Does Braided Fishing Line Damage Guides?

Written by Karsen in Q&A

You and a group of friends are sitting around enjoying another cup of coffee while you discuss the finer points of this weekend’s upcoming fishing excursion. You’re all discussing the charter you’ve arranged, and the excitement is building. Until someone says, “I heard the captain uses braided line. A while back, I heard that’s bad for your rod guides.”

It may have been an accurate statement 10-15 years ago that braided fishing line can damage your rod guides, but that isn’t generally the case with today’s braid. Braided line has come a long way in that time span, and now is often the popular choice for anglers in many situations.

Let’s take a closer look at braided fishing line, what you can expect from it, and when it’s best to use it.

The History of Braided Fishing Line

The saying has been around for more than a millennium – “A cord of three strands is not easily broken.”

Although this particular phrase is typically used in relation to marriage, fishermen have known this fact to be true too. They used to braid their own fishing line to make it stronger when they were after fish known for their strength and fight.

In an effort to make the process easier (and marketable) in the 1950s, DuPont began promoting a braided fishing line intended to provide anglers with more success. As with most inventions, early attempts failed to return the results they hoped to achieve.

The amount of improvement that has been made to braided fishing lines over the past 60+ years has been exponential.

Historically, braided fishing line has wreaked havoc on aluminum fishing guides because of the increased abrasion. The braided line on today’s market doesn’t cause the same kind of damage its older versions did.

Today’s Braided Fishing Line

The quality braided fishing line that is on the market today is designed to work with most rods. This line is created by fusing tiny fibers into strands, which are then tightly braided and coated with Teflon™ making the line smooth and keeping it from creating friction against guides. 

Benefits of Using Braided Fishing Line

  1. It’s thin.
    • Because this line is so tightly braided, it is often narrower than its monofilament or fluorocarbon counterparts. This means that you can get more of this stronger line on your reel than you would be able to if you were using a different kind of line.
    • Pro Tip: Make sure you spool your reel tightly to keep the braided line from burying itself in your reel.
    • The thin nature of this line also means that you’ll get cleaner casts. This line will cut through the water rather than leaving you with the big U on the surface.
    • Even though this line is thin, it’s not invisible. Many have found braided line works best in water that isn’t crystal clear.
  2. It doesn’t stretch.
    • Lack of stretch in the line means that you have a new level of sensitivity at your fingertips. You will be able to feel those nibbles, so you know when to set your hook.
    • To be able to set your hook, you need to have a good knot. With its coating and lack of stretch, braid can be very slippery, making it challenging to secure a good knot. Most anglers use a Palomar knot and leave a small tail. Some, including myself, recommend the Double Davy Knot which you can read about here.
    • The firm line also means that you need to be careful because you won’t have that extra second to get your finger out of the way when your line tightens against your rod. More than one angler has been cut by not paying attention to this detail.
    • Pro Tip: Do not cut the tail off close to the knot as it will jeopardize the knot’s integrity and security.
  3. It’s strong.
    • Braided line gives you the assurance that your line is not likely to break. This is awesome when you are fishing in an area of lily pads or lots of reeds. The fish may try to tangle you up, but the line will cut through the weeds.
    • If, on the other hand, you’re fishing where there are structures the fish uses to hide, your line won’t break and may become tangled in those pieces of wood or pilings.
    • Strong is not an understatement. This is not line that you can break with your hands. You’ll need a pair of scissors to cut your line as experienced anglers have found that clippers don’t work well.
  4. It lasts.
    • The lack of stretch in the line makes it resistant to breakage. The coating makes it resistant to splitting and sun rot.
    • When your line does start showing some wear, it is excellent to use as backing for your newer line.

Various Braided Line Strands

Braided fishing line is usually rated with two numbers. Earlier in the article, we discussed how braided line is thinner than fluorocarbon or monofilament line. With that in mind, braided line provides numbers that give a comparison to its non-braided counterparts.

A rating of 10/2 means that it is a 10-pound test line that is a similar size to 2-pound non-braided line. This ultimately means that you are now set for reeling in a 100-pound fish with a lighter line.

You will also find braided line in strand combinations of anywhere from 4 to 16 strands braided together. You will get different action from the different number of strands.

Some tips about braided line strands:

  • The fewer the number of strands, the better the abrasion resistance. 

This means that you’re going to be able to cast without any drag on your line. Some even suggest that the lighter lines manually need to be slowed down.

It also means that there are fewer strands to cause fraying when the line gets rubbed against something strong.

Pro Tip: When you notice your line has a fray in it, trim your line down. That weakened area of your line is more likely to break and cause you to lose your prize catch.

  • The higher the number of strands, the better the performance.

Do you want to be able to cast your line out there a long way and still have precision as to where you place your bait? The heavier line will sail out there farther and sink deeper than the lighter line will.

Another trait you’ll notice about braided line is that it will “sing” when you cast. Some find that this whirring or zinging sound the line makes during casting distracting. Most will tell you that it doesn’t take long to become accustomed to the sound and that you miss it when casting fluorocarbon or mono.

Top Picks of Braided Lines

There are several different braided lines available in today’s market. Here are a few of some of Amazon’s available top-rated braided lines:

Each of these options comes in multiple strand strengths, weights, and spool lengths. You have the opportunity to get what you need for any of your fishing outings.

In Conclusion

Modern braided fishing line is much more reliable than its early versions were. Chances are your rod has much improved over the rods that were on the market in the 20th century too. 

If you still have concerns as to whether or not braided line will work well for your reel or rod, check your manufacturer’s specification guidelines. This step will provide you the level of comfort you need.

Once you get used to using braided line, you will most likely find that the extra expense on the front-end results in much better fishing experience.

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