Yes, 100%! The braid won't rust and splinter and is much easier on your hands. I recommend adding a section of tuna cord to the end of the wire or braid (Scotty sells a kit. I am sure Cannon does also). It is rather easy to change the wire out, also.

 

The good thing is braid is so skinny, just cut the wire off several feet and add the braid. This is especially good if you are not using over 300+ feet to your weight.

 

I switched to braid and the tuna cord kit from Scotty this summer. I love it compared to the old kinked up cable cluster.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

Yes, braid. No rust, lasts much longer, and much less blow-back if you run deep. If you are going to fish deep for chinook and want to run 20 lb weights, you may want to go 250 lb braid rather than 200 lb. You would probably want to get at least 400' of line to fish 250 ftw. 500' would be better. The line counter will be off a little as well because the braid will have a smaller circumfrance unless you put on the additional line to fill the spool up comparable to braid.

 

I've been running 200# Braid and 20# balls for 6 years with no problems. The balls have been ran into the pulley on more that one occasion with no failures.
I'm still on the original line also.

I've ran wire with a black box in the past, and at least for my boat, it made know difference that I could tell.

 

I fish deep and considering swapping to braid next season. But I wonder if it will dig in hauling up 18-20lb balls and then be real jerky dropping back down??

 

there is no comparision between the two!!!!!
change to braid now and never go back

 

If you believe in black box technology, you have to stay with wire. https://www.salmontroutsteelheader..../blogs/salmon-trout-steelheader/improving-downrigger-performance-by-phil-pirone

 

Exactly.:flag2:

 

Been using braid on Scotty downriggers for about 8 years with no issues. Don't have to put up with the whine of the wire going through water which is nice. One consideration is on older Cannon electrics the exit of the wire from water served as the up stop on retrieval and braid won't work for that. There may be an option available to remedy that. I don't know how the newer cannons are set up.

 

Can you run backing on the downrigger before the braid to keep the spool fuller, in an effort of making the line counters more accurate?

 

If you put the braid on reasonably tight it does not bite through on 20 lb weights. You can simply put it on as best you can at home, and then go into deep water and drop a 15 lb weight and bring it back in - it wraps on plenty tight. And, if you put 450 to 500' of braid on, you won't need backing.

 

thx for answering.

 

Scotty does not recommend installing more than 400' of braid, it can cause the spool to warp as the braid shrinks when it dries. I've replaced a broken/warped spool due to this with less than 400' of line on it. They sent me a new spool for free and it was easy to replace.

 

Good to know. I think I have about 400' but have never had an issue. But, if you are going to fish to 250 ftw, you should more than 300' of line (IMO). Also, my spool is less full than it was with the original stainless (I think, its been quite a while and memories can form to expectations).

 

I used to be a commercial Salmon fisherman and used those "black boxes" to make sure my rigging was not too hot.
As I recall for Chinook the sweet spot was 1.5 MV.
I have twin electric Scotty's running wire on my 18 foot Stryker. I have never measured the field voltage but from the day I started Salmon fishing with it, this boat catches Salmon. I am pretty sure my boats electrical system is properly grounded. So for me the old phrase, "Do not pick up a happy baby" will keep me with wire.

 

I've cracked a couple of spools with braid but with the new spools I wrapped with duct tape on the core and haven't had a problem. I would imagine a small amount of backing would do the same. The tuna cord topshot is great. I didn't use Scotty's kit but the knot between the braid and cord is enough to trigger the stop. No more beads!!!! Plus the cord is much easier on your hands lifting the weight out of the water.

 

I've tried wrapping my spools with duct, mule, and aluminum tape. It just prolongs the agony. I went to aluminum spools, problem solved.

 

Thanks for the information and feedback. Braid it is

 

Salmonator, that is a great solution, but where did you find the aluminum spools?

Are you using the 1106 or 2106?

 

PM on the way.

 

View attachment 756181

PM on the way.

That looks great....I'd like to know where from also!!!

Originally I thought I was crushing the spools but what failed was the flange breaking loose from the spool. I think what happens as it gets compacted or tighter it starts to push outward eventually cracking the flange loose from the spool.

 

If you don't mind, I would appreciate the information too. I've done a short google search without finding anything.

 

PM sent

 

Why do spools crack more with braid? Is it worth switching to if I'm just fishing shadow for Kokanee? Like 60 feet max.

 

Reviving a 4 y/o thread as I currently have a couple of Scotty electric downriggers with wire and would like to replace them with either wire or braid. It looks like the consensus is braid is better than wire? Is this still the consensus today? Thought I would ask before placing my order. Thanks in advance.

 

Stainless fished in saltwater will eventually fail, rotting from the inside out. One day you'll be fishing along and just send a weight to the bottom. I don't know of a way to flush stainless wire effectively, and it just goes bad.
I bought new Scotties three years ago and they came with stainless wire. I'll fish them one more year and then replace with braid. I would replace the wire now but I haven't used them the last two years. Two years ago we couldn't target chinook and this year we just didn't get around to it. I'm hoping we're back to targeting chinook this year.

 

I've had both Cannon and Scotty downriggers and much prefer braid; not even close. No hum, easy to tie terminal gear, doesn't kink, etc. Also highly recommend the tuna cord kits that Scotty sells for the end. Easy to grab with your hand.

 

I switched to braid so I can fish deeper (250+). Been happy with it. Biggest drawback is if you're fishing near the bottom. If you hangup with braid your chances of getting the weight back is slim as it's not very abrasion resistant.
When I switched the old cable was in great condition so I used it to make bumpers with a 250lb swivel that acts as the stopper. I carry a number of them in the boat and it's easy to switch out if they look worn.
You can also use tuna cord.

 

Thank you for all the feedback. It looks like braid is the way to go. I just placed an order for some braid and tuna cords with plan to swap out the cable when the braid and tuna cords arrive.

 

You’ll like running braid. I made the switch and enjoy fishing down riggers in the ocean… Especially if you miss the first light bite! 🌅

 

Braid is MUCH better for all the reasons that everybody mentioned above. I ran braid on one downrigger and wire on the other for over a year and I did not see any difference in catch rates between the two, so I really dont put all that much stock into the positive ion control catching more fish.

You can not run braid on Cannons unless you have the Optimas or the old Digi-Trolls that have a digital short stop. I have Cannons on my personal boat but ran Scotty's on my charter boat a couple of summers ago. I can confirm that the Scotty spools will warp badly if you put more than 400' of braid on them. The Cannons can hold as much braid as you would like to put on them.

Buy 250 lb Power Pro instead of the Cannon or Scotty braid. It is cheaper if you get a big spool and it is higher quality in my opinion.

 

It’s hard to beat John’s Sporting Goods price on 200lb Tough Line XP. At $23.50 for the 300’ spool it’s a lot less than the price of Scotty’s braid.

The 450’ spool is a little bit more.