BRAIDED LINE

Question
I am thinking of trying braided line for bass fishing. Should I tie on a mono leader or just tie my lures directly to the braid.

Answer
Hi Bob,

Some people tie directly to the braid.  I do not and would not recommend it unless you are fishing some very muddy water.  Visibility is an issue with braids.  I don't care what the line companies say.  And, that new crystal braid is almost worse than the smoke colored stuff.

I did an experiment last season at a clear lake in northern Wisconsin.  It's a lake I know very well and have fished for many years.  I tried 15# Fireline and a three foot fluorocarbon leader.  My catches were terrible.  I went to an 8 foot leader and things got better.  It wasn't until I got to a 15 foot leader that I felt like my strikes were the same as mono.  At that point I felt that with a 15 foot leader what was the point of the braid.  

I am not a big fan of the braids.  I build a lot and fix a lot of rods.  In the past 5 years I'd say that 75% of the breaks are due to braid.  Something has to give and it's not the braid.

I'd recommend a mono leader about twice the length of the rod.  This is so that when the fish is boatside you have mono from the fish to the reel.  That braid has no stretch and you can pull out hooks with a short amount of line out.  

Good fishing!

Marc