New braid - Berkley Big Game

[Pete_G]

Originally Posted by NIB

Never under stood this love affar with whiplash.i tried it i found it to have half the abrasion resistence of fire line in fact it has a bout the same reisitence as power pro which i never considered very good Either.Seems Power Pro Is the line of choice cause it is so readily available.Like Pete G i live in fear the will do away with fireline.

I'm going back to 30# Fireline in the surf this year for all the reasons I love 14# on my light tackle gear in the boat. It's just ridiculously strong, tough, and well behaved. I think it's the layout of the fibers. On Power Pro and many others it's clearly a braid, with Fireline the fibers run lengthwise and I think that's where the abrasion resistance comes from. I heard at some point that Fireline is in fact extruded, but I can't remember where.

I'll also second the idea the Power Pro is a favorite mostly due to availability. It's rare to find a shop that carries all 3 Firelines if they carry it at all.

[JFigliuolo]

Originally Posted by Pete_G

I'm going back to 30# Fireline in the surf this year for all the reasons I love 14# on my light tackle gear in the boat. It's just ridiculously strong, tough, and well behaved. I think it's the layout of the fibers. On Power Pro and many others it's clearly a braid, with Fireline the fibers run lengthwise and I think that's where the abrasion resistance comes from. I heard at some point that Fireline is in fact extruded, but I can't remember where.

...

Will you fish Fireline in the rocks? I lost confidence in braid in the rocks last year.

[NIB]

I had a fish only 20 lbs on time sub my lure right in the curl of the last wave on the other side of o rock.I loosened my drag an fought the fish the whole time with the line rapped around the rock.At the very last minute i was able to get the line free an beach the fish.I remember this for 2 reasons one the obvious an 2 when I slid the fish up on the beach an dropped the rod the plug ploinked right out of him.
Now it was only 20lbs not 40 some say that size fight better.this one had some spunk.No fishing line is rock proof.U just put minimal pressure wit ur hand on some barnacles an u can get bloody.There has to have been 20 different braids introduced since I been usin fireline.Its still the only line for me.

[Pete_G]

Originally Posted by JFigliuolo

Will you fish Fireline in the rocks? I lost confidence in braid in the rocks last year.

The reason I'm moving back to Fireline is I finally gave up on Power Pro in the rocks.

We were actually discussing this on another board too. General consensus was that Fireline is much better then Power Pro in the rocks and one member felt it was even better the Berkley Big Game in the rocks.

[Slipknot]

well Tony, I can't get any where near the distance casting jigs with 30 lb fireline as I can with the 65 lb whiplash.
I love fireline, been using it since it came out. it's a polymer not a braid.
I still have about 8 years worth of whiplash.

[NIB]

Originally Posted by Slipknot

well Tony, I can't get any where near the distance casting jigs with 30 lb fireline as I can with the 65 lb whiplash.
I love fireline, been using it since it came out. it's a polymer not a braid.
I still have about 8 years worth of whiplash.

U cast plenty far.

[Steve K]

Power pro is awful around rocks. I use it when I fish sandy beaches, off of a boat, and at the canal. If I use braid around rocks it is either spectron on my conventionals or 30# Fireline on my 706z. I still prefer to use big game around rocks. I have caught fish in boulder fields that I know would have cut me off had I been using braid. However, if distance is important then I will use braid.

[Diamond Tackle]

"30# Fireline on my 706z"
thats the magic formula right there, I never lost a fish around rocks with 30# fireline. 20# is great if you need to reach fish at 125 yards+ with a pencil popper, which it will do.
Whiplash still has a special place in my heart though,mainly because if its very thin diameter(i used the 50# only) I was able to fish in very strong currents and maintain complete control of a jig on the bottom.NIB knows the place Im talking about.
Been usin the Stren Super Braid with no problems,but the mickey mouse 125 yd spools are a disaster just waiting to happen.

[JFigliuolo]

Originally Posted by Pete_G

The reason I'm moving back to Fireline is I finally gave up on Power Pro in the rocks.

We were actually discussing this on another board too. General consensus was that Fireline is much better then Power Pro in the rocks and one member felt it was even better the Berkley Big Game in the rocks.

PP couldn't suck more in the rocks. Spider Wire stealth is marginally better but I had a number of fish rub against a rock and twang... nothing.

Where's that discussion at?

[Mr. Sandman]

I like PP because of the small dia. The advantages in the wind get me more fish then the few I loose on a rock. It will outcast any line and I tried many of them head to head during the day with the same rod/reel/lure. On a relative basis, fireline is super thick and is like wire. Because of this feature, it is the only braid that is even possible to cast on a penn. Anything else will be a nightmare. If you have a penn and want to fish braid, fireline is your only choice. (and even then you will have problems)
PP rubbing on the rocks is not great. If your fishing line is in contact with lots of rocks all the time you're better off with mono IMO. Do the test. Go into a tackle shop and ask for 3' of every line brand in the same test. Take a length of line put good tension on it and rub it against a big rough rock, count how many passes until it fails. Mono will outlast any braid. If you fish like that, where you are constantly scraping rocks braid it bad news.

That said, I fish 95% braid. (PP) I fish near rocks and try to avoid hard core scraping of line on the rock itself. Sometimes it can not be avoided, I know, but IMO, the benifits outweigh the drawbacks. It allows me to get to fish that I could not get to with any other line. Not to mention the hookset, and fight is far better the braid.

[Pete_G]

Originally Posted by JFigliuolo

PP couldn't suck more in the rocks. Spider Wire stealth is marginally better but I had a number of fish rub against a rock and twang... nothing.

Where's that discussion at?

The thread on the other website was originally about catching big fish in the rocks. Pretty much the same people in that thread are talking about Fireline here.

[In The Surf]

Originally Posted by Pete_G

The reason I'm moving back to Fireline is I finally gave up on Power Pro in the rocks.

We were actually discussing this on another board too. General consensus was that Fireline is much better then Power Pro in the rocks and one member felt it was even better the Berkley Big Game in the rocks.

I'll explain it a little more. There's a spot in Westerly and in Charlestown where I lost some nice fish in the rocks. This was with Power Pro and Big Game. I stepped it up to 25# Big Game and gave up some distance which isn't that big a deal because I didn't need to get it out that far just wanted my line to handle going through a boulder field and around rocks while under some tension. I could feel the line twanging like a piano string sometimes and wonder how bad it just got nicked and if I'd lose another fish and at times another $20 plus plug. Even when I didn't hook up I was still cutting back a good amount of line from the abrasions. I be respooling too often. I was fishing with Tony O and Redlite and mentioned my disgust with Power Pro and some other lines in the rocks. Mike suggested I try the 30# Fireline that it performs and holds up well in the rocks. Glad I did, I was thouroghly impressed with its performance and how well it held up in the boney spots I fished. It may be somewhat stiff when first spooled on but breaks in nicely and casts well after a good outing or two. I have three spools for my mostly used set ups, the 30# fireline is used the most because most of my fishing is in and around the rocks, 30# Power Pro for open, clean water and Big Game for some deeper water places I like to use poppers because of its bouyancy.