I’m now convinced it’s either/or

[Philly]

We just had 113 guys blank in the BFL here on Saturday. I guess all those boys should have been using fluorocarbon to feel the lightest of light bites or maybe to make sure their line was invisible to the bass and increase their odds of getting bit.
Biggest scam in bass fishing.

I have never felt like I get more bites on flouro, but I definitely believe that it is a much more efficient tool than mono or copoly for most applications. I looked at the Top 5 from the river tournament the you are referring to and Marty is the only guy that I know well and I can assure you that he was using flouro and I would guess that many of the others were as well, simply because most of the guys that I know feel like it's a better tool....and most of us don't have line deals either, so it's just a matter of a guy making the decision that he thinks the advantages are worth the added expense of flouro. I know way too many guys who have done this a long time and won their share of $$$ through the years who choose to spend a little more on flouro to think that we all got duped by a scam. I also know some guys like yourself who have fished for a long time and certainly are not considered donators who still think that mono/copoly is just as good or better than flouro and I don't think that y'all are "wrong" at all...You just choose to use a different tool.

I know I've said it before on here, but I flipped with 25lb Big Game for probably 20 years before switching to 20 or 25 lb flouro on my flip rods and now if I pick up a flip rod spooled with 25 lb Big Game it feels like I've got my jig tied to a rubberband. For me, I'll keep paying the extra $$ for flouro.

[Jaredn]

The mainline, not the leader AFTER the weight that is attached to the bait.

Right. I use fluoro mainline and mono leader for c rigs

[jc2bg]

I’m sorry for your bad experiences but in my limited exploration of flourocarbon, I’m willing to say that if I could only have one line to use moving forward it would be 15lb invisx

This. I throw 14 lb Invisx year-round on rocky Lake Erie shorelines [and out in the open lake] with excellent results. Casts extremely well, and I typically change the line once every 2 years with hardly ever a break off. In fact, a bigger problem than breaking off is failure to break off when I get hung on a rock somewhere that I can’t get to the bait. Need to find a line that I can break off when I need to!

[okiebass]

post 39 ---i just responding to all the guys singing its praises , BUT all say check it OFTEN and be SUPER CAREFULL when tying knots , if it gets a kink got to replace it . Im not being dramatic just repeating what guys that use it are saying . If it is that touchy i have lots of better options. If you like it then by all means use it . Not for everyone for sure .

[shooter64]

I give zero thought to the visibility factor. I like the lower stretch, abrasion resistance, and overall performance of flouro.

I’m the same way, bass got a brain the size of a pea and when they started chewing an a-rig with WIRES going everywhere I quit worrying about it. I’m 100% convinced a fish cannot tell the difference between a stem, blade of grass or line by looking at. Maybe they can hear or feel a difference in vibration but I highly doubt it.

[Milehibird]

So a little help on this. You mentioned InvizX, Gamma Edge, Sniper FC, and Red Label, and some not being supple enough, or not being abrasion resistant enough. Which is which? For me InvizX was softer than Sniper, but not as abrasion resistant, but the Sniper has been the best overall. Assassin FC is more robust than Sniper. Power 2C FC is softer than assassin, and I haven't broken it off in rocks, trees, etc. yet. No fraying, and I like the 12" sections of orange for bottom contact fishing.

As for the people saying it's a scam...it isn't. Maybe it's not your cup of tea, but it's definitely not a scam. I'll use the same fluoro for 3-4 years. And as for saying "if you can't use it without line conditioner it's not worth using", well, I use line conditioner on ALL my line, so is no line worth using? The conditioner is WHY I can use the same spool of fluoro for 3,4, sometimes 5+ years with no problems.

[jljr]

+1 Berkley 100% fluorocarbon. Spray it occasionally and re-tie as needed.

[Mark Perry]

I’m the same way, bass got a brain the size of a pea and when they started chewing an a-rig with WIRES going everywhere I quit worrying about it. I’m 100% convinced a fish cannot tell the difference between a stem, blade of grass or line by looking at. Maybe they can hear or feel a difference in vibration but I highly doubt it.

I agree. Not to mention a hook hanging out of a soft plastic bait has a diameter at least 50 times of that of fishing line.

[Spot-a-saurus]

I think that you are on the right track with this statement above.

Considering the fact that the overwhelming majority of serious tournament anglers choose the advantages of flouro over the extra time/attention that it requires when compared to mono/copoly, has always lead me to believe that many of the folks who have issues with flouro are simply not being diligent enough with their attention to line care. Flouro is NOT mono and you simply CANNOT treat i(or fail to treat) it in the same manner.

I have the opportunity to have many different co-anglers in my boat each season and I try hard to observe the things that the ones who have had a lot of previous success do/don't do differently than others and line care/attention is definitely an afterthought for a lot of folks. I've gone in to allow folks to retrieve their bait that they have wrapped on a dock cable and then watched them proceed to make another cast without retying or AT LEAST checking their line with their mouth or fingers! The same can be said for fish catches..how long does it REALLY take to just automatically retie after a fish catch?

I personally believe that fluorocarbon line has been one of the most beneficial tools to come along in the 40+ years that I've been fish'n tournaments and I really feel like those who struggle with some of it's "negative aspects" would find that they are easily remedied by taking the time to tie clean knots, apply a quality line conditioner, respool with proper tension, and most of all practice proper diligence EVERY time your line comes in contact with ANYTHING other than your rod guides.

this is well said imo. Retie retie retie. I retie after every catch or anytime I detect a fray or nick in my line. Something to watch with extra diligence when cranking rocky banks with flouro or dragging baits in rock/wood.
i don’t buy the invisibility factor. I use it for sensitivity and nothing else

[Philly]

post 39 ---i just responding to all the guys singing its praises , BUT all say check it OFTEN and be SUPER CAREFULL when tying knots , if it gets a kink got to replace it . Im not being dramatic just repeating what guys that use it are saying . If it is that touchy i have lots of better options. If you like it then by all means use it . Not for everyone for sure .

In all honesty, a person should really get in the habit of doing these things with ANY line. It becomes 2nd nature and only takes a few extra seconds. A couple lost fish over the course of a season could add up to a lot of $$$ lost in the long run (if you are a tournament angler) and line care is simply on the “things you can control list” it really is a habit that is worth developing.

[Ron H 520]

I know of a successful tournament angler that uses Berkley Trilene Big Game (clear) for most presentations.

I’ve used it a lot, love it in lakes with a lot of cover, striper fishing, catfishing, down size to 8, 10, 12 n clear water where there is little cover, and it works great for me on jerks.

I never worry about a break off,I can see using it when money is on the line, did I say inexpensive? I never worry about a break off with this line. Sure, there are better lines, but if there is a line to use without pampering it to some extent with a reasonable price to go along with it, I have not found it. One thing I don’t use it on, spinning reels, for that, I use mostly K9. Big Game is some tough stuff, it needs feathering, and a dose or two of line conditioner, that’s about it for me.

[Ron H 520]

I think there are times when visibility matters with braid, and times that it doesn’t. Flipping in grass, I wouldn’t think it matters in the least.

[Woody60]

I use InvizX on every rod/reel combination I throw (except my frog rod I use braid) and have never had any issues.

[davesz518]

Just go to Izorline and the problems go away. I believe the fish don't know the difference.

[Thamelau]

I agree. Not to mention a hook hanging out of a soft plastic bait has a diameter at least 50 times of that of fishing line.

With 20lb fluoro being .017" in diameter, 50X that would be .850". If you are throwing a hook that is almost 7/8" in wire diameter, you better set the hook hard...

Just bustin your chops a little, I get the point though.