Power Pro woes

[hawk-eye]

Love it - Ive got it on a lot of my rods, Spooled one up with 10 lb for drifting the niagra 3 years ago and I havent had to respool it yet, I run 20 lb on my carp setup, 50 lb on a flippin stick and a 8 foot baitcaster i use for casting for pike and muskie, 4 rods spooled with 30 lb for trollin dipsy divers in the big lakes, and 2 with 100 lb for trollin muskie.

 

I love the stuff and would not change anytime soon.

[bassman87]

seriously you guys should try the suffix braid and you'll cringe at the thought of using powerpro again

[douG]

PowerPro and TuffLine are fabulous, I've never had an issue, but I quickly learned that my improved clinch knot or rapala loop were not going to work. Tie a palomar knot if you are tying a swivel, or a uni knot if you are tying directly to a lure. KNots.

I don't understand the line fail way down the spool, tho.

[Ben_Daniels]

I use Powerpro in the heavier diameters 30-65 lb and have had no problems, never tried the lighter stuff...for lighter super lines and on spinning reels I used fireline on the advice of a friend, he says its way easier to cast, should I try 10 lb PP? ...never had problems with either lines I use...Fluro leaders on the other hand I've had lots of problems...XPS Fluro=good, Vanish=Crap!

 

-Ben

[canadadude]

Hey Mike I bought 2 150yd spools of 2-10 Power Pro for $10.00 the day I saw you at Port D, Maybe I can hook you up next time your down there. The stuff I got this time is red, but it seems to work the same as green.

 

Another trick on the lighter braids, especially in cold weather is spray the line with leather protectant or silicone spray this brings it back to original condition. Braids when new have a coating which wears off after prolonged use,when given a spray of protectant every few trips the line casts farther and also reduces Icing in the winter.

Edited April 6, 2010 by canadadude

[Sinker]

I've never broken power pro unless I cut it myself. I use it for just about everything nowadays too. From 15/4 up to 100lb test. Sounds like you got a bad batch, or your guides are messed up.

 

S.

[JPD]

If your line keeps breaking by the reel, odds are good that you have a burr or a gap in your roller bearing. If the line was bad it would break in various places, not consistently at or near the reel.

 

JP

[Mike Pike]

Hey Mike I bought 2 150yd spools of 2-10 Power Pro for $10.00 the day I saw you at Port D, Maybe I can hook you up next time your down there. The stuff I got this time is red, but it seems to work the same as green.

 

Another trick on the lighter braids, especially in cold weather is spray the line with leather protectant or silicone spray this brings it back to original condition. Braids when new have a coating which wears off after prolonged use,when given a spray of protectant every few trips the line casts farther and also reduces Icing in the winter.

 

Nice score Dude and I'll take ya up on it.

 

And a nice tip about the leather protectant. I've got a can of the stuff but no leather coats to spray it on! lol So I'll use it on my line.

[Mike Pike]

Yes it can. Surf fishermen and carp anglers casting at long range often use shock leaders to minimize the probability of cracking off. It’s not about fatiguing the line with repeated casts that causes the line to break (though theoretically it can), it’s the single sudden shock experienced on the line at that one single moment during the cast. Shock leaders are a length of heavy mono or super strong braid spliced onto the end of the mainline to take the force of the cast (often 30-45lb for 3-4oz weights). I use them for my long range carp fishing at 100+ yards - I use the specialty tapered shock leaders though which taper from 45lb to 10lb (when using 30lb PowerPro or 10lb mono for a mainline). I find punching too early during the cast or not smoothly accelerating during the casting stroke can cause crack offs no matter the line you're using.

Funny about that shock leader MJL. Although I don't carp fish alot, I did add a shock leader to my carp set-up but wasn't exactly 100 percent sure why! Totally makes sence and now I understand the need for it.

[Mike Pike]

If your line keeps breaking by the reel, odds are good that you have a burr or a gap in your roller bearing. If the line was bad it would break in various places, not consistently at or near the reel.

 

JP

Hmmm, an actual gap in the roller bearing. I'll check it when I get home( I'm at work now ). I know there wasn't a burr or any knick in the roller itself but I'l inspect for a gap. It's a Rapala reel only a season old. Tnx

[skeeter]

i like the silicone spray trick.

i will use it this season to see how it works and for ice fishing too.

thanks canadadude

[lookinforwalleye]

Hmmm, an actual gap in the roller bearing. I'll check it when I get home( I'm at work now ). I know there wasn't a burr or any knick in the roller itself but I'l inspect for a gap. It's a Rapala reel only a season old. Tnx

 

Rapala reel that explains it,Rapala makes lures!!

Just kiddin.

 

Can`t help ya with your line problem cause I have been using good ole mono for 40 plus years,tried some braid because everybody said it was so great personally I can`t see what all the fuss is about.

[charlesn]

Even with taking the possibility of it being "fake" Power Pro out of the equation, any type of line can have a bad spool. As you can see some swear by it (they haven't got a bad spool yet) and some hate it (got one). I've tried all the brands mentioned here and now I get "whatever is on sale". I have had good experience with all the brands PP, Stren Superbraid, Spiderwire, Spiderthread, Suffix, Tuf-line. Maybe I'm just lucky but in probably 50 spools worth of usage, I've never experienced (yet) what you speak of.

 

Once down in Texas a friend had cut my line when I wasn't there and then reeled back over the cut. I cast out as usual and had the world's biggest backlash and lost my lure and he laughed til he nearly peed his pants. I laughed too. Maybe you're being sabotaged? j/k

[Carp]

I've been using PP on a couple of my salmon / muskie rods (50 & 80 lb.) for the last few seasons and never had a problem.

Also been using Fireline for many years at smaller diameters for panfish, walleye, pike, trout, bass, etc. Never a problem, except for a couple of birds' nests, but that was my fault.

My casts with Fireline are easily twice the distance of similar mono line.

[Blake]

I have used Power Pro for over 7 years and it has been great. I have never had any issues with any size of test. There was an issue 4 years ago of some fake Power Pro coming in from China but was easily spotted by retailers with the information provided by Power pro. I have 90% of all my reels using Power Pro. Check your reel guide or rod for nicks. I know when I am out on the water fun fishing or tournament fishing that I am confident in my Power Pro line to feel every bite and land all my fish.

[kevin booth]

i have never had any problems with power pro ive got it on 6 spin casts and 1 bait casts and 2 trolling rods and ive always had remarkable strenth out of it,in fact ive almost broke a few rods over it and i find it casts great.i would not trade it.

[Roy]

No problems with Power Pro here.

[John]

I am liking JP's thoughts on the roller on the bail arm. I used to have similar problems with mono depending on the reel quality and construction. It used to get wedged down in the side of the roller and one cast would do it....... twang! I think that if you are using 4# equivalent PP then the small diameter just might get down in there on some reels....

[diggyj]

Never had any issues with PP. Works great and I'm sticking with it, although I want to give Spider Thread a try this year! I hear good things about it!

 

Dirk

[houski]

Hey guys,

 

Just my two cents here...

 

I switched my Muskie line from 80lb Dacron to 80lb Power Pro back around the time it first came out. I had multiple problems with it breaking mid cast, and on sudden hooksets, and other sudden stopages lost more than my fair share of baits, and fish with this line. Now I gave it a chance, but after buying/returning 4 or 5 spools of it, I would never reccomend it to anyone.

 

I ran through all the troubleshooting (eg. checking my rod guides, visually inspecting the line for frays, nicks, or any discolouration, etc.) However, I haven't used it in years, so, I'm not sure if they've improved thier line or not.

 

I will say though, that from my personal experience, Power Pro was very strong if you were applying even tension to the line, (eg. pulling in large sticks, attempting to bend hooks out on snags, etc.) but where I think it really fails as a line is where the line is suddenly stopped, and a great amount of force is applyed quickly, as in setting the hook on a large fish.

[Garry2Rs]

I have had old power pro, where the colour was washed out, start breaking like that. These lines had been used in very dirty water down south. Since the Spectra fibers are so tiny, I wondered if the silt might be getting into the braid and weakening it over a long period of time???

[lew]

Been using Power Pro on all my musky rods for probably 7 or 8 years now and never had a problem with it.

 

It's good stuff in my books.

[Mike Pike]

Thanks again for the suggestions folks.

 

I just inspected the roller on my the bail arm for a gap and all looks fine. Noticed what looks like some wear on the one end of the roller, though. Hmmmmm. I'm wondering if the braid does this over time? It's a Rapala reel with a brassy looking roller but it's darker and 'appears' rougher towards the one end where I believe it may be worn( Best as I can tell with my glasses on and usng a magnifying glass as well! ).

 

So, I'm gonna switch to a newer reel and since I have one last spool of Power Pro, I gonna give it one more try. I'm also gonna get my buddy, who was having similar problems, to inspect his rod guides and reel as well.

 

Good fishing y'all!

[danbouck]

I've never had a problem and will never use anything else.

[sandmann]

Great stuff, been using it since it came out, never any issues.