Line suggestions

[Geezer77]

Ok let me start by saying I have fished my whole life, just not "all the time" in the last two years Ive really gotten into it heavy but....... Im still having questions about which line would best fit my different fishing scenerios. I usually fish Ky. On the main river ledge with 3/4 oz. football jigs or 10"+ worms. Also with crankbaits in both shallow and deep situations. I guess where I'm headed is, givin the above what would ya'll suggest? Mono? Braid? Flourocarbon? Things have gotten so precise these days I was just wanting some opinions.

[bamabassman]

if it were me geezer, and i am gonna fish jigs, braided line. reason is when you hook a 10 pounder (and i have witnesses, bb144 and kingfisher), and oyu have mono tied on, then you lose the fish from line breakage..........you'll know why you should have used braided line. happened to me TWICE, same fish too.
BUT.after saying that i also need ot tell you i was in some REALLY thick grass. so i guess i will modify my thought by adding ......if in thick cover, grass, brush, laydowns, etc. braided line. if not, i still use mono. i haven't tried flouro so i couldn't give an honest opion on it. i use braid on all my jig and worm set ups. i haven't had a problem with the fish seeing the line.
now on my crankbait set ups i use mono. flouro would probably be better form what i have seen here, but like i said....i don't have flouro. so i use mono. thining aobut geting some though, especially for really deep diving cranks.

[walkeraviator]

Fishing Kentucky lake means very little vegetation to contend with unless the lake gets up real high. as you are fishing ledges, you will deal with some rocks and stumps, but i doubt its enough to warrant braid. Since you say you are fishing deep and using contact baits, I have to recommend Flourocarbon for sensitivity and the sinking factor. This will help on getting those crankbaits you mentioned down to depth. Usually i would say 10lb test for cranks and 15-17lb for the jig/t-rig setup. If you are like me you find a nice in between so you can use rods for multiple techniques. So I have decided this year I am gonna run XPS Flouro 12lb on everything but my topwater rod. I am gonna buy it in the 1000yd spool to save money. I know a lot of people will say i am asking to break off some fish, but i seriously never fish heavy cover. I fish Barren, Nolin, and Kentucky, and thats about it. Usually it is about structure more so than cover.

[keithdog]

For my jig fishing, I really like using a copoly line. I've tried flourocarbon and just don't care for the way it handles. The copoly I use is PLine Flouroclear which is a copoly line with a flourocarbon coating on it. It's strong, supple, narrow diameter, and had good abrasion resistance. I'm usually using 17-20 pound test as the lakes I fish have lots of cover. If your in more open water then 15-17 like Walker said would be fine. I do have an outfit for pitchin into very heavy cover that is spooled with 50# braid.

[bassboogieman]

You'll get as many different answers as you will responses. Personally I'm not a fan of flurocarbon, except as leader material. Not really fond of braid either on baitcasters, I do use it on spinning tackle because of it's suppleness it really casts well and doesn't spring off the reel like most other lines. On baitcasters I prefer a co-polymer line. It's more abrasion resistant than mono, stronger - so you can use smaller diameter line, than comparable mono, and get your cranks to run a little deeper. It's flurocarbon coated giving some of the light refracting qualities of f/c, but I think it's holds a knot better than straight f/c.
I'd recommend a co-poly line for the techniques you mentioned. Jigs, 15# should be plenty in most situations. Heavy timber or vegetation go up to 17#. Cranks, 10# is what I use on most. Ripping lippless cranks through grass, I go up to 15#.

[Tavery5]

Hi Geezer, You have got some great answers from the guys. There was one thing that I was wondering about though. Do you fish with Bait Casters or Spinning Reels. It would make a big difference to me, as to what line to use. For example, you would not want to use a heavy FC line on a spinning reel, and braid with a leader might be a better solution. Anyway, If you have a sec, you might tell us about the setups you are using to throw these baits on.

[Geezer77]

Tavery, I mostly use baitcasters, Ive got two spinning reels that I mainly use on wading trips or to throw a light shakey head in shallow water. Everyones responses have helped me out. I was just thinking of maybe taking a different approach with lines for the upcoming spring, Change things up a bit. Thanks everyone for the feedback!

[Tavery5]

Originally Posted by Geezer77

Tavery, I mostly use baitcasters, Ive got two spinning reels that I mainly use on wading trips or to throw a light shakey head in shallow water. Everyones responses have helped me out. I was just thinking of maybe taking a different approach with lines for the upcoming spring, Change things up a bit. Thanks everyone for the feedback!

Geezer, sounds like you have already been givin some good advice about line. I will put my .02 in now that I understand a little better about what you are throwing. If it were me, I would fish all the above situations with a fluorocarbon coated copolymer line. You will save yourself some money by doing this and will get allot of the same benefits that you would with the more expensive FC lines. I can recommend a couple of lines that have worked very nice for me, both are made by the same company, P-line, they have a line called CXX and another called floroclear. The floroclear in my opinion is a little more manageable with good strength, and the CXX is a little stiffer with great strength. I am sure you could play around with these two lines and find what you need. The best thing is these lines will run you about 8-9 dollars a spool as compared to 20 dollars a spool for a true FC. Good luck.

[walkeraviator]

does flouroclear sink like 100% fourocarbon?

[Backwater Charlie]

If I were you, I'd probably spool up with some 15lb Berkley Big Game. BBG is almost bomb proof and I just don't like fluorocarbon that much or braid.

[Tavery5]

Originally Posted by walkeraviator

does flouroclear sink like 100% fourocarbon?

Walker I can't speak across the board for the P-line floroclear brand, but I fish the 12# line and even though it has greater density with the FC coating than mono it still floats.

[carolina-rig-01]

Personally I would use flourocarbon. Braid isn't really a bad choice for jigs but it isn't my choice. I just don't care for braid at all and I hate it in the few situations that I will use it. On Kentrucky Lake flourocarbon will probably be your best all around line. I love dragging jigs on ledges myself and I can't imagine using anything other than flourocarbon. For crankbaits you won't like braid because it doesn't sink, and you will be a lot more likely to rip hooks out of the fish's mouth. If you were dealing with a lot of matted vegetation, pads, or just thick grass I would maybe lean more towards braid but for your situation I can't imagine you liking braid over flourocarbon. Do yourself a favor though and spend a little extra money for a quality line. 90% of the people I hear complain about flourocarbon had a bad experience with a cheaper line. There are a lot of good brands out there to choose from, personally I love Seaguar AbrazX, it's the best jig line I have ever used. Spray it often with KVD Line and Lure Conditioner and you shouldn't have any problems with it. There is somewhat of a learning curve with flourocarbon line but as long as you use a good line and spray it with KVD Line and Lure conditioner the learning curve isn't much.

[CamG]

If I were only fishing deep ledges (sounds like you are with the 3/4 oz. jig) I would get fluoro. Fluoro is not normally a recommendation I hand out just because I haven't found one that I thought was worth the price tag, but I will be the first to admit that it makes deep fishing much easier. Fluoro sinks taking the bow out of the line, and it is very sensitive.

Now, for crankbaits I will recommend Pline - both CX and CXX for any cranking under 12'. If you are trying to reach those same deep ledges with a DD22 or a Mann's 20 or 30+, fluoro is the best option, for the same reasons I mentioned above.

[lilmule]

Guess im the oddball,I do fish Ky lake,ledges and boo koos of veggies,only part of ky lake that does not contain much grass is in ky and that is about ten percent of ky lake,as mostly located in Tennessee.I use 20 pd power pro for shakey heads,and 30 pd for football jigs,45 pd for frogging generally.And even last year with reduced veggies ,plenty farther south around new johnsonville,also many lilly pad fields in that area.
Their is submerged grass up north,just generally does not top.Down south there is a lot of vegetation of all kinds,along with the ledges.
Mono is however better with say dd22,often however the jig bite or shakey head bite is mushy,and limits ones time for a felt strike or fish on,with the braid its felt,something like a leaf hung up or running a bit odd.
Guess each to his or her own,but that was my remedy for missing those timid fish.

[BigBassin144]

Originally Posted by carolina-rig-01

Personally I would use flourocarbon. Braid isn't really a bad choice for jigs but it isn't my choice. I just don't care for braid at all and I hate it in the few situations that I will use it. On Kentrucky Lake flourocarbon will probably be your best all around line. I love dragging jigs on ledges myself and I can't imagine using anything other than flourocarbon. For crankbaits you won't like braid because it doesn't sink, and you will be a lot more likely to rip hooks out of the fish's mouth. If you were dealing with a lot of matted vegetation, pads, or just thick grass I would maybe lean more towards braid but for your situation I can't imagine you liking braid over flourocarbon. Do yourself a favor though and spend a little extra money for a quality line. 90% of the people I hear complain about flourocarbon had a bad experience with a cheaper line. There are a lot of good brands out there to choose from, personally I love Seaguar AbrazX, it's the best jig line I have ever used. Spray it often with KVD Line and Lure Conditioner and you shouldn't have any problems with it. There is somewhat of a learning curve with flourocarbon line but as long as you use a good line and spray it with KVD Line and Lure conditioner the learning curve isn't much.

I second pretty much everything Kory said (other than the part about hating braid, as I do like it for certain things).

Fluorocarbon in 15-17lb test should be perfect for fishing all kinds of jigs, especially football jigs on a lake like KY. For the crankbaits, I prefer mono for my shallow cranks and will be trying fluorocarbon this year for my med-deep cranks.

Seaguar makes great line, and I WILL be trying abrazX this year... I hope...

BB