Is 20lb braid overkill for a 3-5kg rod?

[Keepitreel]

Hi gents,

I purchased a Diawa TDT Spin Cobo 7" 3-5kg(http://www.bcf.com.au/online-store/prod ... mendations) and spooled it with 20lb braid.

This is my only rod and the aim was to use this for all fishing purposes from fishing the Murray to flicking plastics at Docklands for bream until I can upgrade and get a few more rods.

Is 20lb braid for a 3-5kg rod over kill?

Cheers,

[DougieK]

I squid with 20lb braid and heavy leader cos it makes pulling jigs out of weed easier.

Set your drag correctly and you won't have an issue.

Probably ok for the murray, massive overkill for docklands bream.

[purple5ive]

did the reel come with 2 spools.
if so spool the second one up with 10lb and then mix and match when you need.
its def overkill for docklandsa dn stuff, unless your after jewies. for bream on lures you will not get a good cast due to the thick line

[simon2g]

What reel are you using? Should be fine if it's matched with the rod.
In terms of what you're targeting, I agree bit of overkill for bream.

At times it's good to have a few different rod/spools to use that can be used in different situations.
I've got an Ugly Stick and a Shakespeare slingshot for flicking lures, while the UglyStick I use for bait fishing some times aswell along with my 12ft/9ft rod.

[simon2g]

Like Purple said, if it came with a spare spool 10lb would be ideal, giving you two options that cover much that is on offer around here. If it did not come with a second spool, you can easily find a decent secondary spool for a decent price, at that point, though you may be better off investing in a second combo as having two rods with you at times is a big advantage.

[Westfish]

In a word Yes but that doesn't mean you can't use it.
A lot of braid will break at double the rated capacity so 20lb will more likely break around 20kg.
Just need to remember that when the equipment is under stress the weakest point will break so if your line is way heavier than the gear, the gear may break before the line does.
Just use lighter leaders (10lb for example) and that will give way first.
Using a heavier (thicker) braid when learning can help with knot strength when your still perfecting your knot tying skills.

The only other down side may be casting distance but unless your using 3 gram Bream lures you should be OK.

[4liters]

It's overkill and won't be as effective as braid weighted to suit a specific task but it doesn't mean you can't do it. For ages I ran 26lb braid on pretty much everything I had because that was the line I had and I couldn't afford to buy specific gear for specific tasks. That was fine for bait fishing but it did hold me back a bit when lure fishing.

[skronkman]

Depends on the braid in my opinion. Some of the good stuff is incredibly thin for its strength. With braid I've personally found that thinner is better up to a point when it has so little abrasion resistance that a scuff on the side of the boat or such can create a weak, furry spot. Also some very fine braids are a nightmare with wind knots. The thickness of the braid would be one of my most considered points before I even looked at the breaking strain. You can catch very decent fish on very light line when you drag is setup correctly. If you're talking about some of top end braid like the shimano ocea and the like then I wouldn't worry about being too high of a breaking strain as it is so thin but if it's cheap rope then you would surely have an advantage to go down a bit in strength to get a finer diameter and better casting, etc.

[ducky]

Depends on if it's 20lb braid by the crappy aus/yank standards or if it's a pe0.8 rated to 20lb. There's a huge difference in the 2.