On a long cast you may not have the issue with the bead breaking but up close & personal you will run into problems if you set the hook really hard & fast. Tungsten is so hard that it just shatters the glass bead. Never had the issue with lead or even brass but tungsten is a different animal.

I can see folks have their favorites, but my question is won't the insert prevent line fraying?

I guess I've never run into this problem, pegged or un-pegged. I could understand if you had a ton of slack in the line and had the weight move off of the bead a bit before setting the hook, but that's not exactly how I fish I guess. I use non-insert Picasso weights. I've had terrible luck with line fraying using Strike King tungsten weights, and a few other brands. I'm guessing it's because the finish is rough inside the bore.

To the OP, I've used both insert and insert free weights and haven't noticed much difference. Eventually the inserts will start to come apart if you've used the weight for a long time, which could cause potential problems, but that's about it.

Thanks for all the info.

Ever tried to thread 65 or 80 lb. braid through a tungsten weight with an insert? Much easier with the polished bore tungsten.

LOL Actually, I have never tried to thread any line thru a tungsten weight. I can see it could get difficult. But I am ordering some weights and was curious in the difference.

If you are pegging your weight what would be the point of the glass bead? Assuming of course you are using the bead for sound.

There is no purpose, but if I'm in a spot where I want the weight pegged to throw at a spot, I'm not going to cut off and re tie just to pull the bead off. All I'm saying is that I've never had a bead break, and I don't set the hook all that easy. I'm not saying it's not going to happen some day, but for me personally, the advantages of the bead outweigh the probability of it breaking on a hookset.

Here is another interesting fact. We have been using tungsten in Mexico were we catch 100 Bass per day. Bass like the unpainted weights 2 to 1 over the colored ones. In our lakes you can hardly tell the difference when you are only getting 5 bites per day; but down there there is a huge difference. Bass like shinny.

We quit using the insert weights for two reasons. The insert was peeling off the outer coating of the #25 Floro. when we were pitching the bushes. The weight is alway falling away from the plastics used. Second when fishing heavy bushes we have much better results with the weight pegged. I use the long rubber pegs and the insert takes up too much space to get line and peg through the weight.

I use strike king and the ones Anglers Pro Tackle makes have not had any issues so far.

Inserts in tungsten weights are there for a reason. The finished product (weight) is less expensive to manufacture. The bores and edges are not polished. Cheaper to insert a plastic sleeve than to finish the bore of the weight.

I can appreciate the benefit of sleeves or heat shrink in pitching and punching applications. The sleeve prevents the weight from wobbling around due to a bore much larger than line diameter, where pegging of the weight is mandatory.

In ALL applications where a sliding weight is required, polished bore tungsten is my preference. The inserts in tungsten wear much faster than the weight. If you use that weight for very long, the rough external edges of the bore WILL damage your line. Braid takes longer to fail but also wears out the insert much more quickly.

Certainly not gospel, just my observations.

Recently had some break offs on crig due to glass bead fracturing and nicking the line. Went to a brass disk and rubber bobber stop above knot. problem solved. Even with 1 1/4 oz tungsten

still over kill just use a tungsten bead or plastic.