20LB WIRE ?

[bigblue]

I run 30LB wire on my divers my question is I have two 20LB set-ups rigged this year how much more depth can I expect to achieve over the 30LB . I run big rings on my divers. Maybe some deep water East end fishers could chime in here. looking for info from guys that have or are running 20lb. Thanks in advance.

Edited March 29, 2015 by bigblue

[rolmops]

It hardly makes any difference at all. What you gain in smaller diameter you loose in you the lesser weight.

On another note,I would not use the big rings with the lighter wire, because 20 pound only has about 60% the strength of 30 pound and the combination of big ring and big fish can be quite dramatic.

I use twenty pound test on the east end because it is mostly for browns and thirty pound test for the big west end slobs.

Edited March 29, 2015 by rolmops

[bandrus1]

I would have just used 30 lb and let more out

Def use a snubber

Edited March 29, 2015 by bandrus1

[ifishy]

It hardly makes any difference at all. What you gain in smaller diameter you loose in you the lesser weight.

On another note,I would not use the big rings with the lighter wire, because 20 pound only has about 60% the strength of 30 pound and the combination of big ring and big fish can be quite dramatic.

I use twenty pound test on the east end because it is mostly for browns and thirty pound test for the big west end slobs.

um 20 is 66.66% or 2/3 of 30 so yes it only has a  little over 60% of the streangth.  I would think that is implied by the labeling

 

 

 

sorry couldn't help it I'm a bit of a math nerd.

[rolmops]

um 20 is 66.66% or 2/3 of 30 so yes it only has a  little over 60% of the streangth.  I would think that is implied by the labeling

 

 

 

sorry couldn't help it I'm a bit of a math nerd.

That's alright.

Just to make it a bit more complicated I think you will agree that 30# test is 50% stronger than 20# test, while 20 #test is 33.3% weaker than 30# test.

Edited March 30, 2015 by rolmops

[bigblue]

That's alright.

Just to make it a bit more complicated I think you will agree that 30# test is 50% stronger than 20# test, while 20 #test is 33.3% weaker than 30# test.

To funny guys but I am still waiting to hear from somebody that actually runs or has run 20 lb and get their take on it . Thanks

[rolmops]

I use both 20 and 30 pound. As I mentioned before there is very little difference as far as depth is concerned. For Example :60 foot down with 30# is 220 foot out,with 20# I start bumping the ground at 220 as well.

I used 60 because that was where the thermocline hit the bottom during a tournament last year.

[stinger]

I stopped using 20lb years ago because of break-offs. I have been using the 19 strand 40lb since it came out and never had a break-off  . Before that I was using 7 strand McMaster-Carr 40lb also without any break-offs.   Knot strength in 40lb is about 30+ lbs  .     What do you think the knot strength in 20lb is?         As rollmops can attest , you won't find much difference between the two as far as depth goes. After you loose a couple setups (  30.00+  )  with 20lb you'll rethink using it.

[Sk8man]

Sounds like one of those "cart before the horse" situations....could have been beneficial to ask the question before rigging the setups but we've all been there   I should think that if you fish the Finger Lakes or other lakes other than Ontario the 20 lb setups should be fine despite not gaining much depth-wise as both the 30 and 20 lb wire are pretty small diameter anyway. I'd just be careful to routinely inspect either lb test especiallly the 10 ft or so at the end though for potential damage (eg. mainly due to kinking) or near the crimp edge if you use them.

[Gill-T]

If you are looking for added depth it will be cheaper to invest in Mag Dipsys. 

[bigblue]

Not new to wire and not a big fan of mag divers . Looking to fish mag glow spoons deep and outside I have heard of Oswego fishers using standard divers with mag rings and 20lb wire with some success with this approach. Adding a couple more wires to the arsenal is no big deal to me but the one drawback is my wife has learned to count.

[Sk8man]

Might want to consider using the Chinook divers with less drag bringing them in (than the mags). I know what you mean about the counting up of equipment.  After returniug form the Watkins show yesterday my wife said "Why are all your hobbies so expensive? My reply was have you recently taken a look at your clothes closet?

Edited March 30, 2015 by Sk8man

[rolmops]

Might want to consider using the Chinook divers with less drag bringing them in (than the mags). I know what you mean about the counting up of equipment.  After returniug form the Watkins show yesterday my wife said "Why are all your hobbies so expensive? My reply was have you recently taken a look at your clothes closet?

Since when does logic work on wives?

[Sk8man]

Good point

[bigblue]

Tread softly gentlemen they have elephant ears and can hear through 6 feet of concrete a mile away.

[Iceman]

Might want to consider using the Chinook divers with less drag bringing them in (than the mags). I know what you mean about the counting up of equipment.  After returniug form the Watkins show yesterday my wife said "Why are all your hobbies so expensive? My reply was have you recently taken a look at your clothes closet?

Sk8:

 

That last comment would have started WWIII at my house!

 

John

[capt ace]

We run 20 lb Mason wire for most of the season on the East end out of Oswego until the fleas come and then we switch to 30 lb. A regular Lure Jenson diver set on a 2.5 setting will dive almost 2/1 up to about 160ft of wire out. We usually get 100ft down with 280 ft out. Our 600lc  reels are filled to the top! Be advised that we do not run Mag divers on 20 lb wire. We also strip off the pigtails and retie when necessary so that we don't break off.

 There will be days when the currents down below can be reel bad and you just can't get the depth no matter what you do. You will see that in one direction the angle on the wires are really digging while going in the other direction they are not.

We also run double divers with the 20lb on the inside and the 30 lb on the outside.

[Sk8man]

I hear ya John but at this age I have a DILLIGAF attitude sometimes and luckily my wife has a great sense of humor and takes my ideosyncrasies well and maybe it helps being 10 years older than her   so she attributes it to senility

[bigblue]

We run 20 lb Mason wire for most of the season on the East end out of Oswego until the fleas come and then we switch to 30 lb. A regular Lure Jenson diver set on a 2.5 setting will dive almost 2/1 up to about 160ft of wire out. We usually get 100ft down with 280 ft out. Our 600lc  reels are filled to the top! Be advised that we do not run Mag divers on 20 lb wire. We also strip off the pigtails and retie when necessary so that we don't break off.

 There will be days when the currents down below can be reel bad and you just can't get the depth no matter what you do. You will see that in one direction the angle on the wires are really digging while going in the other direction they are not.

We also run double divers with the 20lb on the inside and the 30 lb on the outside.

Thanks cap ace that's the info I was looking for got two 600lc and rollers ready to go. I don't like or use mag divers but should I nix the mag rings on the standard divers with your numbers it looks like I don't need them ?

Edited April 1, 2015 by bigblue

[capt ace]

We don't use mag rings only mag divers when the temps are below 100ft or more and the standard divers arn't digging. Also we noticed that the Walker divers don't go as deep as the LJ's. We have an article or two addressing diver depths on our website. We have used trig functions to determine depth in real time when trolling. One article explains this as well abd how to calculate it. Using trig has saved the day quite a few times especially when the currents are nasty.

Sent from my LGL31L using Lake Ontario United mobile app

[bigblue]

Thanks Jimmy have a safe and productive season.

[Yankee Troller]

Wire is a fun conversation. A lot of people don't know that the diameter plays a role in your dive curve. Also, when talking with buddies and giving them info on where your diver is firing you should also compare if your reels are full or not, and what brand wire you're running.

 

AFW 30# Camo - .012" in diamater

AFW 20# Camo - .010" in diameter

 

Mason, Malin, Torpedo Wire

30# - .015" in diameter

20# - .011" in diameter

 

Wire diameter is everything. The thinner wire will dive deeper. 20# wire is very fragile. You will lose gear with it, but if you want to fish deep it's the way to go. You just have to be very anal with it checking for frays or kinks and keeping it taught at all times.

 

We run the AFW, and I know my dive curve is closer to 2:1 than 3:1.

Edited April 1, 2015 by Yankee Troller

[capt ace]

Mason wire is .011 in diameter and over the years has been the most durable of all the 20 lb wires that we have tried. The key to not breaking off is to remove any curly cues when they arise which happen when you are catching a lot of fish or tripping your dipseys numerous times.When the fishing is good, we will re-tie every day, especially after doing doubles. Having quality roller rods with tight tolerances such as Shimano Talora's and a quality reels like the Tekota 600 lc's create for a forgiving system perfect for running 20 lb wire.Rick is right about line diameter being everything for cutting through and creating less water resistance as it's pulled through the water. A word to the wise!  Not all 20 lb wire is created equal and line diameter does not equate to equal breaking strength.

[Yankee Troller]

Mason wire is .011 in diameter and over the years has been the most durable of all the 20 lb wires that we have tried. The key to not breaking off is to remove any curly cues when they arise which happen when you are catching a lot of fish or tripping your dipseys numerous times.When the fishing is good, we will re-tie every day, especially after doing doubles. Having quality roller rods with tight tolerances such as Shimano Talora's and a quality reels like the Tekota 600 lc's create for a forgiving system perfect for running 20 lb wire.Rick is right about line diameter being everything for cutting through and creating less water resistance as it's pulled through the water. A word to the wise!  Not all 20 lb wire is created equal and line diameter does not equate to equal breaking strength.

 

You're right I was off .001 on my AFW 30# and the 20# Mason. Fixed! Thanks Jimmy.