Backing line for shooting.

[Paul Arden]

Hi guys,

What do you recommend for shooting line behind the MED? I've used all sorts of things. My preference was more MED running line spliced but that probably doesn't make sense in comps.

Thanks, Paul

[Graeme H]

I've normally added 20 to 40' of 20lb nylon mono but if I was in competition, I'd be using the hollow braid backing you saw when you were here. A couple of layers of 60lb as a 30' length (or longer?) integrated into the line and treated with the boiled linseed oil/varnish mixture. That would give you no knots in the system to get caught in the guides and enough stiffness to avoid it blowing around or knotting itself.

Cheers,
Graeme

[Lasse Karlsson]

I use either flat mono shootingline or mono shooting line, but they are bright coloured and thus cheating

Get some rio slickshooter in 25lbs, make a proper neddleknot and get casting

Cheers
Lasse

[sms]

I use mono that I happen to have laying around. I open the core of MED a bit with a needle and insert the mono with a bit of super glue. I think pretty much the same method is used by some to attach the leader for fishing (in which case the thick butt needs to be thinned/tapered).

[Michal Duzynski]

Hi Paul
same as Sakkari, no issues.
cheers
mike

[Paul Arden]

Cheers guys. I can see some experiments required then! I suspect it will be a windy venue. I like the idea of weight to stop it blowing around Graeme however if it prevents maximum shooting this is not good and I expect line to be shot!

That's the Dave Whitlock knot right? I've used it on the other end for trout until I lost a big one in NZ What I think best to avoid is tangles. I used the hollow Varivas stuff last year which was good on the water but sucked for tangling. 20-30ft of mono around our feet is going to be interesting!

[Graeme H]

With two layers of 60lb, it would weigh about as much as the fine end of the leaders you already have. That is, not a lot, but a bit more than the untreated braid would be.

If you wanted to get tricky, you could insert the fly line into the braid itself and have a nearly-seamless transition between line and treated backing. (I don't know the legalities though.)

[Paul Arden]

Ok I need to try it!

[Kevin P]

Thank you all for giving me an "aha" moment. I have a super-fast-sink line, WF8, that really does not want to shoot. It is miserable to cast. That's why I have not fished it in several years. I have weighed and measured all my lines recently, including the running lines, and this WF8 is weighted as follows:
10 metres head length, including very short back taper: 1.36 gram / m; total head weight = 15 grams i.e. conforms to AFTM8 standard very closely - great!
Running line: 0.9 gram / m.........!
No wonder it does not want to shoot far. Not so much a "brick on a string" as a brick being asked to drag a half another brick behind it.
I dare say more up-to-date fast sink lines have longer heads and much thinner and lighter running line. If anyone can confirm this I might think it's worth buying a new line. On the other hand, this running line is about AFTM5, and 20 metres or so of that would go very well on my AFTM 6 rod - weighing the same as the amount of barstool Fast Glass I can carry - and spliced to a braided running line.
Kevin

[James9118]

My gut feeling for casting comps is to use thin mono in order to maximise the shoot. However I've seen a number of slo-mo videos where the backing connection does all sorts of weird stuff before going out through the rings. For example here's Tracy sticking the backing knot out (with a #7) - watch the last part of the line going up.

https://www.facebook.com/10000607237692 ... _video_tab