Using Braid On Alvey Casting Reels

[donjuarez]

Was just about to spool up my alvey with some braid, and thought i'd check the alvey site for "how to spool" an alvey, given it doesn;t oscillate, wanted to see what I should do about laying the line down evenly...

then came across the following on the alvey site FAQ which deterred me a bit...

Can I use braid on an Alvey reel?

Braided lines can be used on Alvey Reels, but due to their ferocious ability to slice fingers, they should always be used with caution! Pumping and winding is imperative when winding line to reduce the line pressure across the guiding finger.

The following points are also worth considering if using braid lines on Alvey Reels:

* Braid can be very difficult to tie, especially when night fishing.

* Because braided lines tend to hold water and are lighter than monofilament lines, they often catch the breeze making a large ‘bow’ when used with long surf rods. This can make feeling bites even harder than with ‘mono’ line.

* Tying a good length of monofilament line as a wind on leader avoids the braid cutting fingers when casting. This will also make knot tying easier when changing rigs.

* An alternative to braid is lo-Stretch monofilament line, which has very little stretch and an extremely fine diameter.

* Braided lines are best used on non-cast Alvey boat reels. Because these reels have a straight edge spool to maximize line capacity, the line does not need to be guided on when retrieving.

* We strongly recommend the use of a finger stall if using Braided lines.

so.. anyone using braid on their alveys? any advice recommendations?

Cheers,

AJ

[roosterman]

AJ,

all i can say is NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO....

braid an alvey should not be in the same sentence...

ok away from my old traditionist view to a sensible one..

the braid laying and coming off the spool is gonna cut your fingers eventually even if your careful in my opinion..

lots of other reasons but thats the one thats the killer blow i think...

others will prob add to this....

cheers...steve....

[brickman]

braid was'nt invented when i used alveys

but if your throwing big lead to reach snapper 5 times out of 10 you will snap the braid on casting

you have to get it just right with mono and i still lost the odd one through over enthosium

you also need the give off mono when a king hits and a hat to slow down the reel

tailor and kings smash surface baits hard,kings fight dirty off the rocks and in 20 years off rock hopping i never landed a 1 meter plus king off the rocks but hooked many

braid with a king off the rocks king wins every time

mono at least you have a chance not a good one but the fight will last longer

gary

[hottyscotty]

no braid for me either...i use my alveys on the rocks so thats a double NO

[donjuarez]

Hmmm... sounds like a no no for distance casting....

What about for luderick fishing/pig fishing?

Braid has some advantages, in that it doesn't sink, therefore no need to grease your lines to keep them afloat?

casting distance isn't something you'd particular be aiming to achieve too much of???

You could still use some good heavy duty leaders, maybe even a couple of metres of wind on to keep you in the game around the rocks?

[bluefin]

NO !

I have posted many times on this, It is a disaster. It will throw loose coils and get massively tangled!!!!!

Howard.

[donjuarez]

SOLD =D

Now that "slicing the shit out of my fingers" and "living in a tangle" is out of the question...

what to do with my 600yd spool of 30LB braid is the new question...

The won't be happy, but me thinks I need a new Rod (not a low mount) and maybe a reel to match it..

I don't like my chances but it worth a try.. wish me luck