REELS, RODS, AND BRAID

[Swimmer]

YES!

[1dozenraw]

5. Glance at the top of the spool frequently to make sure there is no loop over the top of the spool.

There's a guy who fishes at the end of the B-way, uses Rangers only and uses a 650SS. He wears a glove on his right hand and retrieves his plug while keeping the line running through his thumb and 1st finger. I think the reel is loaded with Power Pro. Not sure his technique is necessary, but that all he does, watched him for a few years and he does not get knots.

[piemma]

I use 7500 and 8500 with PP slick and Suffix 832 and never had a problem in over 100 nights last year

[seadogg]

I was introduced to and began regularly using braided line about 7 or 8 years ago. Back then i was using a Penn 6500SS, and the advantages of the Power-Pro braided line were immediately apparent--- until the dreaded birdnest struck, and it seemed like one after another occurred! I noticed that the line wold wind on unevenly, forming a conical profile with the widest portion at the top of the spool. One look would tell you this wasn't a good thing. I then learned that stacking nylon washers under the spool would change the line's profile and even it out. As if that wasn't enough, the bail would periodically trip during a cast, causing me to lose my pricey wooden plug. Not to be defeated, I removed the bail-wire arm (the one without the line roller) and placed a small nylon washer between it and the rotor. This simple mod prevented the bail from ever flipping again. Problem solved! As i discovered soon after, an over-full spool was more apt to tangle, but the problem would usually solve itself. Now i use different reels which seem to handle braid much better, but i also switched to Daiwa Samurai Braid about 4 years ago. This line is incredible. Thinner, rounder, smoother and much more supple than Power-Pro (even the Slick-8).

[striper junkie]

Closing the bail by hand is a good idea. Some of the old penn's line rollers don't like braid from what I hear. I use fireline on my old 704z. That works fine and I've strayed away from trying other types of braid on old penns from just what people say. I have, although, seen many people fish power pro on older penns with no issues. I personally don't like power pro and switched to cortland master braid a couple years ago. Love the stuff, will never look back. But if you have trouble with regular braid, try the fused 20 or 30# firleine.