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Recommendation for Mono Line

6K views 23 replies 21 participants last post by  fishit 
#1 ·
Looking for a good recommendation for 20# mono line. Looking for thin diameter, good abrasion resistant and smooth casting. I am currently using Berklee "Iron Silk" but about to run out due to being discontinued. Any good alternative to that, I will be happy.
 
#2 ·
Perfect time to make the switch to braid. Lol. It may be a little frustrating at first but after a few trips it isn’t a big deal at all and you will wonder how you caught fish before. It’s amazing how much more feel you have. Can feel that super soft bite when they barely pick it up and every blade of grass or oyster shell. I feel like I’m fishing with a rubber band when I use mono now.

I still do have a reel or two with mono for certain conditions. My favorite mono for a while has been Suffix Siege.

Suffix Siege (blue package) is more abrasion resistant than the Suffix Elite (red package), with the obvious trade off being a little stiffer.
If you fish with a spinning reel and more open water I’d try the Elite. If you use a baitcaster and fish more structure, start with the Siege.
 
#3 ·
Perfect time to make the switch to braid. Lol. It may be a little frustrating at first but after a few trips it isn’t a big deal at all and you will wonder how you caught fish before. It’s amazing how much more feel you have. Can feel that super soft bite when they barely pick it up and every blade of grass or oyster shell. I feel like I’m fishing with a rubber band when I use mono now.

I still do have a reel or two with mono for certain conditions. My favorite mono for a while has been Suffix Siege.

Suffix Siege (blue package) is more abrasion resistant than the Suffix Elite (red package), with the obvious trade off being a little stiffer.
If you fish with a spinning reel and more open water I’d try the Elite. If you use a baitcaster and fish more structure, start with the Siege.
Appreciate. I actually do use braided but only with my popping cork/live bait set-ups, mono only for my soft-plastic/lure setups. I like using mono for my softplastics because the line seems to sink faster. Suffix Siege looks pretty good.
 
#7 ·
When I still used mono, I used Berkely Trilene Big Game & Ande. But I agree with the above comment on heavy mono being a beast for casting. I used to use 14# on my spinners for fishing the jetties or soaking bait in the surf (along with a 30# mono leader) and 10# mono on my baitcasters for chunking lures (with a 30# fluoro leader).

But braid really is a game changer. It took me a good 6 years after most of my buddies were using braid to make the change. You could not pay me to use mono anymore.
 
#9 ·
Big Game and PLine CSXX are the two best monofilament lines I know of. Pline tested stronger with better knot holding ability as well.

Monofilament has a density slightly less than water so it actually floats. Braids act differently but mostly float do to air entrapped in the line. But if you use a leader of 3'+ its not really an issue. The sensitivity with braid far outweighs monos ability. That said, mono is great for topwater plugs and anything that is a floater diver.

20lb mono is way overkill for soft plastics for trout, reds, and even big flounder unless you're fishing big rocks and need the power to break off hooks that are getting stuck or have the increased abrasion resistance. I'd go with 10lb or 12lb that's plenty.

I do agree with the others that 30lb braid is better for soft plastics, it's also better for suspending plugs.
 
#10 ·
I use all 3 types of line for fishing and for Topwaters, I still use mono/copoly.
12# McCoys Xtra clear is what I use mostly. I have to order it but it’s way better than big game to me. Limp, very abrasion resistant, and cheap. Lasts a long time too. One of my Bass fishing tourney friends turned me on to it years ago. He uses it for everything.
 
#14 ·
I almost exclusively fish soft plastic and have used Trilene Big Game for over 20 years and it has never let me down. It's great for areas with oyster shell due to great abrasion resistance. I have tried many other lines and have always come back to Big Game. Also, 20# seems very heavy for soft plastic. I use 12# to get better distance.
 
#15 · (Edited)
Braid Vs. Mono

I am 68 years old. I grew up fishing the in the Corpus Christi area and started fishing when I was seven years old. Actually the first place I ever fished was College Port, Texas. Caught a 12” Croaker and been fishing ever since. Had relatives that owned property in Matagorda County. Anyway grew up fishing Ocean Drive, Padre Island Surf, and Upper Laging Madre in the Corpus area. I used Mono Line exclusively on a Mitchell Spinning Reel on a Black Harrell Rod. Used 8 to 12 lb. mono. Very seldom broke off. Used live and dead shrimp mostly. I currently use 10 to 15 lb. mono on Spinning and bait casting reels. Use no leaders. Catch a lot of average size speckle Trout and Redfish including oversized Redfish throwing nothing but artificial. Mostly Corkie’s. Very Very seldom break off. I use no leaders. I too use Big Game Trilene.

We have a place in Rockport, Texas and that is the area I Fish now.
 
#16 ·
Appreciate all the replies/suggestions. I am having to use mono due to budget and looking to get the best bang for the buck. Still have a boat payment and a kid in college lol!!! After boat is paid off, I will purchase more braid. Looks like I will start to utilize 12# as well.
 
#17 ·
I have always used original Stren, mainly braid these days but can’t really tell you that one feels or works better than another. I have fluorocarbon on one real but again can’t tell the difference.

I can say I wasted at least $50 on braid when first learning to cast it.
 
#21 ·
Depends I use a rods length of fluro 15 or 20 for leaders OR Ande 15 depending on how fast I want the baits to sink for corkies and such since one line sinks and the other tends to float and whether I am fishing sand/grass or oyster bars.



I used to use 20 braid but found that 30 does not do nearly as many professional over runs as the 20 in power pro. Like 20 braid on the spinning reels with about 20 feet of mono for a lot of things.
 
#23 · (Edited)
In the bays I use Ande Back Country #12 mono exclusively. Great abrasion resistance, less stretch than cheaper mono, and nice and supple. In my opinion, braid has it's place offshore on tuna popping rods and AJ/snapper setups, but not inshore.
 
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