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Okay, ice fishermen, which is the ice fishing line you recommend? Let's say, for instance, I'm headed to Fish Lake the end of January. I want to catch a few perch then cut them up for splake and lakers. Is there an all-purpose line I can use? What pound strength? Is braided better than monofilament? Should I use two spools rigged up for different species of fish? Will one type of rod work or go with two of those, too? Lemme know!
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]My vote goes to Berkley Fireline or a similar fused line. They provide great abrasion resistance, no stretch, and diameter same as 6 lb mono at 20# strength. I would avoid any of the braided lines. They absorb water then freeze at twice the diameter they normally are. They will also freeze on the reel from all the water retained in the braiding. Use fluorocarbon for any leader material needs. I think by varying your leader material weight, you could be pretty versatile for the fishing you have described.[/size][/font]
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Fire line with a flourocarbon leader. Makes it a ton easier to see a fish pick up your lure and makes even the lightest bites detectable. In my mind the best combo line situation for any type of vertical jig fishing. Mono has to much memory and slack, sometimes those pick ups can be hard to see with the memory curl in the line. Plus, mono soaks up water, niether fire line or florocarbon does. Just beef up your leader for the macks.
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Is there anywhere (locally, or online) where one can purchase Fluorocarbon leader in larger quantities, and (hopefully) decrease the price per foot?
Kent
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]Cabela's, Bass Pro Shops, etc, etc,....Just about anywhere. There was a pretty good article in Fishing & Hunting News about fluorocarbons. Bottomline as with most stuff, you get what you pay for. If anyone would like to read this article and hasn't seen it. I'd be glad to scan it and pass it on. Just PM me your e-mail and I'll send it to you.[/size][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]Another way to go are the hybrid fluorocarbons. These are lines that have fuorocarbon coatings. Several companies make them; P-Line being one of the most recommended.[/size][/font]
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To date I haven't graduated to the super lines yet since most of my fishing is done for panfish and trout under 5 lbs. It's good to see some reveiws on the fireline. If you get into larger fish regularly fireline won't get chewed up on the ice as fast. For the smaller fish I still use 2 lb P-line and 4 & 6 lb Trilene XL and it has performed well for me (new fresh line is best). I always take two+ rods rigged so I don't have to retie so much in the cold and/or so I can fish multiple species. I would use a light rod for the perch and have a heavier rod for splake and macs since there you can expect to catch fairly good sized fish. The perch won't be any fun on a heavy rod.
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[size 2]I personally don't ice fish much, but I try to avoid Fireline when I do. It absorbs water and freezes. I just stick with mono.[/size]
[size 2]As for BLM's superline tips, I've found that if I stick with a palomar knot (for tying to a hook, lure, or clip) and back-to-back uni knot (for joining lines together), the knot will never slip or fail. And to prevent line slipping on the spool, another tip is not to remove all your mono from a spool before adding Fireline or PowerPro. Since the diameter of the superlines is much less than equal strength mono, it takes much more superline to fill a spoon. So leave just enough mono on the spool so that when you add the fireline, it just fills the spool (use the back-to-back uni knot to connect the Fireline to the mono). This way you only need one spool of superline to fill your spool completely, which you should always do anyway.[/size]
[size 2]And while we're on the subject of lines, if you use Berkley's Vanish for fluorocarbon, be careful when tying knots. It's extremely heat sensitive and cinching down a knot tight can cause enough friction heat to weaken the knot/line. So I wet the line thoroughly with saliva and cinch down knots when they're wet--or cinch them down under water.[/size]
[size 2]I bought a few big spools of Vanish when it first came out to use as leader material, but found it inferior to Seaguar--the real deal. So if you're buying new, buy Seaguar and stay away from Vanish. And forget what the ads say and don't even think about spooling up an entire reel with Vanish.[/size]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]I don't believe fireline absorbs water as much as it "holds" water when it's new. What do I mean? If you'll notice when you first spool a reel with fireline the line will feel very coarse. This is the small "strands" that stick out from the line. Water has a tendency to hold to these very small strands and freeze to them. You'll find yourself clearing ice from the line a lot more frequently than mono BUT the more the line is used, these small strands wear off and the icing problem becomes less and less. I have smoked color fireline on some of my reels and it is now starting to turn white from use. I have very little problem with icing or freezing now. Granted, mono does not freeze but I'll sacrifice a little icing for the superior benefits superlines offer in an ice fishing environment. [/size][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]The initial expense of superlines are prohibitive. Spooling from bulk spools at your tackle shop helps reduce this cost. It's about $22 bucks to spool an Ambasseduer 5000C (about 220 yards) but unlike mono, who's working life is about a season with fair use, superlines will go many seasons of hard use with no adverse effects except losing it's color. Another way to extend its life is to rotate it on the spool by switching ends and tying the used end to the spool and fishing the unused portion that has seen no use. Since there is no memory with superlines this becomes a way to get the maximum return on your investment when you consider the upfront cost of superline and the reoccuring cost every season of monos.[/size][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]I like the Offshore Angler brand of Fluorocarbons. They are not as pricey as some but seem to be a reliable brand. Also they offer a wide variety of weights from 4# to 400#. Remember that one of the drawbacks to fluorocarbon is poor knot strength so fish it to the heavy side of your situation and you should be just fine. It's supposed to be nearly invisible so fishing it heavy should not be a problen. Dennis is exactly right, wet the knot before cinching it down. This is also a good habit to get into with monos as well.[/size][/font]
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vantages of this line is that it is slick! It's not great at holding knots. Put a small drop of super glue on the knots you tie. Squeeze out all the excess and make sure you don't get the glue on any thing else. Your knots will hold great this way. Also when you first tie it to the spool of your reel either put a small bit of tape over the tag or put a drop of super glue right on the line and spool to glue it down. If you don't, your line can spin on the spool. This will stop that. Don't worry about the glue permanently sticking to the anodized aluminum. It won't; you can put a little pressure on it and it pops right off. Nothing like having a nice fish on and the line starts to spin on the spool. You Lose![/size][/font]