superline selection

[Mike Rohr]

I was hoping a few of you musky nuts could offer some good advice on line selection. I have 65 pound power pro on my bucktail rod that I like a lot. But I am wondering if it is the best choice for my jerkbait rod. Some guys I know use the 8o pound power pro for this application. I'm using that tuff line now and I don't like how wet and slippery I get. Any suggestions?

[ToddM]

80 and 100lb power pro are good selections for a jerkbait rod. 65 is too light. I would choose 80lb if you have a reel the width of a 500 garcia and 100lb on a 6500 width garcia sized reel. Hope this helps.

[MM]

I second Todd's advice of 80 or 100lb Super Braid lines for jerkbaits. I personally use 80lb which has about the same dia as 17lb mono. It's the line diameter that you want to be concerned about, not really the poundage test. Any of the newer superbraid lines are fine for the purpose, I personally use Power Pro as some of the others I tried held too much water and got my hands too wet. Not a problem now in warmer weather but come October and November, wet hands equate to cold hands and that is a problem.

Cheers and tight lines,
Musky Mike

[M. Rohr]

Thanks for the input guys, I used my jerk bait rod with 80 pound power pro in Mille-Lacs on Saturday afternoon and I stayed dry which was nice. Maybe a little spray would have been OK to keep me cool as it was plenty hot. Bye the way, only three followers, no biters for me this outing.

[MM]

<<<"Bye the way, only three followers, no biters for me this outing.">>>

Three follows means you're doin' sumpin right! And you are now three fish (and quite a few casts) closer to your nextun! ;)

[Fishhookedatgunpoint]

With smaller lines for jerbait fishing, (65 and under) you could get in a problem of casting them off. That small of a diameter can't stand that tension and it snaps. It sure is a horrible thing watching a $20 bait fly away. I use 80lb power pro. I love the stuff.

Brad Smith

[DHewes]

The advise you have gotten about 80 lb. test super lines is good, but there are some refinements if you want to get that picky. 65 lb.test works just fine for lighter baits like unweighted Suicks, Bobbies, and the like. In fact, it is preferable for for any bait, including crankbaits and small to medium bucktails and spinnerbaits, where getting more depth is an issue. I often use 50 lb. test for small to medium cranks and small bucktails. Diameter makes almost no difference for gliders, though, so heavy is fine. For big jerkbaits like AP lures, Hughes Rivers, and most weighted baits, I would go with 80 or even 100 lb. test. And, especially whenever you plan to fish heavy cover like reeds and cabbage mats, the heavier line works better. Sometimes you may want to keep your baits shallow like over weedbeds growing closer to the surface. There is even an advantage to nonsuperlines here because their thicker diameter keeps the baits high in the water. Remember, too, that casting off baits is a function not just of line test but the type of rod you use and your style of casting. The longer [7 1/2-6 1/5 '], softer rods that many of us are using now reduce breakoffs tremendously. And with big lures, you don't need to cast them with the usual wrist snap. Too much line speed. A light lob with get all the distance you need and save wear on your line.

So I guess is all comes down to how many rods you want rigged and how much detail you want to go into. If you want to keep it straight forward, just go witht the 80 lb. test.

Dean