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Spiderwire ultracast fluoro-braid

H

Howard Cooke

Senior Member
Has anyone else looked at this stuff? I purchased a spool of the 10lb version and had a play. On the tin it says "the braid that sinks like a fluorocarbon". Imagine that. The diameter of the 10lb version is 0.20mm. Slim. It certainly does sink. And in much the same way that my heart did when under a bit of pressure it snapped very easily-it was scary. On the tin it also says "nothing gets away". Well they have- with my £20. Perhaps it is more effective at a larger diameter.
 
if your using braid as a main line i would not go below 30lb and try power pro used it for years strong as hell.
Andy
 
Thanks Andy. I was only looking at this as a possible hook length material due to its sinking ability, suppleness, low diameter etc. But if it isn't strong, especially at the knots...
 
With fluorocarbon, you need to be very, very careful with your knots, do not use pinch knots to swivels, a grinner is normally good but lubricate well and tease the knot together very carefully, if you don't you may very easily damage the line ever so slightly and it will go bang easily. Add the slipping element of braid to this and it sounds a nightmare to knot, I imagine it would be very strong if knotted well though.
 
I will not use any braid intended as mainline for hooklinks, regardless of how advantageous it might appear to be.
 
Hi Howard,

I was looking at that spiderwire braid some time ago as a mainline braid, as for using it as a hooklink i think its something to do with the tightness of the weave and the cheesewire effect, having said that i know carpers who use nash bullet as a hooklink and i know that Foxy has used the power pro for a long time without any problems..

Glad you purchased the braid before i did
 
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Howard Cooke said:
Why is that Chris?
Click to expand...

As John has just stated above. Concern over the make up and profile of braids meant as mainline.
I can't open it to check if it's the correct one, but thie following article might help explain.
The Truth about Braided Lines

I can understand if there's a certain degree of scepticism but what I take from such reading is essentially this:

Braid for mainline often has has a round(ish) section and goes like cheese wear under tension. I understand that doesn't apply to all braid mainlines though.

Braid purposely, and properly, designed for hook lengths is woven and tension differently to ensure it 'flattens' when under tension. This effectively increases the surface area of line potentially in contact with the fish and reduces the contact pressure and therefore reduces its cutting potential.
 
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Agree with Andy, any braid under about 20lb seems to snap easily with a sharp tug, probably to do with the very fine diameter. Go up to 30lb plus and you will be able to tow a barge with the stuff.
 
I must say I am not entirely convinced or happy with everything Dave Chilton has to say there. Not that Chilts will be overly bothered by my opinions :p....but there you go.

My first thought about him jumping to the defence of his braids as a hook length was "Well...he would, wouldn't he", him being the owner of the company that, in his words, 'Produces the worlds largest range of specialist braided hook lengths' :p

But, beyond that, Dave's main argument in favour of braid and his multi strand products is that, contrary to many claims by detractors, it is actually safer than mono as a hook length. Apparently, this is because in it's raw form, it flattens out under pressure, thereby increasing its surface area at the point where it is in contact with the fishes mouth.....unlike mono, which cannot do that because it is a single strand.

He then goes on to say this....

" It is a well known fact that Snake-bite is the biggest selling carp hooklength on sale throughout Europe. It is also fact that because of its coating it is also the kindest of all hooklengths on sale. We really do care about our sport, its not all about money. Our now famous Snake-skin, which was the forerunner to Snake-bite, is not a braid (braids are woven), but a multi-filament hooklength with an added plastic coating. Following its launch it was hailed by many leading writers as the safest hooklength on sale. All of our coated lines, including our new Super Mantis are totally safe because of the cushioning effect of the plastic coating.

Now....forgive me for being cynical here, but if Dave's braids and multi strand materials are 'safer than mono because of their ability to flatten out on contact, and thereby spread the load'.....how come coating them in a plastic sheath, which effectively changes them into a single strand material much like mono...makes them safer :eek: Either his braids and multi strands are safer than mono because of their ability to spread, as he claims....or they are safer once coated in a 'cushioning' plastic sheath, which he is also claiming. He really can't have it both ways :D

I could go on, but you get my drift...in my opinion, it is a defensive sales pitch which doesn't stand up to rational scrutiny in several areas. You can't blame the fella, and I have used braided hook links and mainline myself, and have no problem with them. I just don't think he did himself any favours by presenting this rather flawed article in defence of his products. Then again, I tend to have a very 'individual' way of looking at things, so maybe it's just me being me :D

Cheers, Dave.
 
Fluoro braid:
My fishing buddy purchased some and was not overly impressed. He bought the 15lb version and commented how it seemed to snap easily. It's no longer on his reel.
Abrasion resistance of braids can be a problem and I would either use mono or a mono leader if using braid as a main line.
'Standard' Braid:
Been using Power Pro for over 10 years now, 20lb minimum, 30lb mostly. I've tried others.
As I have said countless times before - when selecting a braid go by diameter as the difference between European breaking strain and US breaking strains can be confusing.
Go for 0.28mm diameter US rated 30lb (or equivalent to 8lb mono) and you've got almost a true 30lb bs knotted (if you use the right knot!).
The European rated 20kg (linear breaking strain) is similar/same to US 30lb and 'both'of 0.28mm diameter.
Anyway been on the PowerPro slick 8 (Timber Brown) and so far impressed
Cheers
Bob
 
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