Braided line has revolutionized inshore saltwater fishing. The thin diameter and extreme strength enables us to use lighter tackle to cast farther and fight bigger fish than ever before.
Over the years my preference for braided lines has changed as technology has continued to evolve. I am confident that the new Daiwa J Braid is my favorite braided line to date. The line is made with eight strands braided together to form a perfectly round profile. This is important to the performance as it really seems to help avoid tangles while being able to cast farther. In addition, this line seems to be the strongest line per diameter that I have ever used. Check out this chart from the Daiwa J Braid Website that compares traditional monofilament diameter and strength to J Braid:
10 lb test braid is the diameter of 2.5 lb test monofilament. 15 is the same as 4 lb and 20 is the same diameter as 6 lb test mono. The diameter is important to me because I can cast farther than ever before. I can also use much smaller reels and much lighter tackle than it used to require to fish for the same fish. For situations that I was using a 5000 size reel I am now quite confident in using a Daiwa Saltist 3000. The difference in weight and castability is big for me but a game-changer for a little kid. Tackle that is easy to handle and lightweight results in kids being more comfortable in fishing situations and they tend to stick with it longer.
I like that the line comes in several colors. Traditionally, I have preferred dark green, but I am coming around to the light blue shade. I like to think that our inshore saltwater fish may think it looks like the sky. I guess if cast properly, the fish would never see the line but I am confident in the dark green as being pretty invisible and from my experience lately, the light blue seems to do an equal job.
The most common question I receive is about knots with braided line. “How do you tie braided line to fluorocarbon?” I find that all my favorite knots work just fine with Daiwa J Braid and I haven’t needed to alter anything.
Here are videos of my top 3 braid to fluorocarbon knots:
J Knot
FG/Delph/ Knot
Double Uni
Let me know if you have any other questions about braided line. Happy to help, and feel free to leave a comment.
If you are interested in purchasing Saltist reels, I suggest going to Bass Pro. Here is a link for easy reference:
See you on the water,
Tom Rowland
