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Easy Does It. The Bass Pro Shops Premium Excel Braid is easy to cast and easy to handle.
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Bass Pro Shops has had the Excel brand fishing line for several years. In the past I really did not use much of it thinking I could do better than a "store brand." Recently, however, I found out that I had been missing out on a great line at a great price.
I was fishing with my friend, Captain Mark Noble who is a saltwater guide out of St Simons Island, Ga., when we were using a float rig over some shallow oyster bars. I noticed that the slack line sort of floated and stayed on top of the water. Commenting on that, Noble told me it was Bass Pro Shops Premium Excel Braid. The water resistant property that caused the line to stay on top was one of the reasons he chose Excel Braid. Other lines, including other braids, would sink and hang on the oysters a foot or so under the surface.
His choice in braided line worked, and we caught many fish over that oyster bar. I have been back since and done the same thing with my own equipment, and yes, spooled with Bass Pro Shops Excel Braid. In fact, I have replaced all my braided line with Excel.
Braided line has no stretch, and Excel is no exception — it's another of the qualities I like. But that quality makes me back off and use a lighter drag. Monofilament line stretches more than most people realize, softening the hard strikes and cushioning the hook-set. When I fish with braid, I have to take care that I don't pull the hook out during the fight. Less drag means more long runs with a bigger fish. With monofilament line on a spinning reel, that means twisted line in a matter of minutes. A long story to say that Excel can handle the long runs on a light drag and not twist. Spinning tackle anglers can say good-bye to twisted line.
Bass Pro Shops Premium Excel Braided line comes in sizes from 20- to 80-pound test in a low-vis green color. The 20-pound test braid has the diameter of 8-pound test monofilament. That means it is easy to cast and easy to handle, yet it can stand up to some very big fish.
In the last year, the Excel on my reels has yet to flatten out. It has remained round — a quality that means less fraying and longer casts. From a technical standpoint, it is made with a fiber called Dyneema and features High-Density Bonding Technology. The HDB Technology keeps the line round. Technology aside, I just know that the line works for me as good as or better than any I have used.
On my reels that I spool with braid, and that is about half of them, I have used Bass Pro Shops Premium Excel Braid for over five years now. It has not failed me, and it is still going strong. I found a line that I really like at a price that I really like. It doesn't get much better than that.
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