I am looking for the best open water fishing line for bass. I live in the southwest metro and fish a lot of dirty lakes around here. I am looking for something 5-10 lbs. I think. Not sure if I want braided or not. If anyone has any suggestions that would be great! Thanks
Need more specifics. What’s your method of fishing? I have rods spooled with 8 lb mono all the way to 40lb braid.
I fish shallow lakes mostly, not a lot of underwater cover, but there are some trees hanging off the side of most of the lakes I fish. That is usually where I go to find bass, so I want something that would be able to be hitting trees, but not a heavy line that is not sensitive enough. If any of that made sense.. I use casting rods more than spooled rods.
Bait casters typicaly don’t do well with less than 10#line , I use 10-12 # on clear water and 14 to 17# around cover ,If i’m throwing frogs and stuff in slop I use 50 or 65# braid, I use 15 or 20# braid on spinning rods in clear open water w 6-10# Floro leader. you will have better luck with mono or floro around wood because braid will hang or stick on the bark in wood .
Stan 
Any suggestions on which brand? I know that there are a lot out there and I want something that is going to actually be good. I usually change my line once or twice a year depending on what it goes through, so I just want something that will be good for the time being. I mean any certain type that is maybe better than another?
On a baitcasting reel you can’t go wrong with 30 pound powerpro. It is the same diameter as 8lb mono. Casts awesome, extremely sensitive, and great for driving home the hooks.
10/12lb p-line Floro clear
I took advice from Bill Dance a few years ago and now use #6 Hi Seas Grand Slam mono for every open water fishing application. I don’t target muskie. That #6 is stronger than any I’ve used, sensitive, silky, low stretch, low memory. I use #6 for panfish, SM, LM, and mostly walleye, including league and tournies. The last couple years I’ve used spinning tackle exclusivly, my favorite baitcaster is resting peacefully on the bottom of the Spirit River Flowage. If I had a baitcaster I’d try #10-12 Grand Slam for cranks and #17-25 if I went back to crash pads with frogs, etc.
Bait casters typicaly don’t do well with less than 10#line , I use 10-12 # on clear water and 14 to 17# around cover ,If i’m throwing frogs and stuff in slop I use 50 or 65# braid, I use 15 or 20# braid on spinning rods in clear open water w 6-10# Floro leader. you will have better luck with mono or floro around wood because braid will hang or stick on the bark in wood .
Stan
x2 but I don’t switch mono size depending on cover.
Yo-zuri Hybrid – mono core for manageability, fluorocarbon coated to resist abrasion, and its a very low stretch for good hook sets. I use it on three of my bait casters – 10, 12 and 15 pound test. 10 pound is rated to 19 pound breaking strength. YH has great knot strength as opposed to straight fluorocarbon where I have had knot slippage (plus straight flouro is stretchy, coily and just plain nasty to keep from backlashing).
I don’t change line size on cover as much as I use diffrenmt line size by type of bait. 17# for jigs,14# for texas rig plastics. I use vicious pro fluorocarbon and either power pro or sufix 832 for braid.
I have diffrent action rods for diffrent baits ,I think this has more to do with feel ,when you use heavy action rods on light baits you loose a lot of feel,too light of rod and you can’t handle heavy baits as well especilly hook sets.
Stan
Yo-zuri Hybrid – mono core for manageability, fluorocarbon coated to resist abrasion, and its a very low stretch for good hook sets. I use it on three of my bait casters – 10, 12 and 15 pound test. 10 pound is rated to 19 pound breaking strength. YH has great knot strength as opposed to straight fluorocarbon where I have had knot slippage (plus straight flouro is stretchy, coily and just plain nasty to keep from backlashing).
If you look at the back side of the package, you know that’s not the accurate description of Yozuri Hybrid line. There is no mono core.
Braid line in various size,sometimes with leader mostly without.
BB2
Pline floroclear.
Enough said.
Good lines mentioned here…As a Guide and professional fisherman I am constantly looking for a better product. You didn’t mention cost…I say that because the expensive stuff IS better…especially fluoro. Looking at the qualities of low memory, knot strength and castability…
Here is my rating for fluoro line fished everywhere from the U P to Alabama…
1) Gamma (BTW I use 8# Gamma Edge Fluoro routinely with cranks…wonderful stuff)
2) Sunline
3) Tatsu (Seaguar)
**I do not rep or work for these guys I pay over the counter 
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>frydog62 wrote:</div>
Yo-zuri Hybrid – mono core for manageability, fluorocarbon coated to resist abrasion, and its a very low stretch for good hook sets. I use it on three of my bait casters – 10, 12 and 15 pound test. 10 pound is rated to 19 pound breaking strength. YH has great knot strength as opposed to straight fluorocarbon where I have had knot slippage (plus straight flouro is stretchy, coily and just plain nasty to keep from backlashing).If you look at the back side of the package, you know that’s not the accurate description of Yozuri Hybrid line. There is no mono core.
The Yo-Zuri web site gives a more technical description and diagram of how they “molecularly bond” and extrude nylon and fluorocarbon. Bottom line is it works, is extremely strong and one of the few truly “low stretch” non-braid lines on the market. It’s also water proof so the line doesn’t absorb water and stretch more throughout the day. If you search around some of the more traditional bass web sites, YH has quite a loyal following…
Suffix 832 20-30#. I tried it because they advertised it on this site, and I do not think that I will ever use another line. It is strong, durable, long lasting, very sensitive, and versitile. I fish it with and without a flouro leader; depending on the lake, conditions, and if I am too lazy re-tie the leader.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>slipperybob wrote:</div>
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>frydog62 wrote:</div>
Yo-zuri Hybrid – mono core for manageability, fluorocarbon coated to resist abrasion, and its a very low stretch for good hook sets. I use it on three of my bait casters – 10, 12 and 15 pound test. 10 pound is rated to 19 pound breaking strength. YH has great knot strength as opposed to straight fluorocarbon where I have had knot slippage (plus straight flouro is stretchy, coily and just plain nasty to keep from backlashing).If you look at the back side of the package, you know that’s not the accurate description of Yozuri Hybrid line. There is no mono core.
The Yo-Zuri web site gives a more technical description and diagram of how they “molecularly bond” and extrude nylon and fluorocarbon. Bottom line is it works, is extremely strong and one of the few truly “low stretch” non-braid lines on the market. It’s also water proof so the line doesn’t absorb water and stretch more throughout the day. If you search around some of the more traditional bass web sites, YH has quite a loyal following…
I’m a long time user of YZH, myself – been using it pretty much the first year it came out. Just didn’t want misrepresentation of a product. Plus I’m not sure how you attribute straight flouro as stretchy – they are more traditionally less stretch and more stiff.
YZH line does run more thicker compare to other lines in similar # test. Which in part attributes for part of it’s stronger than other line strengths. I guess it runs with the group of lines that are just thick, kind of like Trilene XT, or Pline CXX.
Bob, yes Yo-Zuri is good stuff… Worth a little extra thickness for the extra toughness when bass fishing, although for walleye fishing I switch to thinner lines usually.
As far as fluorocarbon stretching more, I posted a line stretch test here about a month ago. Some interesting results, but I think safe to say fluorocarbon is “marketed” as low stretch but in reality stretches more than mono or co-polymer lines. I’ll use it as a leader, but as far as a main line it’s like setting the hook with a rubber band IMO.
Yeap, I totally don’t buy into that low stretch “marketed” concept. They do stretch but it’s a different feel when just working a lure. As since they lack the elasticity, one does tend to have a better feel of the lure. I also think that mfg. are churning more fluorocarbon line variations then what we consumers can keep up with.
I just use, what’s been working for me and occasionally try something new.
Part of me thinks the line companies market fluorocarbon so hard is so they can charge twice as much for it. The optimist in me, to your point, thinks it’s at least partly because they are putting much more R&D time into developing more innovative variations of fluorocarbon. I hope a few years from now there will be a fluorocarbon that truly has less memory, stretch, etc while keeping higher density, faster sink rate, etc. I don’t see quite as much development going on in the mono world which could be why their prices have remained lower.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
