The Benefits of Using Braided Line in Saltwater Fishing

While some people hate it and others love it, spooling reels with braided line is a trend that is growing in popularity in the saltwater fishing scene.

Braided line is very hardy and has more strength packed into the smaller diameter, contrary to its stretch cohort, monofilament line. Braided line holds up especially well in the bay systems that are usually full of shell obstructions and submerged rocks. In these areas, monofilament often comes up short.

Greg Bagby is a devoted plugger of the Matagorda Bay system who made the switch to braid in saltwater a few years ago. “I originally used braided lines in freshwater for bass,” states Bagby. “Using braid for bass is tough to beat when you have to horse them through thick grass.” “It’s easier to work a topwater; this is my primary reason for using it particularly in heavy winds and on the ends of casts.”

Greg Bagby is just one angler among many that have taken a liking to the 8 diameter-30 pound test. “I always rig my line with no leader and use a small clip or a connector. This works really well when you need to change out lures quickly.” Loop knots are another great connection choice.

First-time users will quickly learn how easily they can lose a fish when the drag is set incorrectly. “Remember to loosen the drag lighter that you would with monofilament,” says Bagby. He states that the lips of speckled trout are soft and a no stretch line with a tight drag will likely result in lost fish.

The line offers durability and strength, but he has found the line to bury and knot in the spool on occasions. “Backlashes may be less often, but those that occur will have you trudging back to the boat.” However for Greg Bagby, the pros of braid outweigh the cons.

“There is no need to change my line often and the sensitivity is great. The slack in my line has decreased drastically since I have been spooling braid rather than mono,” states Captain Bubba Simons, a guide that works both offshore and the middle coast bay. He says he is favoring the use of braid more and more each day during his redfish and trout charters. “I’ll be spooling all my offshore reels with braided line very soon.”

“Braid works incredibly well if you’re using live bait with spinning reels.” Simons also states that braid will be less prone to creating slack, so check those fishing reports and get moving.

When rigging a 10 diameter-40 pound test braid, he chooses a fluorocarbon leader at the end of the line. “I have seen the fluorocarbon bring a lot more strikes,” states Simons. “One time last summer when the surf got real clear, I was fishing beside an angler that was using the same lure as me, but he didn’t have a fluorocarbon leader. The fish were definitely biting my lure a lot more often than his.