I have always used braid on all my poles. Even down to my ultra lite. I have always liked braided line because it has zero memory, doesn't stretch which leads to quicker hook sets for me and gives more sensitivity for lighter strikes. I rarely lose hooks and lures when I get hung up because the stuff is so strong. Are there any advantages to fluoro or mono lines that I am missing out on by only using braided? Visibility to the fish? The only mono I use is for backing for my braided line. Thanks for any insight.

braid definitely has its spot and you cant beat the strength. I would never use anything else if it werent for 2 things. some fish see it and wont bite, also its noisy and they here it. listen to it hum when your reeling it in with certain rods. I love braid but I only use it in real thick stuff or grassy, weedy stuff, lillies, etc. also flouro and mono have their spots too. flouro will fall faster than mono. I love braid but alot of places I fish it limits my results. its also much, much harder on reels.

in realy clear water fluoro or mono is a better choice unless fishing heavy cover like grass

and flouro and mono are better choices for crankbaits, braid floats and never lets a crankbait get as deep as it was made for and can cause you to pull the treble hooks out of the fishes mouth

but when I flip I use braid 90% of the time

Makes sense. Thanks! What's the difference between fluoro and mono?

I found about 7 unopened reels of Suffix Elite 12 lb, clear in the back of my hunting gear closet. They have probably been in there for 6 years. Got them for Christmas one year. Never used them? Any good?

I used braid for almost everything my first 10 years of fishing, and I feel like it cost me alot of bites. I fish with flouro now and use lighter test lines and I get at least twice as many bites. I could never use braid for a slow-moving bait again.

Just last week I fished with a friend who insists on using braided while I used mono. We fished the exact same worm, the exact same way. I caught over 20 to his dozen.

OK. You guys have talked me into trying it out. I wanted another bait caster any way. Guess I will have one with my braid and one with fluoro. The memory thing is what turned me off to them in the first place. Felt like I could cast further with braid since it didn't loop up and contact the guides as I cast. What is the best fluoro or mono line with the least memory? I'm still curious as to what the difference is between fluoro and mono. Anyone know? Thanks!

that's good line but I bet those 7 aren't any good if it were me I'd get some 17 lb suffix florocarbon Is like a hot wife it needs alota maintanance

So it looks like Fluorocarbon is the winner in my book. Here is the difference between Fluoro and Mono.
Per Yahoo! Answers....http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080625094618AAZ1qXF

-- One of the primary advantages of fluorocarbon is its near invisibility when it is submerged under water. Fluorocarbon line comes the closest to the light refractive index of water so it is virtually invisible when submerged. This fact alone makes this line very useful in situations that have a clear water environment. A lot of anglers are now using less-visible 16 lb. fluorocarbon for applications where they may have used more-visible 12-14 pound mono previously. Anglers are able to gain extra strength in their fluorocarbon lines due to the less visibility of fluorocarbon in the water.
-- Fluorocarbon's chemical composition and extrusion methods create an extremely strong and durable line. Fluorocarbon does not absorb water like most nylon monofilaments, so it maintains its strength better than nylon monofilaments, which loses strength when exposed to water or humidity. Fluorocarbon is also unaffected by the sun�s ultraviolet rays causing fluorocarbon lines to last significantly longer than nylon monofilaments as well. I have personally noticed that fluorocarbon line can last as long as four times the life of nylon monofilaments, making it an excellent choice for anglers looking for a good value in fishing lines.
--Yet another advantage of this space age line is that fluorocarbon has less stretch than typical nylon or copolymer monofilaments. Your hook sets are always strong and positive and this is a huge plus when fishing deep water finesse baits where line stretch is detrimental to a good hook set. The stretchiness characteristic of fluorocarbon line is more comparable to that of braided lines than nylon monofilaments, but without the thread look of braided lines that are easily seen in clear water. When you are flipping and pitching your subtle bites will go from a barely detectable tap tap while using nylon monofilaments, to bites feeling like a bolt of lighting up the spine of your rod when using fluorocarbon. The bites are three times more noticeable in my hands while using fluorocarbon.

Personally, I�m not really a fan of braid. I cut my teeth fishing clear water in Central Texas. There is no doubt in my mind that braid can, and does at times spook fish, where fluorocarbon, or clear copolymer, or mono will not.

On the sensitivity issue, I am of the opinion that fluorocarbon is, overall, more sensitive that is braid. The reason being that braid is so limp that when there is slack in the line that you lose �contact� with the bait. Fluorocarbon being stiff will transmit vibrations even if there is slack in the line. Add to this the higher density of fluorocarbon yields a higher speed of sound in fluorocarbon. A higher speed of sound results in the line being able to more efficiently transmit vibrations. Further, because braid is not a single strand the various strands of braided line can dampen out vibrations via interference. In solids sound waves can be of two sorts. Compressional waves, and transverse waves. Suffice it to say that while braid can transmit transverse waves, it is much less efficient in doing so than fluorocarbon. Furthermore, braid is very much poorer at transmitting compressional waves than is fluorocarbon.

The sensitivity of braid is based on it�s lack of stretch. What it does do very well is to transfer line displacement when a fish bites, or strikes. While braid does an excellent job of transmitting �tug� it performs more poorly at transmitting longitudinal waves and much more poorly at transmitting compressional vibrations than does fluorocarbon.

I�m not saying that there is no place for braid, just that it is not the �end all� in fishing line.

One last thing. When it comes to fishing, what works well for one, may not work so well for others. I�ll put it this way when it comes to pistols I like large grips as I�ve got large palms. What I find to fit me perfectly will be very much too large for someone with small hands.

The bottom line is that braid does not fit my �style� of fishing, or at least the �style� that I�ve grown to prefer. So as they say YMMV.

TFP

TFP, awesome explanation.

Lunky 78, a 2007 test showed that almost all fluorocarbon lines have more stretch than Trilene XL. It is the stiffness, density and lack of water absorption that make fluoro transmit strikes so well.

No need to buy new equipment to try FC. Just attach the braid to an old reel and wind it off your current reel to the old reel and save the braid on the old reel for later use. I use FC almost exclusively, and the yahoo answer advantages info,above, is over stated. Depending on the brand, FC has less stretch,less visability,more strength,and more resistance to abrasion,than Mono. FC is a stiffer/harder line than mono and is more difficult to manage. Depending on the FC brand,it may not last as long as mono. Continue to use your backing when fishing FC to reduce your cost. Good luck with it.

What can I say? I love fishing, and I love physics; so when they come together, NERVANA!

fouz,

I�m assuming that the test that you refer to is the one done by Tackle Tour. If so, then I would advise taking this article with a grain, or two of salt. I consider their methodology flawed. My primary objection is that they test the lines to failure, and use the deformation at failure as being a linear extrapolation of the deformation of these lines at lower loadings that would typify the loads that would be necessary for a positive hook set. This is likely an erroneous assumption.

TFP

Give some Seaguar Invisx a try in 15-20lb test, and you will never go back. I use the 20lb for all of my slow moving baits (tx rig, c rig, jigs), and love it. I have never had any issues with stiffness, castability, memory, strength. It is the perfect line for me.

Good analogy Phys. I much prefer a 225 or 228.....small hands.