What Fluorocarbon should I buy?

[IlliniDawg01]

OK! I've decided to take a leap and have one reel fully spooled with fluorocarbon.

Up to this point I have been (and will continue to be) a braid guy. I use a bit of mono backing, then go full braid on a good number of my setups. If I'm jigging or worming I will put on a 5-7' flurocarbon leader (the Scientific Angler Fly Tippet Fluoro has been awesome for me).

The reason I want to try an all fluoro setup is that if there is significant crosswind I tend to completely lose contact with my baits. I also have to this day never caught a fish on a wacky rigged senko-style bait and I'm guessing (hoping) that it is because I have no ability to feel the bite on slack line.

I've got a bunch of different baits to try.

I'm going to try some of the Berkley Fusion19 Hooks:
http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Berkley_ ... -SFWW.html

Now I need to know what specific fluorocarbon to get (including lb test).

My priorities in choosing line are as follows.

1a. Sensitivity. I'm used to braid and want to feel everything I can.
1b. Low stretch. Again, I love braid and don't want to deal with significant stretch which I can't stand.
2. Durability. Goes without saying, I don't want to deal with lots of break-offs or constant retieing if possible
3. Knot strength. I'm open to using any knot with this line, so long as it will hold and be 90% as strong as the lb test
4. Cost. Just needs to be reasonable but I will pay for the right stuff.
5. Availability. Don't want to have to buy overseas. US Online is fine.
6. Manageable. I don't blow up spools too often so I don't need the line to be anything special in this category, so just average is fine.

As for which lb test to get, I would prefer to go as heavy as is reasonable. Most of my local waters are pretty dirty and the fish are not line shy from what I can tell. So long as the line isn't going to affect the lure presentation in a negative way, I'm fine with erroring on the strong side.

So, fluoro experts, what should I try?

If there is no consensus I was leaning towards Sunline Shooter or Seagar Tatsu. However, the new P-Line Tactical has me intrigued so I might give it the first shot if I can find it somewhere.

Thanks,
DaveJ

[Jeffbro999]

After using braid and getting used to having zero stretch, I had to go with Shooter. Not the most manageable flouro out there, but very strong, smooth, sensitive and low stretch. Toray Superhard Upgrade is even better, but not easy to find anymore. Everything else I have tried felt like a rubber band I use a Uni knot to tie my lures and have no issues with it at all. Never tested the knot strength but haven't had any breakoffs in the past.

[Hogsticker2]

1b and 6 don't jive together to well, barely can reside in the same house from my experience. If you're fishing the line for slack line presentations exclusively I wouldn't be too concerned about the lowest stretch available. Tatsu and Sniper are all I use because I feel they have an equal compromise across the board. Sniper can still get somewhat unruly if it's dry on a long hard cast. Not the case with Tatsu.
If you're going to fish bottom contact on this line and you're custom to braid, none of it will feel right and likely give you a migraine with a stiff low stretch fluoro.

[cortman]

I am a satisfied user of Tatsu in a variety of strengths and applications. Never given me any problems with any of the things you list above.

[Loafer]

2 seasons ago i solved same question. I decieded try cheap fluorocarbon and buy iLure from aliexpress 18 Lb, 0.28 mm: http://ali.pub/wmxih
I thought that this would be a temporary solution, but using this line with minnows so far. Not sure it's clean fluorocarbon may be monofilament coated, but I really like it.

[IlliniDawg01]

1b and 6 don't jive together to well, barely can reside in the same house from my experience. If you're fishing the line for slack line presentations exclusively I wouldn't be too concerned about the lowest stretch available. Tatsu and Sniper are all I use because I feel they have an equal compromise across the board. Sniper can still get somewhat unruly if it's dry on a long hard cast. Not the case with Tatsu.
If you're going to fish bottom contact on this line and you're custom to braid, none of it will feel right and likely give you a migraine with a stiff low stretch fluoro.

I probably wasn't clear. Number 6 matters least to me, so I'm fine with low manageability... I just don't want a line that is going to instantly birds nest no matter what. Lowest possible stretch and sensitivity are most important to me.

Why would fluoro give me a migraine for bottom contact? Are you saying that braid is way more sensitive?

Most likely I will only use this setup for wacky rigs and maybe pitching into structure.

My research has told me that unlike Mono which has a rubber band like stretch, fluoro stretches but then doesn't recover. Does that mean that you can "pre-stretch" it so that it doesn't stretch as much in use? Or would that compromise the line? What if you did that with say 20lb test?

DaveJ

[Jeffbro999]

Have you read TT's fluorocarbon tests? These should help answer some of your questions. They helped me a lot when I originally decided to try fluoro. Helped reduce the headache of trying a bunch of different lines to find the one that was right for me. Unfortunately Tatsu wasnt put through these tests, but IMO is up there with the other top contenders on everything but stretch.

http://tackletour.com/reviewfluorocarbontest.html
http://tackletour.com/reviewfluorocarbon2.html

[IlliniDawg01]

Have you read TT's fluorocarbon tests? These should help answer some of your questions. They helped me a lot when I originally decided to try fluoro. Helped reduce the headache of trying a bunch of different lines to find the one that was right for me. Unfortunately Tatsu wasnt put through these tests, but IMO is up there with the other top contenders on everything but stretch.

http://tackletour.com/reviewfluorocarbontest.html
http://tackletour.com/reviewfluorocarbon2.html

Yeah, it is just pretty out of date and doesn't include all the options available today, including Tatsu like you mentioned.

DaveJ

[Hogsticker2]

1b and 6 don't jive together to well, barely can reside in the same house from my experience. If you're fishing the line for slack line presentations exclusively I wouldn't be too concerned about the lowest stretch available. Tatsu and Sniper are all I use because I feel they have an equal compromise across the board. Sniper can still get somewhat unruly if it's dry on a long hard cast. Not the case with Tatsu.
If you're going to fish bottom contact on this line and you're custom to braid, none of it will feel right and likely give you a migraine with a stiff low stretch fluoro.

I probably wasn't clear. Number 6 matters least to me, so I'm fine with low manageability... I just don't want a line that is going to instantly birds nest no matter what. Lowest possible stretch and sensitivity are most important to me.

Why would fluoro give me a migraine for bottom contact? Are you saying that braid is way more sensitive?

Most likely I will only use this setup for wacky rigs and maybe pitching into structure.

My research has told me that unlike Mono which has a rubber band like stretch, fluoro stretches but then doesn't recover. Does that mean that you can "pre-stretch" it so that it doesn't stretch as much in use? Or would that compromise the line? What if you did that with say 20lb test?

DaveJ

All I'm saying is if you don't have a highly trained thumb or plan to dial your brakes back, a stiff fluoro like Shooter is gonna do what it wants. Even being less strech than say Tatsu, it's still going to stretch significantly more than braid which you may find disappointing. Everyone has a different idea as to what they consider too much stretch.

[the hooligan]

Ive used sniper and tatsu in the past and always went back to copoly or braid for some reason or another. Well i decided to give shooter a shot and im a believer now, lol. Absolutely awesome line.

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

Im a braid guy but gave 10 & 12# Sniper FC a try with wacky hated it due to the stretch. The knot strength was never an issue either the line is strong all tests. I went up to 16# Sniper and the stretching is much less noticeable but now use it for other purposes(paddletails) and went back to braid nanofil for wacky. The line needs a little higher brake setting but overall management is fine and I havent used conditioner at all. Your reason for no catches with wacky isnt due to braid.

[IlliniDawg01]

Ive used sniper and tatsu in the past and always went back to copoly or braid for some reason or another. Well i decided to give shooter a shot and im a believer now, lol. Absolutely awesome line.

After re-reading the TT Writeup linked above I was leaning hard towards Shooter. I think your vote has convinced me to give it a try. Where is the best place to get it?

It looks like the stuff on Tackle Warehouse comes in 3 different flavors now? Which one should I try? Just can't be easy can it?...

http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Sunline_ ... -SNSH.html

I think I'm going to try some of this stuff too just for sh!ts&giggles...

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/2016-new ... 5dbf1362e6

Final question, which of the following should I put it on for best results:

Met DC
T3MX with 1016 Spool
T3 or TDZ or IS with SV Spool
TDZ or IS with ZPI RC-001 Spool
Viento with stock spool (seriously wish there was a better spool option for this reel because the MegaForce Plus is a better reel in every way except for the damn plastic body... faster retrieve, MagZ Spool, nicer handle/knobs, not blue)
Zillion CT SV with stock spool

Thanks for all of the replies.
DaveJ

[IlliniDawg01]

Your reason for no catches with wacky isnt due to braid.

My skills as a fisherman are infallible... It has to be the line... or perhaps a bad batch of senkos...

DaveJ

[Snyder Rods]

The reason I want to try an all fluoro setup is that if there is significant crosswind I tend to completely lose contact with my baits. I also have to this day never caught a fish on a wacky rigged senko-style bait and I'm guessing (hoping) that it is because I have no ability to feel the bite on slack line.

- Those are two of the reasons I use Fluoro - sensitivity and control in the wind. Also I hate braid.

- One of the lowest stretch Fluoros is Spiderwire Ultimate Florocarbon.

- I've been using Stren Blue/florescent fluoro because I like to see my line.

[IlliniDawg01]

I think I might actually have some spiderwire fluoro laying around. I had just used it for leaders up to this point. Seems like decent stuff.

I went ahead and ordered some 16lb Shooter from Monster Tackle and 3 sizes of the stuff from AliExpress .

Does anyone have any thoughts on which of these setups would be best suited for 16lb Shooter?

Met DC
T3MX with 1016 Spool
T3 or TDZ or IS with SV Spool
TDZ or IS with ZPI RC-001 Spool
Viento with stock spool (seriously wish there was a better spool option for this reel because the MegaForce Plus is a better reel in every way except for the damn plastic body... faster retrieve, MagZ Spool, nicer handle/knobs, not blue)
Zillion CT SV with stock spool

Thanks,
DaveJ