I’ve fished everything this year. Found what I really like mono for. But I fish jigs and Texas rigs basically all

the time. And I just can’t decide whether I like straight braid or flourocarbon better. We have light to moderate cover. Mostly sparse grass and filamentous algae. Nothing insane like when I lived in Florida. I’ve been fishing suffix 832 30 pound and invizx 12 pound. I wana step up to 15. I like the hook sets with braid but it is rough on the mouths of smaller fish. Idk seemed like a fun post for a Saturday morning. What’s your thought? 

I’m pretty much straight braid on everything. I have Izorline co-poly on my big swimbait setup. I run flouro leader on my BFS. 

3 minutes ago, Smirak said:

I’m pretty much straight braid on everything. I have Izorline co-poly on my big swimbait setup. I run flouro leader on my BFS. 

That’s kinda where I have been for years. Straight braid. Worked great in Florida. And it’s worked fine since moving to the Midwest. But this year I decided I’d try new stuff and hit myself all wrapped up in non sense lol

For what you’re describing (which is a lot of what I fish), I’d still be throwing mono.  Fluoro might be a little more sensitive and it definitely wins for abrasion resistance around rocks and trees, but for grass and mud I’d take mono over it for the ease of handling.  And then I prefer mono to braid just in general.  Braid is a specialist for me.

4 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

For what you’re describing (which is a lot of what I fish), I’d still be throwing mono.  Fluoro might be a little more sensitive and it definitely wins for abrasion resistance around rocks and trees, but for grass and mud I’d take mono over it for the ease of handling.  And then I prefer mono to braid just in general.  Braid is a specialist for me.

I agree with all that. I got so used to braid from living in Florida. And I really

do enjoy mono. And have don’t just fine on it. I guess I feel like I miss fish because of the perceivable stretch ya feel  

To me braid is a specialty line and I use it as such. 

I only use it for 2 1/2 presentations while all others are 100% fluorocarbon from 12#-20# depending on where and how I fish. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

10 minutes ago, Mike L said:

To me braid is a specialty line and I use it as such. 

I only use it for 2 1/2 presentations while all others are 100% fluorocarbon from 12#-20# depending on where and how I fish. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

With the cover and grass not being as heavy here. Ideally I could use it for just frogging. I’m honestly just tired of tearing up fish mouths 

I’m in the fluorocarbon group.  I only use straight braid (50#) for top water where stripers are present and for Arigs.  I also use 8/1 for crappie in the fall and early winter.  I always use fluorocarbon for jigs, shaky, and Ned.

From what you're describing, 15lb InvizX will perform very well for you.  It's an all-purpose line that will handle all but the thickest of cover.  It's been my go-to line for over a decade.

Fluorocarbon, 14 or 16 lb Sniper depending on cover, is my usual.

 

I try to save braid for frogging and true punching. You can fish lighter floating vegetation with straight fluoro and a Jika pretty well.

 

CXX is an option if you don't care for braid and want something that doesn't sink into the vegetation so quickly.

Thanks everyone!!! Looking more and more like flouro may just be what I settle on. 

I only use FC for jigs and Texas rigs. Slack line sensitivity is better

I use 12 lb Tatsu for my jig and T-rig/weight basically my go to bottom contact bait casting line. Not worried being broken by bass fighting.

Tom

For a spinning reel I'd say braid to leader but I usually throw texas rigs and jigs on a baitcaster and assuming that's what you are doing I prefer 14-17lb fluorocarbon. The thing with fluorocarbon is you usually get what you pay for and something like Strike King Contra isn't going to be in the same league as something like YGK G-Soul or Spro Gouken. FWIW I've found Sufix also makes a pretty good fluoro line the one knock I'd give it vs. a few of the others I've tried is the lb rating / diameter ratio is a bit higher and as an example their 14lb line is .013 inches in diameter vs. Spro Gouken 14lb line is .012 inches and YGK is also .013 inches but it's rated 15lb...

 

I'm personally really liking the YGK and Spro line right now for fluorocarbon. Yes they are both more expensive then some of the other stuff out there but they have consistently been the two best for me out of all the ones I've tried. I actually also like McCoy fluorocarbon although there is a bit of a difference if you are looking for something a little less expensive that one is pretty good too.

Each type of line has its own benefits. I think people try to make it to be like a specific motor oil for their car rather than a specific tool for the job. 

 

For me on baitcasters, I only use mono for some specific topwater and big swimbaits/crankbaits, straight braid for heavy vegetation and frogs, fluorocarbon for everything else (with exception of flipping on heavy braid to leader), and braid to leader on spinning. I have found braid easier to manage on spinning gear but dislike it by itself. I also use braid to leader and fluorocarbon on specific BFS setups for same reasons above. 

 

On a side note, most of the lakes I fish have a heavy amount of wood on the bottom. Straight braid is a nightmare in these conditions. Most braids act like a saw that gets caught in bark and branches. Fluorocarbon helps but it's not a complete cure.

 

This is what I have learned to use for my lakes. Yours may be different. 

Well, I’ve ran braid and mono so far and don’t mind both. With jigs and Texas rigs…man, I’m liking tough, low stretch mono right now for some reason. I whacked a bunch of fish on jigs with braid in June and early July, but the feel of mono suits me atm. I do have 20lb braid on both of my 7-3 casting rods for the heaviest cover I’ll fish. My main rig, a 7’ MH has 14lb green trilene xt mono and man, it’s so fun going toe to toe in some good weeds with it! I drug a mean, big-headed 19+ and 5lbs of weeds in on it the other day and there was no issue. My three spinning rods have 10-15-20lb braid on them. Simply go with what you really like the feel of and what keeps catching you fish. Confidence above all else my man

I use 25lb tatsu fluoro for jigs/T-rigs. Even for flipping, pitching and punching, and I’m in Florida fishing thick stuff! 
 

For me, the slack line sensitivity that fluoro has is a big deal. I just don’t have the same confidence with braid. With braid, any slack in the line while you’re working a jig/t-rig makes it so I feel like I can’t feel the bites. It makes me feel like I’m missing bites and kills my confidence. 
 

Edit to add: I do use braid for frogs.

2 hours ago, woolleyfooley said:

I use 25lb tatsu fluoro for jigs/T-rigs. Even for flipping, pitching and punching, and I’m in Florida fishing thick stuff! 
 

For me, the slack line sensitivity that fluoro has is a big deal. I just don’t have the same confidence with braid. With braid, any slack in the line while you’re working a jig/t-rig makes it so I feel like I can’t feel the bites. It makes me feel like I’m missing bites and kills my confidence. 
 

Edit to add: I do use braid for frogs.

I’m gonna grab a spool of 15 pound invizx tomm and give it another shot. 

Interesting discussion. I've used braid some, but not a huge amount. I prefer mono for most things. BUT I do love how sensitive braid is for texas rigs.

7 minutes ago, Bazoo said:

Interesting discussion. I've used braid some, but not a huge amount. I prefer mono for most things. BUT I do love how sensitive braid is for texas rigs.

I’ve fished them all. I love mono but I wil say for this purpose I like the other options a lot better. In Florida braid was pretty much all we used lol. A lease occasionally. Even in saltwater it was broad and leader 

For spinning gear, its all braid to leader.  Water around here is generally not very clear.  Blackwater lakes average about 2'-3' avg viz most of the year. In the winter it can go to 5' or a little more.  There are lakes in and around the pine barrens that are gin clear, especially in the winter, you can see 10' plus.  Thats pretty much the only time I will bring a spinning reel loaded with light FC.  All the other eggbeaters are braid to mono.  In water with viz under 3', IMO I don't think most of the fish are overly line shy.  I like the advantages of braid on casting gear, but the reason I only run 1 or 2 casting outfits with it, is how loud it is.  When braid rubs heavier grass and especially wood, I can hear it, and if my feet are in the water, I swear I can almost feel it too.  If I can hear it, must sound and feel like a tractor trailer driving by to the fish.  I really prefer FC for fishing anything but the heaviest cover, where you almost need braid, or topwater where FC hurts the actions of the bait.  I like to set the hook hard, within reason anyway.  FC allows to really put the screws to em and without harming the fish or my gear. 

Like anything else, FC has some drawbacks. 

For one, its far more costly than any other line, excluding leader material.  With decent PE, I can get at least a year of fishing in on 65 yards.  Going cheap FC is going to hurt in the long run.  Youre better off getting a quality FC off the rip, as cheaper FC can be really frustrating to use, especially in cold weather.  

Like mono FC stretches.  Unlike mono, once you put enough strain on FC to really stretch it, it weakens the line considerably, particularly if its lighter FC.   

FC doesn't have the knot strength of mono.  FC is harder than mono and has a higher density, which resist binding when knotted.  When it finally does bind, certain knots can actually damage the line by cutting into each other.  Its important to lubricate the knot very well before you cinch it down, to avoid damaging the FC.

When comparing mid level FCs, like InvizX, to cheaper mono, like BG, IME the mono has superior abrasion resistance.  When compared with mono, I think FC isn't as strong as far breaking strength goes.  If I run BG and want to go to FC I will go with a size larger.  Say im running #10 BG, I'll go to #12 Invizx.

Memory can also be an issue as well.  Good mono generally has less memory, and in can be more manageable.  

Flagship lines of FC can solve, or at the very least minimize some of the previously mentioned issues. 

Although everyone has their preferences, its up to you to find the FC that best suits your needs. 

 

On 8/9/2025 at 9:53 PM, Joedodge said:

I’m gonna grab a spool of 15 pound invizx tomm and give it another shot. 

Sweet! Let me know what you think!

28 minutes ago, woolleyfooley said:

Sweet! Let me know what you think!

I went out yesterday and today for a lil bit. Casted in the yard a lot. And then at a pond. I struggled some to dial the brakes in. It kept wanting to fluff up on the spool on the cast. Totally manageable but bothered me. I made sure to spool it a 1/8 inch below the edge of the spool. But some tinkering and some advice form @casts_by_fly got me on a much better track. It is a ton more sensitive. There is no denying that. I caught sown small fish nothing to write home about. But you can feel the jig on the slack line a lot better. A ton better. Is it any better than mono or braid? Idk I guess that’s up to the person fishing it. One thing I will say is on a long cast I could drive home a hook set on braid. With flouro it’s more like mono. You have to reel that slack up to get a good hookset on a long cast. I like it for sure though. $28 a spool like it? Not sure yet lol

I’ve become more of a fan of braid for some things, especially swim jigs. I like the sensitivity, and how it doesn’t take a big hookset . That said , I still use a lot of mono. Especially in clear water. I see

no advantage in floro 

5 hours ago, Dan N said:

I’ve become more of a fan of braid for some things, especially swim jigs. I like the sensitivity, and how it doesn’t take a big hookset . That said , I still use a lot of mono. Especially in clear water. I see

no advantage in floro 

I mean I think it’s a tad more sensitive. And it definitely doesn’t float. But I’ve caught a lot of fish on mono and braid. It casts different. That’s the thing that bugs me. Suffix elite mono is super affordable and casts amazing.