I bought a rod and reel for surf fishing it came spooled with 20lb mono. A couple of guys told me to use braided as you can feel the bite better, they also said to wear a golf glove or buy a cannon trigger as the braided will give you a nasty gash. what are your thoughts. Thank mikdor

ive never hd the need to use gloves to protect my self from braid. idk if you talking about a casting or spinning combo. braid is the best way to go , especially if you r gonna be casting far and you need the line capacity.

It is a spinning combo that I bought.

For my spinning setup I use a cannon or cover my index finger just to be on the safe side. Just a word of warning, if your spinning reel's drag is not 100% tight, keep your finger away from the braid. Should you strike hard, the braid will run out over your finger and in that way I did sustain a cut.

Over the course of a day of surfcasting, your trigger finger will get raw. Catch a sudden gust of wind or miss your timing and you'll easily get a cut. And braid stings like a banshee. I keep a roll of water proof med tape in my bag. I wrap the end of my finger and a small strip up the side to the knuckle. It's cheap and thin enough to retain a good feel on the line. I tried gloves and that just did not work for me.

Yup wrap up the finger with trainers tape. Those cuts sting.

http://www.thesurfcaster.com/product/Casting_Finger_Guard/Comfort
dollar a piece, buy your self a couple

So let me throw in a question - what if I got say 80 pound braid do you think I would still need a shock leader?

depends on what your gonna be targeting, if your going for sharks yes, bass no. shock leaders are made for fish that pull drag and for protection from your line snapping, basically if your gonna be in a fihgt for a long period of time i defenitly advice it

I always run a short leaded when using braided line. I like 65lb for surf fishing but all my offshore rods run mono.

Depends. A shock leader is actually used in the ramping up phase of a large conventional reel spool during a cast. Since most of the mega-distance casting guys use an insane light line on the spool. The force exerted during the cast would snap off the 20-30 pound line before the spool could get up to speed. Hence the shock leader that wraps the spool 4-5 times and covers the pole and catapult hanging line.

You likely would not need a shock leader with 80 pound braid, but that would actually depend upon your reel's spool size and force needed to get it moving. That, plus the amount of weight you're heaving factors in. I've never needed a shock leader with a spinning reel, period. Zero ramp up there

I live on the Sea of Cortez in Mexico.....do a lot of deep and top water fishing... we have several reels and rods and all are spooled with Power-pro 50 lb. test yellow line...even the smaller spin-cast reels.... I do on most lures use a 5' 100 lb. test leader.... I set my drag at about 12lbs. and tighten some as needed..... I caught a 170 lb. Marlin a couple months ago with 30 lb. braid (I forgot what size line was on)...yes I was nervous all the way until fish was in boat..... I lived in East Texas before moving here and have bass fished tourney's and all...I never used anything on 25 reels (mine & wife) except 20 lb. braid (power-pro) and as for fingering the line I don't remember ever getting a cut and have never worn anything on my fingers or hands...hold finger lightly under the line and move it when you feel a bite... I do use gloves here to help land fish since the Marlin, sailfish etc. have long snoots and most of the others have teeth... Just my $00.00 worth.....Ya'll have fun and be safe.....

Thank you guys for all your answers. From what you say and considering the fishing I plan to do I think the best thing to do would be to have a shock leader. Better safe than sorry. Thanks again.