Just got a couple 50's. First time with tackle like this. Want to respool. What lb test should I go with. PENN gives capacities using 50#. My friend said he is using 80. Opinions? 
Line for 50's
Sealob
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Mono vs. Braid
If you are relatively new to offshore fishing, I am a fan of spooling 50's with 60lb mono. Most 50's have the capacity to carry a decent amount of mono (600yds) and if you go with 60lb you have a little more beef than 50lb, but you can still tie knots.
If you are going to with braid/top shot, we have used 130lb Cortland Spectra and a 100yds of 80lb MoMoi top shot. I like to keep it as simple as possible and be consistent on all of our reels. We like going with the 100yds of mono for 3 reasons:
1 - You are primarly dealing mono of the time and don't braid criss crossing the cockpit
2 - The braid backing has a longer shelf life than mono, so you only have to replace the top shot
3 - 100yds of mono means that you rarely have to get into the backing unless you have a large fish or you are trolling WWB.
Just my opinion for what it's worth!
If you are relatively new to offshore fishing, I am a fan of spooling 50's with 60lb mono. Most 50's have the capacity to carry a decent amount of mono (600yds) and if you go with 60lb you have a little more beef than 50lb, but you can still tie knots.
If you are going to with braid/top shot, we have used 130lb Cortland Spectra and a 100yds of 80lb MoMoi top shot. I like to keep it as simple as possible and be consistent on all of our reels. We like going with the 100yds of mono for 3 reasons:
1 - You are primarly dealing mono of the time and don't braid criss crossing the cockpit
2 - The braid backing has a longer shelf life than mono, so you only have to replace the top shot
3 - 100yds of mono means that you rarely have to get into the backing unless you have a large fish or you are trolling WWB.
Just my opinion for what it's worth!
Whatever you chose to do make sure you have braid with a topshot of 80 lb...we didnt last year and got spooled by a BIG Blue Marlin...never saw line disappear from a reel so fast in my life under 15 seconds .....Hit....ZING....GONE...and we had bigger outfits in our spread ...he just chose to hit our pink/white small Ballyhoo...all our 50's now have 100 lb braid with 150 yards of 80lb mono...total 600 yards of line so if it happens again we should have 30 seconds to get boat turned....lol
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x3 on the 60lb Diamond.
For 99% of what you'll do with a 50W, I personally think the Hollow Core braid top shot approach is a waste of money (and a lot of it). I like braid/mono on small reels, but I just don't see the benefit on the big stuff. Just my .02.
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Momoi diamond 80 is around $230 for 3000 yards.. I can get 2500 yards of JB 130 lb for $299, the price is not that much more and will pay for itself after the first season.. After that you are ahead of the game.
But how many more Yds of JB is needed to fill the spool due to the diameter differences? I haven't researched but I believe it will be considerably more dinero. Like 50% more... :huh:
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854 Posts
I just crunched some #s.. To spool up a Tiagra 50w with 650 yards of JB 130 hollow core with a top shot of 125 yards of 130 momoi diamond it will cost around $95 per reel. To spool the same reel with momoi diamond 80 would cost around $40 per reel.
Some of the pros, more line capacity, ability to put more heat on a big fish, able to replace the top shot for around $15 without having to strip the whole reel.
Cons, initial cost.
After 2 seasons the hollow core will almost cost the same as mono, if you strip down your reels every year.
Some of the pros, more line capacity, ability to put more heat on a big fish, able to replace the top shot for around $15 without having to strip the whole reel.
Cons, initial cost.
After 2 seasons the hollow core will almost cost the same as mono, if you strip down your reels every year.
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292 Posts
Pulled off all the topshots from our 50 and 70 this weekend and also pulled off the Braid from 1 50 that is in need of service. The braid has been on this reel for 4 season without once being removed. The Spool was like brand new no signs of salt or corrosion at all. I expected as much because Spectra does not absorb water, and being packed so tight it is nearly impossable for water to get that deep into the spool. Now i do have One other 50 that we were taken deep into the spectra on this season but that reel is as Capt Freds house. I will be getting that reel this week and stripping that one down as well to see if we have any water/salt issues on the spool..
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9,454 Posts
I agree that line test has alot to do with what you plan on fishing for, but I would add that it has alot to do with what you're fishing from. For party boats or boats anchoring and chunking (or in other words, no one is going to follow or back down on fish), it might be better to go on the heavier side like 80# topshots. In a private boat/sportboat situation doing trolling or drift/chunking (or in other words, it's no big deal to follow or back down on fish), I would go with 50# to 60#, which is a bit more sporting anyway. Experience level also plays a factor, with the heavier line obviously giving a better cushion for mistakes. Either way, braid backing is a wonderful way of increasing overall line capacity, as long as it's packed right! Since most don't have the luxury of having multiple sets of rods and reels for different applications, my preference has been 130# braid backing to 125 to 150 yards of 80# Momoi mono on top. This way, we "fish" mainly with mono (e.g. trolling baits 75 to 200 feet back, stripping up to 300-400 feet back when chunking) but get into the braid only when fighting bigger fish. Especially when chunking, I still like the feel of mono going through my fingers better than braid.
Pay the cost up front now and you'll won't regret it. Hollow core has about 8-10x the life span of mono. Having the option of changing in and out top shots and splicing in damaged sections of hollow core make it a no brainer in my book.
Are they wides are standard size? If your new to the sport mono is alot eaqsier to work with, if it's wide I'd put 80lb on it if standard then 60 or 65. If you have the money and are looking to get into it more seriously, then a good braid 100lb or 130lb with a mono top shot of 80lb on it, depending how your useing the reel should VSW's reels are 2-speeds. We have 130lb Spectra on them with 250 yd mono top shots on them, since we use these reels for our WWWB lines in our spread that's why we go with such long mono top shots.. We'll often dump the reel back over 200 yds for bluefin, you really don't want your braid being pulled thru the water when your spread is set up.
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