I use conventional casting rods/reels 90% of the time. I have 3 Shimano Calcutta’s . In the spring/summer I used 50# Power Pro on all. One morning I was making a lot of short casts and before long all 3 had the nastiest rats nests. The only time I have this problem is w/ short casts.

So, I went home and ripped all the PP off the reels and replaced w/mono. Same issue, short casts resulted in rat nests galore. After a few weeks using mono, I switched 1 of the reels back to PP braid and realized how much I missed casting and fishing w/ braid.

I learned how to fish w/conventional gear as a kid and all we used was mono. Most of my fishing was done from the beach, so short casts were not a real issue. However, I took 18 years off to do the fly-fishing thing and now I am re-learning conventional gear.

Am I doing something wrong? Is PP a good braid? Is there a better braid for plugging? Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Spring is just around the corner!

I tried a lot of combinations and now I primarily use mono on my conventional reels. You may want to give Ande Backcountry a try. I started using it this year on the advice of others and I really like it.

Calcutta 400 does well with 20lb fireline. More likely, however, your backlash is related to the short cast. Probably the lure is landing before the loosened line from the inital acceleration hasn't all run off the spool, so each cast results in further loosening of the line beneath what has been cast.

I'm giving it one more try with fireline .. I've cut brand new PP off my spool twice when I had a break-off, after line dug down in the spool on the cast . I think its me .. I was taught to wind the line (mono) as level as possible and that would help get distance on the next cast . I think with braid you might have to cross it more ,,not lay it next to itself . Tough unlearning though .

65 PP on all my conv. No probs

65 PP on all my conv. No probs

You thumb wind ? throw plugs ? throw jigs to 6 ounces ? Serious .. this is what I plan on doing .. Throwing 6 puts alot of pressure on spool .

Tagger, I'm a levelwind guy. From eels to 6.5oz with the 65PP. Calcutta700's or 7000CL's.

Thumbing the line back on the spool is easier when throwing jigs - especially heavy stuff. Most people have trouble when plugging due to uneven pressure when returning the line and working the plugs. Plugging is done best with a level wind reel. The learning curve is pretty high when learning to use conventional - If the lure snapped off on the cast, it was probably because the line wasn't properly retrieved on the previous cast. A small bump on the spool will bring disaster on the following cast. Cross the line and do not try and lay it right next to each other. If necessary, when reeling in keep the pressure about the same by running the line under your thumb when laying it on the spool or between the thumb and finger to maintain constant pressure.
I have found power pro better on the convench than fireline. It is rounder and doesn't dig into the spool as easy. Stay with the 65 lb. until you are used to it. -- A smooth even cast will yeild a better cast and more distance.:whackin:

Thank you for the feedback. I will try the heavier 65# PP.
Unless someone can shed some new light on a better braid.

The learning curve is pretty high when learning to use conventional -
Its not that.. got conventional as baby toy... did all my freshwater growing with it ..talking 6yrs old... just been spin fishing last 2 years fishing small lures and braid .. Its the Braid that makes me googan like .. :bc: :crying:

also fished nylon squid line (braid) yrs past ... NP . :boots:

Tagger - ever fished linen - Assinippi line? That was my favorite line for the 140 squidder. When jiggin the ditch, the line had so much drag you had to throw at least 5 ounces to find bottom. Favorite jig was the eeelskin jig. Probably about 50 pounds of those on the bottom. :walk:

Tagger - ever fished linen - Assinippi line? That was my favorite line for the 140 squidder. When jiggin the ditch, the line had so much drag you had to throw at least 5 ounces to find bottom. Favorite jig was the eeelskin jig. Probably about 50 pounds of those on the bottom. :walk:

I don't know what we use to fish when we were kids ,,, it was black.. and thin like braid ... we called it cat gut ,, thats what we thought it was .

If you're worried about the line digging in: When you wind in, think of a big screw, the line being the threads. Do a coupla layers of veryfine thread followed by a coupla layers of coarse thread. The coarse thread layers stop the line from digging in more than a coupla wraps. Works for me. Before I started doing this, I was cutting whole spools off.

Cortland braid in 30# or 50#. The line doesn't bury in itself and lays on the smooth. I had a great season with it. I use it on my slosh 20, 7000C3, 6500CL, 7000i and BG 7000

Cortland braid in 30# or 50#. The line doesn't bury in itself and lays on the smooth. I had a great season with it. I use it on my slosh 20, 7000C3, 6500CL, 7000i and BG 7000

used it on my VS for 1/2 the year great line 50 #