Just got around to getting all my casting setups for this year oiled/lubed and matched to particular rods for specific presentations. Actually had a "first" in quite some time - first time in over 10 years that I'll have a casting outfit with mono on it  ...two, actually. Been a straight fluoro user for over a decade on my casting outfits, with the exception of a frog and punching setup of straight braid. I probably really only need one mono outfit, but since the spool was 600 yards, I figured I could live with a second one just so it doesn't go to waste - lol. I actually looked at the manufacturers date code on my last mono spools I still had, and those were from 2002 

 

I think I might go buy a couple Pop-Rs and some Spooks to add to the tacklebox this year - lol.

 

Say it ain’t so!

?

 

 

 

 

Mike

I use Fluoro most of the time also. I like the sensitivity and less problems on windy days.

 

But for topwater fishing, I use some old Berkley Ironsilk made in 2007! I still have four or five spools of it. It sinks slower than regular mono.

I use copolymer mostly with a little braid here and there. Last year I used 10lb mono for small cranks and poppers and liked it more then i thought i would.Decided to pick up 15lb big game to use for square bills and lipless on a couple rods this year. Then I remembered that all I used was big game and stren mono back in the day often times on underpowered rods and had no issue hooking fish even on Texas rigs and frogs. Makes you wonder.

1 minute ago, DitchPanda said:

I use copolymer mostly with a little braid here and there. Last year I used 10lb mono for small cranks and poppers and liked it more then i thought i would.Decided to pick up 15lb big game to use for square bills and lipless on a couple rods this year. Then I remembered that all I used was big game and stren mono back in the day often times on underpowered rods and had no issue hooking fish even on Texas rigs and frogs. Makes you wonder.

 

Before I went all fluoro, I was all Big Game for about 20 years. Not surprisingly, the two outfits I spooled up are with 15# Big Game; one for topwaters, and one for squarebills and other misc. precision casting.

 

Thought mono was "CANCELED"!

 

 

Karl

12 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

 

Before I went all fluoro, I was all Big Game for about 20 years. Not surprisingly, the two outfits I spooled up are with 15# Big Game; one for topwaters, and one for squarebills and other misc. precision casting.

Big game is a weird line to me. Its like the bobber and night crawler equivalent for bass fishing. What I mean by this is it is the line that a ton of anglers lean on when they first start seriously bass fishing. Its perfect for that because its cheap, tough, readily available and fairly manageable. Then as we get more sophisticated we move on to bigger and better lines because there is no way it can be good because the price is to low. Then one day we realize what we want in a line for cranking...castabilty and abrasion resistance..so many come back to big game. I'm in no way saying its the best line in the world...but for price compared to performance its much better than people think...or at least want to admit.

Also will ad that yes while it may not be the best option for bottom techniques I caught thousands of bass on it using a texas rigged worm before I realized it "wasn't good" for that.

I'm giving Fluoro another chance this year on my jig/t-rig setups. I tried some cheap stuff once several years ago and promptly swore it off after a couple of breakoffs without noticing any appreciable advantages over Big Game mono. Since then price of the better quality fluoros has kept me away, as I'm deeply skeptical of the added value per added cost over that of big game, or even Izor XXX or YZH.  This time I got some 15lb invisx from the TW sale, so we'll see.

11 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

Big game is a weird line to me. Its like the bobber and night crawler equivalent for bass fishing. What I mean by this is it is the line that a ton of anglers lean on when they first start seriously bass fishing. Its perfect for that because its cheap, tough, readily available and fairly manageable. Then as we get more sophisticated we move on to bigger and better lines because there is no way it can be good because the price is to low. Then one day we realize what we want in a line for cranking...castabilty and abrasion resistance..so many come back to big game. I'm in no way saying its the best line in the world...but for price compared to performance its much better than people think...or at least want to admit.

Also will ad that yes while it may not be the best option for bottom techniques I caught thousands of bass on it using a texas rigged worm before I realized it "wasn't good" for that.

 

I've always operated on 'standards' and 'controls' given my background. When it comes to "mono," Big Game is one of those to me. Anything in its category gets compared to it, and I don't change unless there is a real good case that can be made for change. Back in "the day," I never came across a reason to change from it. Needless to say, I still think that highly of it. There is a lot to be said for having intimate familarity with a given product due to years and years of use, which many people never really achieve because they are constantly trying the newest "stuff" looking for the next best thing. 

 

 

5 minutes ago, MIbassyaker said:

I'm giving Fluoro another chance this year on my jig/t-rig setups. I tried some cheap stuff once several years ago and promptly swore it off after a couple of breakoffs without noticing any appreciable advantages over Big Game mono. Since then price of the better quality fluoros has kept me away, as I'm deeply skeptical of the added value per cost over that of big game, or even Izor XXX or YZH.  This time I got some 15lb invisx from the TW sale, so we'll see.

 

InvizX is great stuff, another "standard" or "control" in my book. I've used it A LOT over the past 10 years. Just remember that mono and fluoro are rated differently. If you purchase your line by using diameter as your guide, you'll be a lot better off (and a lot happier) in the long run. Too many people overlook this, IMHO.

11 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

Big game is a weird line to me. Its like the bobber and night crawler equivalent for bass fishing. What I mean by this is it is the line that a ton of anglers lean on when they first start seriously bass fishing. Its perfect for that because its cheap, tough, readily available and fairly manageable. Then as we get more sophisticated we move on to bigger and better lines because there is no way it can be good because the price is to low. Then one day we realize what we want in a line for cranking...castabilty and abrasion resistance..so many come back to big game. I'm in no way saying its the best line in the world...but for price compared to performance its much better than people think...or at least want to admit.

Also will ad that yes while it may not be the best option for bottom techniques I caught thousands of bass on it using a texas rigged worm before I realized it "wasn't good" for that.

 

There are better lines, and there are cheaper lines.  But if there is a line with a better ratio of performance to price, I don't know what it is. 

2 hours ago, Team9nine said:

Just got around to getting all my casting setups for this year oiled/lubed and matched to particular rods for specific presentations. Actually had a "first" in quite some time - first time in over 10 years that I'll have a casting outfit with mono on it  ...two, actually. Been a straight fluoro user for over a decade on my casting outfits, with the exception of a frog and punching setup of straight braid. I probably really only need one mono outfit, but since the spool was 600 yards, I figured I could live with a second one just so it doesn't go to waste - lol. I actually looked at the manufacturers date code on my last mono spools I still had, and those were from 2002 

 

I think I might go buy a couple Pop-Rs and some Spooks to add to the tacklebox this year - lol.

 

Is that 15LB?

Just now, Crankin4Bass said:

Is that 15LB?

 

Yes, it is...

Big game has as high a stretch rate as you can get in mono....which can be helpful in some cases......it tends to put less force on knots.......and some say stretch helps with abrasion resistance.

 

Some of you guys using big game - have you ever considered trying something with less stretch? Trilene XT has very high knot strength but more moderate stretch.

Those are some cool looking reels

   Welcome back .... to the Dark Side   ?? ?      ???       jj

14 minutes ago, Gary_Snyder said:

Big game has as high a stretch rate as you can get in mono....which can be helpful in some cases......it tends to put less force on knots.......and some say stretch helps with abrasion resistance.

 

Some of you guys using big game - have you ever considered trying something with less stretch? Trilene XT has very high knot strength but more moderate stretch.

 

Stretch is just one property that needs to be considered among many. Personally, when you get to the levels of stretch seen with monos and copolys, I'm not convinced a little less stretch makes an appreciable difference. Anyone can actually prestretch their own line (nylons) and get decreased line stretch going forward if they choose to. XT is also larger diameter in nearly all rated tests than BG, so you have to be comparing apples to apples to make sure any comparison is valid.

 

1 minute ago, jimmyjoe said:

   Welcome back .... to the Dark Side   ?? ?      ???       jj

 

Lol - I figure I'm entitled to a couple topwater bites this year after my years of dedication to fluoro  Ten of my 12 casting outfits will still be running fluoro, so that's a good track record in favor of it.

38 minutes ago, Gary_Snyder said:

Big game has as high a stretch rate as you can get in mono....which can be helpful in some cases......it tends to put less force on knots.......and some say stretch helps with abrasion resistance.

 

Some of you guys using big game - have you ever considered trying something with less stretch? Trilene XT has very high knot strength but more moderate stretch.

I'm not entirely certain what the issue is with stretch...particularly when using big game as I indicated I use it..for treble hooked moving baits. I'd wager that if you put a lipless crank bait in your hand on a soft crank bait rod loaded with big game walked out 60 feet and let me sweep it would still hook your hand. Rods now days are so well built with power built into rods even when they have a soft tip. Also hooks are so sharp now...you even look at a gama or owner wrong and its gonna get ya. Those two things make up for alot. Getting a fish hooked on stretchy line on a forgiving rod is no longer much of an issue...after its hooked the rod and line give when needed to keep them locked up.

 

A fresh spool of mono feels so good. I don’t think I’ll ever be zero mono

24 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

Getting a fish hooked on stretchy line on a forgiving rod is no longer much of an issue

 

   Really, it never was an issue. I'm not an admirer of Dick Swan or a user of noodle rods, but if it were an issue using stretchy mono and soft rods to set hooks, noodle rods would never have existed. They are the extreme example of the "issue", their length notwithstanding.

   For a bass fisherman, though, using common lures at common retrieve speeds, the fish hooks itself. By the time you sense the hit on a moving lure, your hookset is just insurance after the fact.

   I have to admit that the newer hooks are an improvement, though. I remember sharpening hooks all the time. Glad I don't have to do that anymore.      jj

  

I’m still using all mono except the frog, mostly eagle claw brand. I swear I think it was like $3 for 1500 yds , I bought it a long time ago and don’t know if I’ll ever use it all haha. The stuff is strong, I can usually pull my boat over to the snag when I get stuck with 6 lb on spinning rod. I still use 20 lb mono for top water sometimes, it helps when battling 20”+ smallmouth. I use 12 lb mono for most of my baitcasters, it works for just about everything (Texas rig, jerkbait, topwater, rattle trap, etc)

When I first started fishing about 8 years ago I used mono on a spinning reel and hated it. Coils everywhere.

 

A friend told me to try braid, I tried it and stuck with it. About two or three years ago I tried 15lb big game on a baitcasting reel. Line kept jumping off the reel, threw it in the trash. 

 

This week I thought back and realized I probably didn't spool it correctly after reading such positive reviews about big game mono. Then I came across a YouTube video of a guy who showed how to stretch the line and the difference it made.

 

So I spooled up one reel with 10lb big game mono for squarebills and light spinnerbaits and 14lb BPS tourney tough mono that I have used for leaders. After spooling properly and stretching the line to remove the memory, I am much happier with how it handles now. 

 

Our waters are frozen so just been pitching a casting plug around the house but it handles well and seems sensitive enough while dragging the plug across the floor. Can't wait to try it out this season and test how it does in real world usage. I did tie the line to the coffee table and walked about 25ft to the door and tried a hook set, the stretch wasn't that bad and my drag will slip with any more force anyways. 

 

I will stick stick with braid to leader on my spinning set up, but leader knots have caused me problems here and there on casting set ups. Curious to try it out and see. I also use fast and extra fast action rods so don't think it will hurt the hook up ratio, maybe it will require a stronger hookset not sure yet. 

Had a friend that had Mono in school. It really messed up his head. Well now that I think about his head was not right before the Mono.? Goodluck. 

I don't know if anyone has mentioned it, but your handles are on the wrong side.

 

I jest.

I went the opposite direction, trying Fluorocarbon for 17 months. I've tried Seaguar Red Label, AbrazX, InvizX, & ain't wasting my money on Tatsu.

 

Tried Sunline Sniper/Shooter, Gamma, Berkley 100% Fluorocarbon, & Lake Fork Fluorohybrid FH.

 

First issue is coils, y'all complain about Big Game coiling, rotflmao.  Fluorocarbon is so bad ya gotta walk around with a  bottle of juice in you pocket just to try to tame it.

 

Second i can only spool one reel & then I'm left with enough line to give my daughter for arts & crafts.

 

Third abrasion resistance! Fluorocarbon is fine for grass, anything harder than that it is less than stellar.

 

Then i gotta contend with a line that after i repeatedly apply extreme pressure it will break.

 

Stretch in my opinion is a sales gimmick ?

I still like mono line for all my fishing.