Advice on braid, color, weight, etc

[ringonose]

I'm about to stock up on more braid for the month of May, but I'm not entirely sure what size or color I should go for. Is 20LB test enough? If I"m going to go boat fishing, is 50-64LB too much? Or, since it's braid, does the LB test matter? How about color? Any advice here is appreciated, thanks!

[Sandy Feet]

I've had several lines bitten off , likely by Spanish mackerel . Consequently the latest braids , that I've purchased are moss green . I'm staying away from any bright colors , yellow , red , blue , or any thing that will draw attention to the line . Insofar as to what test rating , that would depend on what you're fishing for , and how . That's pretty much up to you.

[ringonose]

I know you are going to hate this> but it all depends on what type of rod/reel you
are putting it on... what I mean is You wouldn't put 50lb braid on a 4000 size reel>

and it also depends on what you will be fishing for> I use 40lb braid for cobia/grouper
snapper and even sharks...on a full size spinning reel..

I have 80lb braid on my fin-nor (Huge spinning reel) .. and then I have 20/30 lb
braid on my 4000 size reels...

for color IMHO nothing beats Hi>Vi Yellow....It also glows at times and you will be
able to know where your lines are at all times> Plus it lets you know where the fish
is headed... this is great around bridge/piling and even rocky jetty points...

and as far as what type of Braid> I use PowerPro and Jerry brown... I prefer the JB
but I got a crap load of PowerPro at a great price and it really has never let me down..
But!!! in saying that a 5 weave braid IMO is a lot better then the old standard 3 weave..
it casts and lays better on your reel and it is less forgiving then PP...

Good luck

If you are worry about fish biting the line just use a long leader... I hasn't had that trouble
and I have caught plenty of Macks/blues with the HI Vi yellow...

Nice info thanks plenty! I've been blindly using braid and I'm about to re-spool all of my reels, just wasn't sure if I should get the 50LB + but I think 20-30LB is plenty. I have a few Penn spinning reels, two fierce one is 4000 the other 5000, and I have a Penn Battle it's a 5000. About to buy about 1500 yards of the stuff on E-Bay and save some $$ but I'm not about to go make a dumb mistake, I'm still learning some of the in's and out's. I like braid, casts great, really strong, etc. Thanks again

[PhishingPhanatic]

For 4000 and 5000 reels, 20-30 lb is plenty. Your reels don't have the drag to handle anything more then that, and you will lose casting distance the heavier you go. I don't think color matters as much. I use 10 lb red power pro on my light spinners for casting lures, red is the first color to disappear under water. But, you always need to use a mono or flouro leader with braid, so the braid color really doesn't matter.

[ringonose]

For 4000 and 5000 reels, 20-30 lb is plenty. Your reels don't have the drag to handle anything more then that, and you will lose casting distance the heavier you go. I don't think color matters as much. I use 10 lb red power pro on my light spinners for casting lures, red is the first color to disappear under water. But, you always need to use a mono or flouro leader with braid, so the braid color really doesn't matter.

I ALWAYS use flouro carbon leader, for sure. I like the Battle 5000, and the Fierce 6000. I feel that the fierce 6000 is almost too big for most of the stuff I am catching. I landed some nice Bonito's with the Fierce 5000, but I run into problems sometimes with the braid. I never heard that red was a good color for braid. Nice to know, and thanks!
I'd actually love to watch you fish some time, reading some of your threads you really know what you're doing. I often find myself missing some details that end up costing me fish, stuff like the size of the weight or the type of hook...drives me crazy sometimes. I know I know, everything depends on what you're fishing for, and where....

[PhishingPhanatic]

Completely agree, flouro has its place but I use mono for 80% of my leaders. The only things I use flouro for are for leaders for fishing lures inshore, and for permit fishing.

[krash]

Completely agree, flouro has its place but I use mono for 80% of my leaders. The only things I use flouro for are for leaders for fishing lures inshore, and for permit fishing.

Same same.. agree with that one.

As far as Braid size, no need to spool your reel with line size that your reel can't handle.. if the drag pressure rating is 20 pounds use 20 pound test.

[ringonose]

So I've been wasting money on flouro the last few years? I'd be more than happy to stop buying that expensive stuff, but so many people swear by it, and I must admit I only started catching more snappers when I started using flouro. Then again it could be because of anything. What is Pink Ande???

Thanks for all the invaluable advice everyone, much appreciated. When it comes from people who have pics of huge fish all the time, obviously it's good advice!

[migs24]

What is Pink Ande???