Line

Use the lightest pound-test possible. The lighter the line the better action your lure will have, but heavy cover will demand a heavier line. When buying a monofilament line stay away from the so-called bargain lines and look for a premium line with the following qualities: high visibility, knot strength, abrasion resistance, line stretch, limpness, and shock resistance. All of these qualities are like the links of a chain, each depending on the other for the end result.

High visibility will allow you to see the lightest strike or slightest twitch. These lines have a special fluorescent dye which makes them glow when exposed to ultraviolet rays but nearly invisible when submerged in water. Thus they are visible to the angler and not to the fish.

Line stretch and shock resistance are closely linked. Line stretch quality allows a little give to the line when you become snagged or set the hook hard into a fish. Too much stretch is not good so it is important to have just the right amount of stretch to absorb a sudden shock without breaking.

To make things easier when casting off the reel, a line should have the proper level of limpness which is usually determined by its thickness or diameter. The thinner the line, the more flexible and limp it will be.

Two things that will weaken your line are knots and abrasions. Learn to tie good, strong knots. The two I use most often are the Berkley Trilene knot and the Palomar knot, both easy to tie and very strong.

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