I have been a mono user for many many years, from catching small bass to sharks, I have seen many carp anglers switching over to braid and claim they will never turn back to mono.

I know the many reason why braid is better, from improving casting distance (not sure about this one) to no memory, longer lasting etc etc, what I want to know is how is it affected in high winds and does it sink faster or slower than mono?

I also need suggestions on the best braid I should use for my LC's? should I only spool half and use mono as backing? or am I better off just using 100% braid.

Ok guys have at it lol

I know it will sink faster then mono, but I don't know about casting with it compared to mono

I back my spools with mono and only use 150yds of power pro braid. Braid can create loops and knot up in too high of winds if you arent careful but it is heavier and from my experience and doesnt get as big of a "bow" as mono when casting.

I hsve yet to even come close to my backing so I save a few dollars as opposed to spooling 350+ yds of braid.

There is a learning curve with braid when playing the fish. It does not stretch so you feel everything the fish does. I pulled several hooks after switching over bc I wasnt used to the "direct" contact with the fish.

Braid also helps when feature finding bc you can feel every little bump on the bottom and know exactly what you are fishing.

feeling the fish and feeling the terrain is one of the reasons I want to switch, and yes spooling 700 yards of braid would be very costly for each reel, I am a little worried about wind knots but I guess there is some give and take with everything, I do like the idea of less wind bow during a cast though, I hate spending too much time getting my line taught after a longer cast. In your experience Jeff can you cast further with the braid?

I use 12lb mono and 50lb braid bc I believe they share close to the same diameter which makes the knot that ties the two together stronger.

With a little simple math you can find out exactly how much backing you put on by know how much line one rotation of the handle will retrieve.

Its basically: spool capacity - (yrds of braid)/ (yrds per rotation)

Will tell you how many times you need to turn the handle to fill your backing.

After I got used to it, I could cast significantly further. I think others might disagree if you consider being able to "load" the mono as well as the rod but I cast further with braid than I ever did with mono.

no need to be exact haha, just going to estimate a little, maybe 50/50 or so, so you prefer the 50 lb PP?

and your not the first who said they cast further with braid, you ever needed a stall?

I do, you can get away with even higher if you want, I know some guys use 65lb.
As long as your hook lengths are still. 12Lb-14lb its fine in my opinion. You get more weights back on snags too.

Ive never needed one but then again I never really put enough into it.

And braid lasts a hell of a lot longer than mono. It might fade a little if you get a dark color dye but the stuff is tough as nails. Josef got that 50lb buff last year hung up for several minutes and I am almost certain if he had mono he would have lost the fish.

would it make sense to use a smaller reel that would hold say 300-400 yds of 40-50lb braid vs the huge reel that could easily hold 500 yds +? Just a question on my mind.

It really depends on where and how you fish. If you are a distance fisherman which most are, a larger packed spool lets yoy cast further bc it comes off the spool easier. I feel though if you fish inside of 75yrds or so you can get away with a 300-400yrd spool comfortably without fault.

I prefer the larger reels for 2 reasons, it improves my casting distance but also handles larger fish with more ease, dont get me wrong though, i have caught some large fish on smaller gear

I agree.

The first time I picked up one of chrises shimano big pits with a good size common I was amazed on how much better it felt.