Diamond Momoi braid vs Power Pro

[Spectre5922]

I know that this is an Aquasport forum, but I have some questions about braided line and there really isn't a spot for the topic.  I posted this same thing up on 2coolfishing.com and out of almost 200 views, nobody seemed to have an opinion.  Since most of you guys are fishermen, maybe you have an opinion....

I heard about the Momoi Diamond braid from the owner of Serious Tackle in LaMarque (really cool guy). Supposedly, it is the second best braid out there. In the 1 1/2 years that I've been fishing, I have used Power Pro exclusively and LOVE it. I know a lot of you are not really big Power Pro fans but I've had GREAT luck with it over mono or flourocarbon. The issue is that I just acquired an old Swiss Abu Garcia 7000 and it takes MONGO yards of braid! I can buy a 500 yard spool of Power Pro from Fishing Tackle Unlimited or I can have Serious Tackle spool the reel with the Momoi Diamond braid. I know nothing at all about the Diamond braid so I'm looking for opinions. I'm not sure if it matters, but I will be running the reel on a 7' MH rod and using this one mostly with crab or sardines on the bottom going for big reds and other stuff. Also, I run 50lb PP on my 6500C4, but that reel is a total pain to crank with anything big on the hook like the 27lb Bull Red I caught a few weeks ago. With either brand, should I step up to maybe 65lb or 80lb on the 7000 just because I can or just stick to the 50lb?  Also, the Diamond braid is around $20-$25 more to spool on the reel than Power Pro.  Is it that much better a fishing line?

Just so you know, the reasons that I like the Power Pro are that it is SUPER strong and untangles VERY easy should I get a bird nest.  The only down side is that it doesn't stand up to rocks well like at the North Jetty in Bolivar.

Thanks for any responses.

[gran398]

If you're bottom fishing, you can back it with mono and use the braid for the last 200 yards or so, depending on depth. You'll have it locked down anyway, right?

Saying this mostly because it works, and secondarily, because I'm cheap.

I don't have an opinion re. brands, maybe Matt or the other Captains can help on that.

[Spectre5922]

Thanks for the response Gran.  I thought about backing it with mono for the first 150-200 yards and then use a 300 yard roll of braid.  The price jumps DRAMATICALLY when you go from 300-500 yds.  300 yds of Power Pro 50lb is $22, 500 yds is $60 and having the reel spooled with the Diamond is around $75 or so ($.18/yd) figured at around 450 yds of 50lb.  I have TONS of 20-30 pound mono laying around that I use for leaders that I could use as a backer.  My only concern is that if I hook something really big that runs, once it takes the 300 yards of 50lb braid, I am left with fighting a really large fish with 20-30lb mono.  I haven't had any luck tying a uni knot with mono larger than around 40lb so I'm not sure how I would make the connection of braid to mono if I matched the test strength of the mono to the braid.  I have about 1500 yds of Momoi 100lb mono, but you (or at least I) can't tie a uni for SQUAT with it!

Keep em coming guys.........

[gran398]

Since you're bottom fishing, I wouldn't bee too concerned with the test of the mono...30 to 50 should work fine. You're pretty much using it as "filler"...unless you get something on like a big spinner or blacktip.

Try this knot instead of the double-uni:

http://www.texstackle.com/knot_albright.htm

[slvrlng]

I agree with Scott. I usually back all my reels just leaving enough room to run the top shot of braid, usually around 100 yards. I also reverse the braid after so long when it starts to show wear. The wear doesn't really effect it too much as it is buried under the fresher line and you won't see the wear unless something big takes off with your bait.. I don't know if you have seen the new single strand Berkley Uni-filament yet but it looks very interesting. Can you say Nanofiliments?

 http://www.berkley-fishing.com/products ... i-filament

Edit!!!

I will agree that any mono line above 50 gets really hard to tie correctly even with pliers.

[SC170nFL]

You NC & GA boys give good advise, at least this time. I do this too to keep from using more braid than necessary for cost factor and have had no problems. Of course you saw my stellar performance in October, total skunked. Just had to give a shout out.