Thread: Surfcasting : Braid vs Mono

Be interested to hear why as well ?

Braid with a couple metre mono leader. Casts miles and the mono is more abrasion resistant in the surf.

For surfcasting with mono on fixed spool, also use braid on free spool,
braid not so forgiving with abrasion round the rocks and tend to bind in spool when get snag,,,best over sand.

the monos idiot proof
braid more for those that know what there doing and know there knots and twists.

I don't do a lot of surfcasting as I'm rubbish at it, but think braided mainline with a long mono shock leader gives you the best of both worlds as long as abrasion isn't a big issue.

Ahh,,, shock leader that was the term I was wanting to come to me.
Definatly a good mono shock leader, that braid can cut you like a knife if you get it wrong.

The vast bulk of my fishing has been surfcasting. I can't count the 1000s of dollars worth of tackle I've lost in the sea over the years. For fishing off the rocks mono offers the best abrasion resistance. I would usually run 30lb mainline then either step down for the trace to 20lbs if it's sandy or up to 50lbs if rocky. Off somewhere like Castle point with a big lift up the rocks, I would run a double 50Lb shock leader about 10m long then a single 50lb trace on the end. Most of my surfcasting has been off the west coast Dorkland coast. Piha, Cornwallis, Whatapu etc....
Learning about boat fishing these days.

braid tangles are horrible if you get it wrong and it's not good with rocks so mono for surf for me

I also prefer mono especially as I prefer fishing near to rocky outcrops.
Braid for the boat reels.

Cod bashing at the pass off the rocks mono simple rig ..mono main line sinker hook ..catchem or snag ..easy to re rig by catch of Kahawai , ..good for fishing sandy bottom running rig .

Braid stray lines ..wicked until a Kahawai or snake takes you around Berley pot and mate rig ..

Surf casting braid shock leader over sand / mud bottom ..rock bottom mono ..

braid, only braid. I was set up with a mono leader years ago, I hated the not going through the eyes when casting. braid much better for casting, never had a problem with braid trace as well.

For surf fishing definitely mono, I like to run 30lb mono with a 50lb shock leader to take the force of casting.

Most surfcasting reels (ones sold for surf casting, you can upgrade to a saltiga) don’t have very grunty gears so the shock that braid can deliver can strip them as it has no stretch and all the force goes straight onto the gears.

If chasing big sharks or kingis and need more line on the spool I run 100m of mono over 400m of 50lb braid for backing as it takes up less space on the spool.

Just straight mono for most of our other surf fishing.


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Braid with nylon or fluorcarbon leader for me.
Dont think I will ever go back to fishing with a rubber band on my reel.

If you fish places with reasonable waves and swells, then mono is your friend. Braid has zero stretch, meaning your sinker will simply pull out, or your rod will fall over in your sand spike. The elasticity of mono is perfect for absorbing the waves. Don't get me wrong, braid is amazing for jigging and topwater etc, but I don't really use it in the surf. Just my $0.02.

I've been using a long fluoro shock leader to braid mainline to surfcast off the beach. By "long", I mean the shock leader is a couple of turns onto the reel itself at the moment of casting, otherwise I figure a shock leader is useless. I really don't like this setup as the entire shock leader and the knot clatters through the guides and robs me of distance. Also, after a few cut-offs and re-rigs, the shock leader shortens too much and you end up having to change the leader more often than you need. I'm considering using just braid now. Haven't tried it yet and not sure if the braid can handle the oomph I put into my casts. Maybe someone can share their experience on that.

Originally Posted by Pepo1

I've been using a long fluoro shock leader to braid mainline to surfcast off the beach. By "long", I mean the shock leader is a couple of turns onto the reel itself at the moment of casting, otherwise I figure a shock leader is useless. I really don't like this setup as the entire shock leader and the knot clatters through the guides and robs me of distance. Also, after a few cut-offs and re-rigs, the shock leader shortens too much and you end up having to change the leader more often than you need. I'm considering using just braid now. Haven't tried it yet and not sure if the braid can handle the oomph I put into my casts. Maybe someone can share their experience on that.

This guy uses braid when surfcasting. Seems to work for him, but he fishes sandy beaches. Old rule of thumb was 10lb leader for every 1oz sinker. I'd up that if using braid straight through.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=294555732466638