# Braid.....4 strand or 8 strand....and which line strength



## Thrifty Angler (May 5, 2002)

I have a Penn Pursuit II 4000 rated for 15/20/30 braid. Which strength would work best for occasional short casting from shore.....and for using on piers? I'm not looking to get big ones. Just normal size fish that may be in the area. And what about 4 or 8 strand types? I want to try braid and hadn't figured 4 or 8 strand options into the equation. I assumed there was only one standard type braid.
Thanks


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## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

The more strands the slicker and smoother to the touch the Braid is.

9 Strand Braid works good with conventional reels but is pretty expensive.

4 Strand tends to get hung up more on conventional reels, 4 strand works decent on Spinning reels.

Make sure you flip the bail back manually, less apt to have wind knots.

Smaller braid pound test lines cast further but when they get tangled up they can be a mess, if you are not trying to cast to the horizon every cast and just want dependable line that can last years on the reel, I would advise 30 lb and the more strands the better. But others may recommend lighter, especially if you are fishing gulp tipped jigs or light lures.


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

I would use 8 strand 20 lb for casting lures and 30 lb for bottom rigs. There is more drag with braid than smooth mono so you may have to go up one size for your sinker if current is an issue.


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## dsurf (Aug 5, 2003)

12 Strand for all your applications


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## Fish'n Phil (Nov 11, 2002)

I would use 15 lb braid on a 2500/3000 size reel, 20 lb braid on a 4000 and 30 lb on a 5000. 

If you need to be stealthy, quiet and cast far then use the 8 strand. Otherwise just use a thrifty 4 strand.


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## Reelturner (Dec 24, 2003)

I use on Shimano 4000 sized reels throwing gotcha plugs 15# Power Pro yellow with a fluoro leader and works very well.

I have a Shimano CI4 3000 spooled with 10# Daiwa J braid 8 strand blue with a 15# fluoro leader throwing jigs. First time using the CI4 with the Daiwa J braid and fished for 13 hrs first day and was incredible with not one issue. Would not have given up that set up for wonder woman!👍🤪🤪


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## Catch This (Nov 19, 2005)

I have been using 8 strand 30lb for at least 5 years with no issues other than those that were self inflicted.


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## Thrifty Angler (May 5, 2002)

Thanks guys. All the info has been helpful. I'm leaning towards spooling one my Pursuit reels with 20 lb braid for piers and another of the same brand/type reel with 30 lb braid for the surf/shoreline. 4 strand is what I will try for the pier to use for lures and bottom rigs...and 8 strand or the surf/shore.
I bought some 50 lb leader line and plan to use 15 lb fluoro for hook to leader connection. This will be used with the surf/shore 30 lb braid/8 strand spooled reel. Last trip to Backbay I lost a fish that either cut the braid or perhaps there was a weak spot on the line. Took the leader and all. Walk back from the water line to the parking lot would have been less stressful hadn't I lost that fish.
One other question.....is dark green braid a better option than grey? I'll be using it in saltwater.. from pier and from shore.

thanks again


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## KEVIN (Feb 26, 2009)

Thrifty Angler said:


> I have a Penn Pursuit II 4000 rated for 15/20/30 braid. Which strength would work best for occasional short casting from shore.....and for using on piers? I'm not looking to get big ones. Just normal size fish that may be in the area. And what about 4 or 8 strand types? I want to try braid and hadn't figured 4 or 8 strand options into the equation. I assumed there was only one standard type braid.
> Thanks


I use 8 strand, Fins XS 10lb for throwing lures for trout and puppy drum. 20lb for bottom fishing


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## Harrymanz (May 28, 2018)

Forget that stinkin braid, mono to flouro is all you need


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## Fish'n Phil (Nov 11, 2002)

I like a bright color braid for visibility plus it looks cool. Once you tie on a leader it won’t matter. 

The one time I will not use braid is when combat fishing on a pier.


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## slosh (Jul 1, 2017)

I am a braid user and have used it almost exclusively for around 15 years. I just recently started using mono in exactly the applications you mentioned (light work from beach and pier). 

If you're fishing a lure where sensitivity is key, or you need maximum casting distance, or you need lots of line capacity to handle big fish on smallish tackle, or you want high-strength line on a smallish outfit for say, jigging for grouper or amberjacks, braid is great. 

Braid has some drawbacks to consider. Wind knots are a possibility (though not as likely once you get familiar with it, I still get them from time to time). Braid, especially 30 lb and under, will cut you, especially if your hands have been wet for awhile. Worst for me when fishing from the beach, braid gets dragged more readily by wind and current, so you may need heavier weight to get it to hold compared to mono. Finally, when I'm fishing structure (including pronounced sandbars) at the beach, I have more mystery break-offs than I'd like, as braid is more prone to abrasion-induced failure than mono.

Advantages of braid are greater sensitivity, better casting distance for test strength, and it lasts forever (I still have my original 15 y/o spool of PowerPro on a spinning reel I use pond fishing, faded but still working fine). It is really strong too. If you get snagged, point the rod straight at the snag and pull, and there's a fair chance you retrieve a big log, rock, etc. 

All that in mind, I purchased a couple more filler spools of mono recently to replace the braid on a couple surf setups. The improved wind/current resistance and abrasion resistance on a recent week-long trip convinced me to make the switch. Just something to keep in mind!


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## Eltonjohn (Aug 1, 2018)

What rod are you putting it on? If you plan on fish lures that have treble hooks you are going to lose a lot more fish with braid than with mono if you're using a stiff rod. Bottom fishing it won't matter what you use. Mono has that stretch that fish crave! 😁


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## Thrifty Angler (May 5, 2002)

Eltonjohn said:


> What rod are you putting it on? If you plan on fish lures that have treble hooks you are going to lose a lot more fish with braid than with mono if you're using a stiff rod. Bottom fishing it won't matter what you use. Mono has that stretch that fish crave! 😁


Both reels came as a combo deal. Pursuit II... 7 ft one piece...Medium.....Fast Action..... is what I will be using on piers. I have some old school tall thin surf rods. Might try the other reel on one of them for surf use.


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