Think I gotta step up to braid :(

Had a good day out fishing yesterday, but we went deep after Ling.

I've thought it overkill when I see boat anglers in their €200-300 setups when we go out after cod, pollock, flats and mackeral (10-20m).
I made it my business to get 2 cheap rod and reel sets (fladen celtic) for about £30 http://www.tacklebargains.co.uk/acatalo ... ut---.html each and loaded them with 25/30lb line and I could catch as well as anyone else.

But yesterday my setup really struggled.... going to almost 60m+ my line was too flexible making bite detection and striking difficult. Also maybe it was the thickness of the mono but the braid seemed to be fishing straight down while mine was at an angle back away from the drift (same weights)

And with a 3.8:1 ratio it was a long pull up with the weight.

I caught one small ling while the fella I was fishing with had 6. (we were both fishing booms, 8oz's, with flowing traces and mackeral, squid, razor cocktails) In shallower waters we are fairly equal on what we catch. But he has one of those €200-300 setups

So am I doomed without an expensive setup when it comes to deep boat fishing?

I would love to just put on briad on my setup, but I'm wondering if this is realistic or should I consider a better rod and reel combo?

I buy cheap so I don't mind if it rusts, breaks or gets nicked. They are coming up on 2 years old and am wondering wether to buy the same again and fit with mono, or get something slightly better....

I'd say i'd only be going deep about 10% of my fishing the rest will be in and around the harbour so not that deep.

Ta

Well you have already worked out that braid will give you better bite detection and because of it's lower diameter it will give less resistance in water so buy some and try it on existing set up.
I see no need to throw away my hard earned on fishing gear so €200-300 set ups don't exist in my world. You will not regret moving to braid but this does not mean that you have to start buying expensive rods and reels to use it.
If you find that braid is damaging rings on your rod then it might be time to invest in something more braid friendly but again it is hard enough to earn a few bob so don't go throwing it away on the latest fishing rod fad there are plenty of rods around that don't cost the earth.
Good luck with the braid I changed years ago and would never go back. I only use mono when shark fishing.

Yappo

ya, maybe 200-300 is an exaggeration...

30quid every 2 seasons for 2 rods is grand for the boat for disposable gear, but if I was to get a decent outfit... I'm thinking the braid alone will cost 20 so another 40 for a reel? Is that still under budgeting? I figure the rod will last a while more, its a cheapo 6ft rod.

Hi donnyboy , my story was similar . I started with a broomstick rod and 25 lb mono . The other guy in the boat always outfished me about 10:1 and his average size was much bigger . Bought a more sensitive ( 35 euro ) rod and catch rate improved but not so you'd notice . Then switched to braid and caught loads more fish as well as having a lot more fun ... you can actually see/feel bites , feel the fight with less weight on , be confident that you are on bottom rather than in midwater on the drift , and have a lot less line to retrieve because it goes down rather than out the back .
Haven't yet had problems with the rings , perhaps because there isn't a ton of lead dragging the line thru them .
Braid is really worth the money IMHO . Doesn't need to be anything special .
Just be sure to make the ( mono ) trace a good bit weaker than the braid mainline .
Good luck .

Braid all the way!

30quid every 2 seasons for 2 rods is grand for the boat for disposable gear, but if I was to get a decent outfit... I'm thinking the braid alone will cost 20 so another 40 for a reel? Is that still under budgeting? I figure the rod will last a while more, its a cheapo 6ft rod.

You could spend a fortune on a matching set of golf clubs but if you can't play golf they would be a complete waste, so think the same about fishing and if you think a particular rod or reel will improve your chances then invest if not stick with the old tried and trusted but then maybe your fishing will stay exactly the same. Of course as you are fishing in Cork maybe a bent pin, piece of string and a bamboo cane will do as at least you still have fish.

Yappo

You could spend a fortune on a matching set of golf clubs but if you can't play golf they would be a complete waste, so think the same about fishing and if you think a particular rod or reel will improve your chances then invest if not stick with the old tried and trusted but then maybe your fishing will stay exactly the same. Of course as you are fishing in Cork maybe a bent pin, piece of string and a bamboo cane will do as at least you still have fish.
Yappo

Very true, and the cheapo kit is perfect for 95% of my fishing... but like I say, going at depth I find it useless.

Thanks for all the comments, great advice and feedback!

Cheers!

Braid - just great for feeling the bottom and bites - so much more pleasure. Initially I got tangles but once used to it - not a problem.

Braid everytime, except for shark fishing

I think theres lots to be said for decent kit.

Just the three points you have mentioned there rusting, breaking and getting nicked. The thing is with decent kit it won't rust and it shouldn't break. I do accept that getting 300 quids worth of stuff nicked would be fairly horrible alright, but i wasn't aware it was very likely to happen.

Obviously when someone is starting off its not necessary or advisable to get the latest kit but when you are more experienced i do think it makes fishing in certain situations more enjoyable.

One last thing to mention, €200-€300 gear might not be 'overkill' as you put it. Often with quality gear you can fish with lighter rods and line without having to worry about breaking anything, it often enables you to take a more delicate approach whereas cheaper kit tends to be on the stiffer/stronger side so it can stand up to the sometimes rather ham fisted use it gets from beginners.

Now this is just my opinion of course, but i have spent a very large amount of money of fishing gear over the last few years and have witnessed that if you buy carefully, more expensive gear can and will outlast the cheap stuff. It also lets me get a bit more enjoyment out of my fishing but that might be because i'm still young and materialistic

Alex

Oh, and to answer the original question, braid all the way. But be sure to buy decent stuff, bad braid is worse than useless. I like to use PowerPro.