I am switching from Berkley Trilene XL Mono 14lb to Fireline fused in 10lb test......1st time ever using a braided or fused type of line. I will be putting it on my Pflueger GSX-7 spinning reel and i just wanted to know how much mono i should keep on the reel to put Fireline on top of so it won't slip or dig into reel. My reel is rated for 6lb/185yds, up to 10lb/120yds using Mono. I plan on picking up the small spool of Fireline in 125yds and putting the whole thing on top of XL i have on there now but realize that this Fireline only has 4lb test diameter so do you think i can get away with keeping half the spool filled with Mono because i want new line to come almost all the way to the top 1/8" from full? Or should i play it safe and take off more Mono because i don't want to have any leftover Fireline or overfill spool too much?.......Also should i put a strip of black tape over Mono also before i start to spool new line? Finally, what size Fluoro leader would you recommend to use with #10 Fireline, i was going to use #8lb or #10lb?

Having two reel spools is helpful in determining how much mono to use as backing. Spool the Fireline onto your spare spool first then complete filling it with the mono backing. Fill it as you prefer then spool it onto the second spool to use. If you are going to use a leader choose whatever brand and diameter is right for the presentation you are fishing. Remember, you are now fishing the leader and the Fireline has become backing.

oe

5-10 mono wraps is plenty enough to grip the spool and prevent the superline from slipping. You can conserve superline by splitting the spool in half and spooling only half of it onto the reel with an appropriate amount of backing. JMHO, there isn't really much sense in spooling a reel with expensive stuff that will never see the light of day. A very long cast is about a hundred feet (33 yards). So if you split a 125 yd spool in half, 60+ yds gives you plenty of superline to take care of re-tying for a long time. The only time I don't is when I may use the rod/line for saltwater species that can really strip drag. Fireline is one of the best handling, longest casting, and longest lasting superlines. I think you'll like it.

While many people will split a new spool of braid and use it on two reels, I don't consider this conserving the braided line. Consider: Split 120yds of braid and spool on the 60yds with backing. Retie 90 times using 1 foot of braided line each time. At 30yds of remaining braid you decide you are casting to the backing knot and need to replace the braid. You discard 30yds of braid x2 for both reels originally spooled. You've discarded a total of 60yds from the original 120yd filler spool.

If you had spooled the entire 120yds of braid onto one reel you would still be replacing the line when you reached 30yds, but now are discarding only 30yds of the original filler spool and are using an additional 30yds. You will have to add backing as the spool of braid is used. If you use the discarded braid as backing for the next filler spool you probably won't be bothered by the backing knot as soon and will use even more of the braid before you re-spool.

You may choose different numbers to fit into the equation but the concept remains the same, using the entire spool of braid on only one reel will double the original cost to spool your reels but will save you up to 25% over the life of that spool of braid.

oe

I like the way that sounds Oko