With so many line choices available, picking the perfect line for any given technique requires some thought. Some come down to personal preference and confidence in a particular line, but function and lure performance are two critical factors. For top professional anglers like two-time Major League Fishing REDCREST champion Dustin Connell, choosing the perfect line helps him perform his best on the water.
Interestingly, he keeps it simple, with a handful of lines getting the most of the action, whether fishing a major professional bass tournament or fishing for fun near his Alabama home. Here's a rundown of his favorite techniques, his chosen line, and, most importantly, why he opts for that line.
The "Workhorse" Line: Fluorocarbon
Of all the major line types (braid, monofilament, and fluorocarbon), Connell most often uses fluorocarbon, and a handful of pound tests are used the most.
"Choosing the right line to get the job done is very important, and it can get very specific with different lures, but a workhorse for me is Seaguar AbrazX fluorocarbon," he said. "I use 17 and 20-pound a lot because you can flip wood with it, throw a big spinnerbait, or swimbait, and it's strong enough to handle fish in heavy cover. It has great abrasion resistance, and if the water is dirty, I use those two-pound tests."
The heavier-pound tests are the easy decision for Connell, but things get trickier as you go down in size. The biggest reason is how lures perform with different line sizes.
"It gets more complicated as you go to the lighter stuff because of how much line sizes impact the action of a bait," he began. "You can use a lot of different sizes for a certain bait, say a jerkbait, but the diving depth and action will change greatly. There's a huge difference between 10-, 12- and 15-pound test for a lure like a jerkbait."
When fishing jerkbaits and crankbaits, Connell uses Seaguar Invizx fluorocarbon, and a good all-around size is 12 lb test. He trusts this line after catching several monster bass with it.
"I use 12 lb for almost all of my jerkbait fishing and caught two bass over 10 pounds on it at Lake Fork, fishing around big standing timber. It's an incredibly strong line," he said. "12 lb gives my jerkbait the best action and allows the bait to suspend perfectly. It's also a great line size for any crankbait. I'll go up or down a size on both baits if I need to, either going to 10 lb for extremely clear water or up to 15 lb if the water is dirty."
Overall, Connell wants to use the line that will get his lures to perform correctly for any line he spools up. "What it all boils down to is you want to be able to use the heaviest line possible so you don't break fish off, but you also don't want to mess with the action of your lures," he said. "Some of it comes down to experimentation and little nuances with different baits, but I'm always paying attention to the little things about how a bait changes with different pound tests. That's my biggest thing: ensuring the bait is working correctly."
Applications for Braided Line
For all of his spinning tackle, which Connell has used to win multiple big tournaments, he's a proponent of braid to a fluorocarbon leader. He keeps it consistent across the board with the same sizes for various techniques.
"What's cool about braid to fluorocarbon is that you can easily swap out leader sizes if you need to," he said. "But, my most used is definitely 12 lb Seaguar Gold Label leader. It's got a very thin diameter for the size, so it's like using a much lighter pound test. For the braid, I've always been a fan of Seaguar Smackdown but now have almost all of my reels spooled with 18 lb Seaguar PE-X8 braid, which is also very thin for the diameter. With that combination, I have complete confidence in those lines; the 12 lb Gold Label is incredibly thin, and I never need to go any lighter."
The thinner diameter of the lines he uses for spinning tackle significantly impacts his lure performance, and it's something some anglers overlook. "The drag of line that happens as your bait falls and pendulums down is a big deal," he said. "If your bait is held up by the bow in your line, it will fall much slower. The thinner diameter braid allows the bait to fall faster, but it also gives you a more direct connection to your bait for working it properly and detecting light bites."
For baitcast gear, Connell is a fan of Seaguar TactX braid and uses various sizes depending on the technique. "I use 40 lb a bunch, and it's the line I use for all of my topwater baits," he said. "I go up to 50 lb for frogs and swim jigs and some flipping around grass, where the cover is a little thicker. I used to fish 65 lb a bunch for swimming a jig, but I realized how much it affects the action and my casting. Going to a lighter line makes a big difference in casting distance."
Seaguar TactX is a four-strand braid with a rough texture that Connell says is incredible around vegetation. "It has excellent cutting power, meaning you'll be fishing around thick grass, and when you set the hook, it will slice right through it, and you'll get a good hookset and have no problem landing that fish," he said.
Selecting the right line for the job can significantly impact your success as an angler. Your line is your connection to the fish on the other end of the line and critical for landing them, but it can also affect how many bites you get in a day. Top professional angler Dustin Connell keeps it relatively straightforward by using the heaviest line he can get away with as long as it doesn't impact his lure's action.
