continued.....
These ‘Super lines’ can, of course, be used in the capacity of a shock leader in conjunction with mono if required. I would suggest the use of a ‘Grinner to Grinner knot’ for this situation if tying on a leader of similar size. If you are tying a very large diameter monofilament leader too much thinner Super line, I recommend the Albright knot.
A few ‘tips’ on using new age ‘Super lines’ –
Spooling Up – Leave at least enough monofilament to cover the bottom of the spool. When you put monofilament onto your spool, it stretches significantly even with a very small amount of tension. This stretch makes the line squeeze the barrel of the spool, gripping it tight. The ‘Super lines’ don’t stretch, so you don’t get this gripping action on the barrel of the spool. Attach the mono to the ‘Super line’ using a ‘Grinner to Grinner knot’ as mentioned previously.
Getting a run – Exaggerated striking, even at big distances, such as you might require using monofilament is not
necessary. Remember that every inch you move the tip of your rod is an inch of movement at the terminal
arrangement (hook).
Following are some tips to reduce the incidence of whip knots while fishing with a spinning reel:
1. Do not overfill the reel - leave at least 1/8" of rim at the top.
2. Close the bail arm manually.
3. Before you begin your retrieve, pull on the line after you've closed the bail to make sure all the wraps are tight.
Pulling on the line only takes a second while you're waiting for the bait to fall. This will reduce 90% of the problems!
Coloring ‘Super lines’ – The color is simply there to encapsulate the fiber, and in time will wear off. This is
normal, and the strength and performance of the line will not be affected, If you want to re-colour the line, simply take a permanent marker and color the last few meters whatever color best suits the situation you are fishing in.
‘Super lines’ as a hook length?
So what about using these new ‘Super lines’ as a hook length material?
Well, the answer has to be a yes! However, before we come to this conclusion, there is always the alleged problem / potential that braids can cause mouth damage. Some suggesting braids refusal to stretch under pressure plus, the very thin diameter of the braid acting almost like a ‘cheese wire’. Personally I’m not convinced, I have caught dozens of carp over the years utilizing braided hook lengths and braid as a mainline, very big fish included, and have seen no resulting damage.
I would like here to quote Tony Davies Patrick, who responded with the following, when posed with the question recently.
"I have used the 50 lb test braid (Spiderwire Spectra 2000) for hook lengths on thousands of fish and have never had problems with mouth damage. I use it and trust it. Only problem is that I can only get it in USA, and the bulk spools I need, it means a big lump out of my wallet!
But this is counteracted by the fact that the line lasts, and lasts and lasts…"
Need I say more?? Well yes, the fact is that a 20 lb breaking strain super line is the equivalent of a 6 lb mono, a 50 lb ‘Super line’ equivalent to 12 lb mono, with diameters in mm being 0.15 and 0.36 respectively.
The ‘Super line’ is therefore significantly thinner in diameter than other conventional braids on the market at
present.
For knotting your hook to a length of ‘Super line’ the ‘Palomar knot’ or 5 turn ‘Grinner knot’ is recommended.
Power Pro, which is manufactured by Innovative Textiles, Inc. appears at present to be by far the best new age
‘Super line’ on the market, most of the bad qualities which have been described above have been eliminated from Power Pro line.
Be warned though, as Spectra became more and more popular, a lot the other companies started selling their own version of it. Unfortunately, to save on costs, some of these companies blended Dacron with Spectra. This resulted in the line breaking well below its Test Rating. The breakage was due to the fact that the Dacron fibers stretched, whereas the Spectra fibers did not stretch, thus causing the Spectra fibers to break due to the fact that they were taking the majority of the strain.
To summarize, the new age ‘Spectra Fiber super braided fishing lines’ are awesome and definitely the line to use if sensitivity, high strength, good abrasion resistance and mega distances (if required) is what you are after.
ow....my fingers are sprained.....