DR Wire vs Braid

[Hunter]

So the wire on my Scotty 1106's has 4 years on it and has been "shortened" several times....so I'm going to replace it this weekend.    I know there has probably been a lot of discussion on the subject of wire vs braid but since I'm about to do the deed anyway, I thought I'd open this up for some fresh opinions.. 

PS... I don't have a black box and I've never used anything but wire and either 12# or 15# DR balls..

Thanks in advance for any advice or opinions..

[StreamFixer]

I found the wire 'hum' to be one of the few sounds my hearing aids would consistently pick up.  Then there is the question/issue of the electrical field attributed to D/R wire...

If you go with braid, be sure to buy the braid designed for D/R's.  Yes it costs more, and lasts a lot longer, than fishing braid of the same weight.

Got that T shirt...

StreamFixer

[DevMah]

I switched from wire to braid years  back...
Braid has no humming sound, less bowback  and is easier to repair while out. The only disadvantage are that you have to trim off about 20 from the end unless you use their #374 sure  stop kit as the braid frays .

https://scotty.com/product/no-374-sure-stop-downrigger-stopper-kit/

Dev

[ohmytodd]

A good tip from the scotty rep at the NW SS was to make your own sure stops for ~$2 each rather than paying $7-$8 a pop for them. Use tuna cord and a big coastlock snap swivel on the bottom and a large swivel on the top. That way you can make them exactly the length you need to keep your ball at the right height.

[Fishgriller]

I am also about to switch my 1106s to braid.  Meant to do it last year but never got around to it. I contacted Scotty for advice, they recommend going with 200lb braid, using the same spool that held the wire and tying the braid directly to the spool without any backing.  They also said that as long as you spool up less than 400 feet, you do not need to recalibrate your depth counter.  Scotty, Power Pro, TufLine and AFW make dedicated downrigger braid (although I doubt Scotty actually makes their own, probably rebrands one of the others).

[StreamFixer]

If/When you switch from wire to braid for heavens sake---  CHANGE THE PULLEY AT THE END OF THE ARM.  If you choose to save that cost, plan to lose the D/R weights and length of line you most often troll at.  The pully's that have run wire have micro ridges (from the wire) that quickly eat braid.

StreamFixer

[mustang65fbk]

I had always purchased SS wire in the past but recently was talked into replacing the wire with braid. I don't have any complaints. The hum from the wire was kind of annoying but not enough to change it alone. We had used the same wire on our downriggers for about 5 seasons with not one issue. Then when we took our riggers into John's in Everett they replaced them with wire. We kept having issues with the wire breaking. They said it was the wire itself although I can't imagine snapping it as many times as we did. I'm wondering if they used the cheaper wire? Anyway, we lost several downrigger balls so I took them back in to have them replaced with braid. Haven't had an issue since then. They tied a couple beads in place so that they can't get ripped off or move up or down when kelp or seaweed get wrapped on the lines. I have no complaints with the braid.

[Fisherdv]

If the wire creates a hum that is annoying on the boat, maybe the fish would be turned off from it too? Or maybe it might actually attract them?

[Ko Ho]

Used wire on my DR's for 15 years. They hummed a lot, but it didn't bother me and didn't seem to bother the fish either. Having said that, I changed to #200 power pro several years ago. Easier to handle, lasts longer, slightly less blowback, no tools required for repair and no punctured fingers from frayed wire. 2 of the red Scotty stops, side by side have never failed. I'll go back to wire when I go back to flip phones. BTW, I occasionally can hear a soft hum from the braid.

[Markshoreline]

Went to braid so long ago don't even remember when!  Never looked back.

[Hunter]

Thanks for the replies....   

How many feet of the #200 Scotty braid are you guys loading onto your 1106's?

And for those that have switched, how many years of service can I expect for say.... 25 to 30 trips per year. Thanks!

PS.....  Russ, Thanks for the tip on replacing the pully's... 

[mustang65fbk]

I think I've got 300' on each rigger. I don't really ever fish any deeper than that.

[Scottjohnson59]

I'm noticing that my depth counters are significantly off is this due to dia. of wire I'm using? will braid fix this?

[StreamFixer]

As the amount (diameter) of the material on the spool varies, so will your depth.  The more line you let out, the smaller the diameter on the spool, thus you should be shallower than the depth indicated.  The depth counter only tracks the revolutions of the spool, not how much line is actually out.  One of mine is off 33% @ 100 feet.  Shows around 67 feet, sonar tracking at 100.  Still trying to figure t

[Scottjohnson59]

I get that the diameter of the spool is fixed so the more wire on the spool the larger diameter. That would add length if your spool is over full and subtract length as the spool empties and the spool diameter is reduced. What I don't get is why my brand new scotty 1106 spooled by scotty with their wire is so far off. I like streamfixer was shocked to hit bottom in a hundred feet of water with only 72 feet of wire out???? now my sounders and I actually have two both show bottom within a foot of each other and I have checked the accuracy of my electronics they are accurate I use my electronics to set the depth anymore as the counters just are not accurate.

[Ko Ho]

I put 350 feet of #200 power pro on my DR's in 2016. After 4 years of trimming due to various levels of wear and tear, my heaviest used DR is down to 330'. No plans on changing them out anytime soon. The depth counter seems to be accurate based on depth seen on the fish finder.

[headduck]

The braid feels way better on the hands too.

I finished it off with a nice chunk of paracord as others suggested. Didnt splurge on a roll of tuna cord.

Only fished half a season with it, but sure felt like an upgrade in all respects.

The leftover stainless was used as trellis material for the raspberries and more.

[Zagman]

Problem:  Hooked the bottom at Ucululet last August and busted a DR.  Grabbed Dykes and cut loose before anything worse happened.  Solution: Repaired DR and put 300ft of 250lb regular braid on.  After reading a thread on the Hull Truth forum about a repair where they doubled the braid at the end by tying back about 4ft and didn't have a problem,  I did same.  Have used the DR about 2 times without a problem.  Question: Has anyone tied back to double the braid at the end or see any problem doing it this way?  Is the 250lb braid adequate or is the 200lb DR braid better?  I plan to have braid on both DR's...Thanks for the advice

2006 Sea Legend, Honda 150

[StreamFixer]

I have not doubled my braid back as you have noted, however, my first attempt used heavy braid fishing line.  I have since replaced all of that with Braid specifically designed for D/R.  It appears to be wearing and holding up much better.  Your mileage may vary.

I will be re-rigging the end of my D/R's to incorporate a swivel set up instead of counting on the red plastic 'stopper' in the next couple of days.

StreamFixer

[Hunter]

Thanks for all the answers folks... I've also checked out a literal "boatload" of other forum posts in Ifish, THT and BC Fishing...

In the end, I just bought two 400ft spools of Scotty Premium Downrigger Braid in 250LB test.

Sounds like folks are loading about 350 ft of this onto their Depthpower 1106's. My current wire is in pretty good shape so I'll probably just re-spool that and keep onboard for an emergency back-up. 

[Zagman]

Hunter,  Sounds like what I will be doing to my 1106's.  One has wire and the other has fishing braid.  May I ask where you purchased your braid?  Thanks

Sea Legend 22, Honda 150

[Hunter]

Purchased on Amazon..

https://www.amazon.com/Scotty-2200K-Premium-Braided-Downrigger/dp/B001M4HSQ2/ref=sr_1_12?dchild=1&keywords=scotty%2B250lb%2Bdownrigger%2Bline&qid=1581961186&sr=8-12&th=1&psc=1

[Ko Ho]

I paid around $100 for 500 yds of #200 power pro 4 years ago. Used half of it (700') to fill my 2 DR's. Anticipate using the rest when I change out the line in a few years. I figured $25 per DR was worth it.

[Skipper]

I went from wire to 200lbs braid.....Big mistake ! Lost weights twice, hit crab pot and bottom , braid broke. Also braid got rapped below spool once, was done for the day, had 200 ft out at the time. Just seem to have more issue with braid. Plus did not seem to catch more or less fish, just head ache. Since went back to wire and have no issues. BUT if you do go to braid...make sure to put mono line as a backing on the spool, I seen the spools crack with using straight braid......thats my 2 cents, good luck !

[Hunter]

Some of the BC guides leave a bit of the wire on the spool as backing against the spool and use an Albright knot to connect the braid...  Here's a vid..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM1SDq7ruSM