Sunline Almight ULT-PE

The vast majority of braids have buoyant or hollow cores which causes braided line to float or sink very slowly. There are some advantages to using hollow core braids for example, if you are fishing surface lures, having a floating braid will aid in your surface retrieve and for this reason hollow core braids are preferred by GT fishermen. However, if you are fishing sub surface lures and you are wanting to get your lures down a weighted core braid can help significantly with this. The braid in mention is called Almight, so how does it work. Basically, the four-strand braid is wrapped around a specific gravity weighted core in the centre making it 50 percent heavier than traditional braided lines. It has a specific gravity of 1.48 compared to water which is 1.0 and .97 for traditional braid which in lay man’s terms means it sinks 50 percent quicker. So, what does this mean in a fishing situation. Well for starters it will and does make your lure sink faster without the need to add extra weight from sinkers or heavier jig heads which can take away from both lure action and attraction. This is not the only advantage of using a sinking braided line and there are two other main advantages worth explaining.  First, it reduces your line drift and bow in your main line. When you are fishing lures vertically, line bow and drift can be a real problem as you lose direct connection with your lure. In still water this is not such a big problem, but when you have wind, waves, and a running tide or current, this does become a huge disadvantage. Sinking braid will significantly reduce this and help you keep a more direct connection via a more straight up and down presentation.
I love this feature as I do a lot of vertical timber and off bank submerged snag fishing. The reason for this is twofold. First, in my local creeks and rivers, the majority of snags are upright sitting trees which have fallen in the water due to bank erosion. The bases of these trees create caves and ledges where fish especially barra love to hide. In my experience the bigger fish will be found on the vertical timber so being able to fish them with a straight up and down line with the best possible connection to your lure is a must.
Off bank submerged snags are also a big target because these are the ones most anglers miss as they are harder to find or visually see. One of the first things I have learnt when I moved to Cairns is the fishery sees a great deal of pressure. Just about every second house has a boat, and the majority of these are creek boats set up for lure fishing. Therefore, finding an edge over other anglers is vital to success and spending hours side scanning creeks for these hidden gems is one way to achieve this. 99 percent of these submerged snags are in two to four metres of water and are best targeted using vibes or sinking prawns. The offset with this type of fishing is they fish best when the tide is flowing not when its still, so keeping the bow out of your line and reducing line drift can be very difficult. The sinking braid definitely helps with this. For example, I was fishing some vertical timber the other day over a bigger than preferred tidal variations which meant the water was running harder than usual. On a previous trip I scanned up some hidden structure which had produced both barra and jacks on a slacker tide. Fishing the Almight braid armed with soft plastic prawns and vibes I was able to reduce the majority of the line drift and feel the most subtle of bites from annoying prawn spitting barramundi. This is one of my pet hates when fishing for barra as I get very frustrated when I miss the bite due to slack line caused by a lack of connection.
On a separate occasion I was fishing the Daintree River with a mate Troy I was using the Almight and he was using his a traditional braided line and we were both throwing the same Vibes at a school of finicky barra in deep water. We were both getting bites but my hook up rate was far superior thanks to the better connection created by less line slack. I told him it was because I was a far superior angler but in all honesty the sinking braid was the defining factor.
I’ve also found this feature invaluable when fishing running freshwater rivers for sootys and togas. With the recent floods, the fish have moved onto the deep water undercut banks. This creates a very small strike zone, so having the ability to sink your lure faster has been an added advantage in getting the bite. It also helps imparting action on your lure and the improved connection allows for sinking those hooks on the bite.  
On the offshore front, having a heavier core braid also has major advantages especially when you are jigging or sinking baits. If your line is not straight up and down then your chances of success in terms of feeling that bite and sinking those hooks diminishes very quickly.   Weighted braids such as Sunline’s Almight are new and innovative but from my experience they will give you an edge in certain scenarios. So, if you are after this edge then give it a try.

By Dan Kaggelis