Is this line strong enough for fishing a Jig

[Justin C]

Hello everyone 

Hope everyone is having a great day.

I was wondering if someone could help me with something.  I was wondering if 15 pound Fluorocarbon line is strong enough to fish a jig. This is my setup so far. I have a 7' Medium /Heavy  fast action baitcaster with a 6:4:1 gear ratio. I would be fishing it in not a ton of cover but some. I know a lot of guys have braid as there main line and tie on a fluorocarbon leader to that but braid is out of my budget. I just want Strait Fluorocarbon line. If its not strong enough would 30 pound braid be strong enough.  

Thanks Guys 

 

[misfish]

If you can afford floro to fill your spool, you can afford Braid IMO. What are you jigging for ?

[Old Ironmaker]

Depends on what you are fishing for like misfish said. I would never use 100% flouro. Why would you? Unless you are longline trolling only the length you have in the water or casting is leaving the spool anyway. You can tie 100' of flouro to whatever you use as backing, like braid or even mono, you only need a few feet of flouro, not a spool full. I actually don't like flouro as a main line. One kink, and they kink, and the line is visible and that's why one uses flouro, invisibility. . 

Edited January 11, 2019 by Old Ironmaker

[Justin C]

Ok thanks 

I priced out Braid vs fluorocarbon and fluoro was cheaper but yes braid would be a nice option. 

I am throwing a jig for largemouth. So what do you think is 30 pound braid strong enough to fish a jig.

 

Thanks

[sauce]

Yes. 15 pound flouro would work just fine. Then comes the day that you are fishing heavy cover and you are busting off jigs. That's when you will wish you had spooled up with some heavy braid. To me, 15 pound flouro on the setup you described is good for fishing jerk baits in clear water near cover. 

[misfish]

The price of braid between 30-50 is nothing IMO. I would go with 50. When you set the hook, you wont be burying the line in the spool. This is just my experience.

[Justin C]

Good Point misfish but the reel that i have does not cast 40 pound braid and up very well at least that is what everyone says about the reel it even says on the tag that came with the reel that the braid capacity is 30 pounds 180 yds. So I don't want to go over that.

 

Thanks

 

[OhioFisherman]

I threw a lot of jigs using 17-20 lb test mono and never had a problem with them breaking off, even thru them on lighter line. If you are in one of our southern states where there are bass that exceed 6 pounds on a regular basis lighter line is more of an issue. Also cover, around wood. like docks, fallen trees light line can be a problem, it's nice to be able to exert enough force on them to help prevent them from getting into deeper cover once hooked.

Edited January 12, 2019 by OhioFisherman

[Justin C]

Thanks OhioFisherman 

Did you find that mono had to much stretch in the line when setting the hook.

[OhioFisherman]

Justin, I am a geezer and for most of my life my fishing line was original Stren mono, no the stretch wasn't an issue, and actually it may help in case you get carried away with a hookset, it acts like a shock absorb-er.

Our water isn't quite as clear in most lakes here as compared to Canadian lakes, but I also saw no need for straight floro unless it was a really tough bite, and even then I can't say it helped.

A fish probably isn't real smart, you need floro but can catch them on an a rig with wires and swivels and stuff all over it?

If you are fishing for big fish, like muskies and big pike? I can see a purpose for braid, it's nice to have 65-80 pound test line that doesn't feel like anchor rope?

People were using mono and catching fish on it for a long time, but now marketing has brought us newer, more expensive options?

[Garfisher]

I use 17lb Trilene 100% fluoro without much problem using jigs and chatterbaits. That being said, definitely check your line especially if you've jacked a couple bass (really hard sets), as you may be a backlash or really hard set away from busting off. I do like the combo for dragging tubes if you have the opportunity to do that in the fall, the line does last a bit in the mussels but of course constantly check your line as it will get nicked-up pretty good

Edited January 12, 2019 by Garfisher

[Old Ironmaker]

Most of 180 yards of line never see the light of day when fishing the way you describe. 

[chris.brock]

What bait caster reel do you have Justin C?

[Justin C]

Thanks Guys 

I have a Cheap starter reel it is a Abu Garcia Black Max 3 

6:4:1 Gear Ratio.

The setup has worked very well so far though.

Thanks

 

[bobowski]

I would recommend using braid with a fluoro leader. Fluoro has a lot of memory and is pretty stiff. Braid is so much more durable IMO.

[Justin C]

Hmm thanks i will have to think about it.

But has anyone just put strait Flouro on a baitcaster as the main line.

That would be ideal.

Thanks

 

[OhioFisherman]

 

[boombap]

I've tried about 5-6 different flouro lines on different baitcasters.. can never get the hang of it. 

30-50# braid on all my setups now, spent too much money to be dissapointed with flouro. Sometimes I'll throw on a 2ft flouro leader. Fishing any heavy cover 100% braid.

[Reelpro]

Check out Suffix Invisiline Castable Flourocarbon  14-17 lb

I use a lighter weight for walleye jigging with a spinning rod, super strong stuff and has a little more flexibility than a leader grade floro

The line has very little stretch - between mono and braid - and it also sinks which i like for deeper jigging and feel to the jig. 

7Lb Invisiline on spinning gear landed these 2 plus hundreds more without bite offs or line breaking 

[kickingfrog]

Braid might cost more up front but is cheaper in the end. Under all the conditions I fish, braid lasts longer. When it gets too worn I reverse it and get a few more seasons out of it.

[BillM]

Yup, braid for me on basically everything but the downrigger rods and my UL resident trout setup.

[David Chong]

On 1/11/2019 at 5:31 PM, Justin C said:

Ok thanks 

I priced out Braid vs fluorocarbon and fluoro was cheaper but yes braid would be a nice option. 

I am throwing a jig for largemouth. So what do you think is 30 pound braid strong enough to fish a jig.

 

Thanks

Hey Justin, If you are throwing a flipping jig for Largemouth, then I would go with 50 lbs. test braid (Regardless of what the reel says and you don't need 180 yds. of line to flip for Largemouth) for most water clarity. But if you're dealing with ultra clear water and want to use straight fluorocarbon, then my suggestion would be 20 lbs. test fluorocarbon. These are the 2 best options for throwing/flipping a jig for Buckets as far as I'm concerned. The price difference shouldn't matter because the braid will last longer anyway, where you're using it is by far a more important determining factor. Good luck! 

[msp]

I agree wit Dave Chong. Go with 50 pound braid and a flouro leader if you feel you need it. Your reel should handle 50

[OhioFisherman]

On 1/11/2019 at 8:00 PM, Justin C said:

Good Point misfish but the reel that i have does not cast 40 pound braid and up very well at least that is what everyone says about the reel it even says on the tag that came with the reel that the braid capacity is 30 pounds 180 yds. So I don't want to go over that.

 

Thanks

 

Justin, this reel?

http://www.abugarcia.com/abugarcia-reels-baitcast-reels-low-profile/abu-garcia-black-max-low-profile/1373565.html

" Braid Capacity yd/lb

140/30 "

 

That is basically telling you how much line the reel will hold based on the average line diameter, if you put heavier line, larger diameter on it, it will hold less line. I don't have much actual experience with braided  line, but I understand it can slip on the reel spool so most people use mono backing or tape first on the spool to prevent that.

 

The last couple of reels I spooled up, almost 15 years ago, were a couple of Abu C-4's with Power Pro braid 65# test, which had roughly the same diameter as 17# test Stren mono. Those reel would hold a lot of braid and I couldn't picture needing more than about 80 yards of 65# test braid, so I put enough 17# test mono on the reel first so 80 yards of braid would fill the spool.

 

[Lape0019]

Hey Justin,

Dave is right. but really, we already all know that. He is probably one of the most recognized fisherman on this page because of his tournament winnings as well as all of the seminars he does.

So let us start off with your reel. You have a black max that says 30LB - 180yrds. That is a guideline to show you how much line you will have on the spool with 30lbs braid. that is it. And to say it doesn't cast 50lb braid very well is hard to believe because 50lb braid has the diameter of 12-13lb test mono which is close to the same diameter as flouro. Also, flouro needs replacing a whole lot more often then braid. I'll go usually 2 seasons without replacing my braid but I am lucky to get half a season with flouro if I am running it as a mainline. And the flouro I use costs more than braid so no matter how you look at it, it will be cheaper in the long run.

I have run 30ln braid on my baitcasters before and when you set the hook, it will dig in and create issues. For this reason, I try and stay with 40lb or higher.

In your case, I would run 50lb braid and not even bother with a leader if you are that worried about having multiple lines. Flouro leaders help but my experience says you will catch fish either way.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Adam