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I got a Ci4 for a ridiculous deal

Its currently spooled with 20lb braid.

I want to use it for dropshotting.

Should I keep the braid and use a leader or just respool with something else?

8 lb Fluro, I use P-Line.

RJ

I use 10-15lbs braided mainline(PowerPro) - 8-10lbs flouro leader.

Keep the braid and add a fluro leader!
anywhere between 3-5 feet long.

Shawn.D

I should qualify my statement I guess. I have to use fluro because I use a light wire hook. Braid will open it up every hookset.

RJ

I agree with Shawn on this one.

I do not have a dedicated DS rod so when I do drop shot, I plan on tying a flouro leader onto the 20lb braid I use on my spinning reels.

I'm seeing all these suggestions, but no explanations other then RJ's.
Why do you guys prefer braid/fluoro leader over straight Fluoro?

What depths are you fishing when DS' ing?
Wouldn't fluoro be more forgiving as opposed to braid in deeper water?
Is it preference only?

Thanks!

Another braid/flouro leader guy here. Using #1 gammy wide gaps. I find I feel way more bites with the braid, more importantly I feel bottom a lot better. But most importantly I like to leave the line on my reels for 3 years or more without changing it haha.

For me, it is more of a price thing. PP last a long time and a 4-10 flouro leader is a lot cheaper than spooling up the whole reel. I also prefer the sensitivity of braid. for the most part, when I fish a DS rig, my line it usually tight so the braid just provides a little better feel of what is going on.

The flouro is just there to remove the site of the line otherwise, I would use straight braid. Having fished for perch using the same setup but with live bait, I can say using flouro/copoly of straight braid has its advantages. I got outfished by my 7 year old as he was using the rod with 6lb copoly. The only difference was the line so that is why I started using a leader.

It's funny you mention straight braid. When fishing with a neighbour kid last year he was snagging up and breaking off and tangling so often I just never put the leader back on. He was using straight up 15lb pp, no leader, dropshotting, and still catching fishing consistently. Makes you wonder lol.

There are a lot of factors that go into the decision about line .. as RJ, said, his choice of flouro is based on his hook choice as flouro will absorb some of the hook set force and lessen the chance of straightening out a light wire hook.

I just watched a tip by JP Derose on WFN where he says something like ".. anytime your technique is based on bottom contact, you should consider braid as a main line as, when taut, will transmit bottom composition, strikes better than the other lines".

The key here is the word "taut". If you normally fish your dropshot vertically with little slack in your line, then a braid mainline might be a consideration. More and more, anglers are casting their drop shots .. normally in this scenario there will be some slack or bowing in the line and if you use a braid mainline, you better be watching your line or you'll miss a lot of subtle strikes. In the case of casting drop shots, you likely can cast farther with a light braid, or a nanofil type line as well. The properties of a good flourocarbon transmit movement in a slack line better than braid, probably due to overall line stiffness there are lots of anglers that prefer straight flouro for dropshotting.

Lost in all this that there is no mention of the rod you're using .. if the rod is stiffer then you might want to consider a line that stretches more and vice versa, if your rod is soft, you might be forced to use braid so that you can transmit your hookset in time.

In the end, there is no right/wrong, better solution .. it comes down to personal preference and what you can "feel" best .. after all, it's a finesse technique and each of our abilities to feel a bite is different.

Well said Andrew.

Line is probably the one thing that is purely personal preference. My buddy uses braid on his spinnerbait rod because he missed too many fish with Mono. Braid gives him confidence so he uses it.

I prefer Mono for spinnerbaits because I like the added stretch it gives which doesn't rip the hook out of their face...

RJ wrote:I should qualify my statement I guess. I have to use fluro because I use a light wire hook. Braid will open it up every hookset.

RJ

I've herd you also set like a BOSS!!!! Not sure who told me that

2 setups..this year, last year used braid and leader no issues at all.
1 - 16lb braid with 8lb fc leader
2- 7lb finesse fc

8-12lb braid with a 12-15lb fluro leader but I go short on the leader because I don't like the knot going through the guides