpr wrote:For the spotties and small Butt's a light rod with some back bone should work just fine, I fish with 6 to 10 test on my reals. Mostly use freshwater bass set ups.

Cool, I picked up some 8lb line and put it on an old set up, Im thinking of picking up a med. Ugly Stick to go with a Mitchell Avocet thats collecting dust. Ok, how about a few go to baits. Im not a bass fisherman and have nothing (except the spinner Jeff sent me)

FFF was clowing on my during saturdays event when he found out I used mono.

Im old school and have yet to try fluro or braid, 12 lb big game and 8 lb Ande is what I roll with but I have been wanting to try fluro for cranks.

Trial and Error wrote:FFF was clowing on my during saturdays event when he found out I used mono.

Im old school and have yet to try fluro or braid, 12 lb big game and 8 lb Ande is what I roll with but I have been wanting to try fluro for cranks.

Im with you bro were old school Ive never used anything but mono.

I personally never use mono anymore. I have tried sunline, seagar, and some other fluro but I always go back to XPS fluro. That's BPS's home brand and it just works for me. It never gets that milky white look that others do and it stays limp forever, other have not (for me). I do use braid but very limitted.
Samurati is correct about braid. U can totally spool it urself. I put a plastic ped through the center of the roll, step on both ends of the pen with my feet using the carpet to add friction. Then I just adjust pressure with my feet, crank down the drag and reel away.

fever wrote: Ok, how about a few go to baits. Im not a bass fisherman and have nothing (except the spinner Jeff sent me)

Curly Tail grubs, 1/4 oz. lead head 3" to 4" curly tail grubs. You can get them from most any store that sells tackle. Go with white or pearl, and also a darker color.
You can also get Big Hammer jigs from full tackle stores, 3" to 5" stay with the 3" same 1/4 oz. lead color are numerous.

I think line choices are result of experimentation, experience and results. There will always be something better...just remember how all the bass have been caught over the years. I use fluro, mono and braid.