Braid and Filling High Capacity Reels

For relatively high capacity reels how do you like to fill the spool? For one reel, my current plan is to  leave about 100 yards of 30# mono on the reel and fill it with 40# braid probably about 200yards, and maybe a 20 yard topshot of mono.

Is there a better approach?

Dave

That about sums it up. The amount/weight of mono backing is dependent on the reel and braid. Keep in mind that line capacity ratings are often a bit liberal. If it states 500yds of 30# braid, you'll likely land around 400 unless using a low strand count smaller diameter.

Also, 20yds of topshot is excessive. You might as well just fish mono at that point. Depending on species I run 6-20ft of either mono or fluoro.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

How do you recommend tying braided line to a trolling reel?  Some people say that you have to start with some mono and then tie on the braid, because braid won't grip the spool of the reel.  Other people say that you don't need to start with mono because braid will grip better than mono.  Some people say you need to put some tape on the spool before you wind on braided line.

Again it depends on the reel. Some have a hole, small stud, or a rubber pad on the spool. For those just use your favorite knot at start winding. For slick spools I double wrap mono and secure tightly with a clinch knot. Lots of people use a small piece of tape as well, but in my almost 40 years I've never found that necessary. If spooling a mono backing, wind up the desired amount, then attach braid using your favorite mono to braid knot and continue. Otherwise, just spool 10-20 wraps of mono for grip then attach/finish with braid.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

+1 Pete. There are as many answers as there are different kinds of reels. I like to put a 1/3 to 1/2 mono backer then your braid joined with a uni to uni knot. That way you can get 2 reels spooled with the more expensive braid.

On conventional reels I typically will add a few wraps of electrical type tape to give the braid something to grip into more so than the smooth spool, then directly to the braid for the full spool.

Also I have been known to reuse "old" braid by spooling it onto another reel so that the worn end is at the beginning of the spool and the brand new braid is at the new end, works at saving a bit of money if the braid is in good shape.

How do you recommend tying braided line to a trolling reel?  Some people say that you have to start with some mono and then tie on the braid, because braid won't grip the spool of the reel.  Other people say that you don't need to start with mono because braid will grip better than mono.  Some people say you need to put some tape on the spool before you wind on braided line.

Braid does not grip better than mono.  I've seen too many times where people have tied straight and the whole thing just slips and spins.

Alan Tani had something to say about tape on spools recently including pictures of corroded spools.

I use a few feet of mono.  Heck, I'll even use a whole bunch of mono on bigger reels that I don't want to load a shit ton of brain onto.

-Allen

Braid does not grip better than mono.  I've seen too many times where people have tied straight and the whole thing just slips and spins.

Alan Tani had something to say about tape on spools recently including pictures of corroded spools.

I use a few feet of mono.  Heck, I'll even use a whole bunch of mono on bigger reels that I don't want to load a shit ton of brain onto.

-Allen

I second everything the newby said.   

-Mark-

Braid does not grip better than mono.  I've seen too many times where people have tied straight and the whole thing just slips and spins.

Alan Tani had something to say about tape on spools recently including pictures of corroded spools.

I use a few feet of mono.  Heck, I'll even use a whole bunch of mono on bigger reels that I don't want to load a shit ton of brain onto.

-Allen

I second everything the newby said.   

-Mark-

I also agree with the newby on all points.

New guy knows his shit

Sent from my VS987 using Tapatalk

One of my reels when I bought it at basspro way back along with braid and had them spool it up. They used some masking tape on the spool. A few years down the road I had some nasty corrosion under the tape. Thankfully elbow grease, a few files, wet sanding and polish has the spool in good shape again, but I'm never going to allow a cloth-type tape on a spool again.

On smooth spools I run a 10-30yd backing of mono then spool the rest up with braid. It is expensive, but especially with conventional style reels if you lose some line from snags and such, it really isn't a big deal. It also resists rotting and uv damage MUCH better than mono, so you're probably going to spend about the same on line anyways since mono goes to shit pretty quickly.

I haven't ever seen the tape becoming an issue, but that may be more because of my level of usage (not enough) more so than anything else. I will definitely have to keep this in mind in the future.

If you put a layer of electrical tape or self adherent medical tape on the reel you don't need the mono backing. I use stuff similar to this on my avets https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00MKAHU88/ref=mp_s_a_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1484433546&sr=8-8&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=medical+tape&dpPl=1&dpID=51OEkD61dGL&ref=plSrch


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Braid does not grip better than mono.  I've seen too many times where people have tied straight and the whole thing just slips and spins.


-Allen

I learned that the hard way a few weeks ago when my whole wad of braid spun on the spool.  Thankfully I had a long unoccupied beach nearby and a snag to tie to so I could completely unspool the reel and rewind it.  Lesson learned.

I've always used fifty to one hundred yards of mono backing as much for keeping the braid from slipping as, like polepole, to reduce the amount of expensive braid I need to use to fill the reel.  However, unlike Allen, I have yet to load a "shit ton of brains" onto a reel... although some may disagree.

I changed line on a 5000-series spinning reel the other day and found the mono backing had formed itself into very tight coils and unspooling it was putting a lot of twist in the line, so I guess I'll start putting fresh backing on my spinning reels every year.  Hey!  A guy can dream about being spooled, can't he?  It's kind of like the folks who run braid all the way to the spool.     

IdahoBrit, a uni-uni knot is for joining lines of nearly identical diameter and probably isn't a good knot to join braid to mono.  Most descriptions of a uni-uni knot say something about "lines of similar diameter", so unless you're using a 10# mono backing for 50# braid, it might be a good idea to try a different knot.