How To Cut Braided Fishing Line: The Easy Way

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Braided lines can be tricky to cut without the right tool.

Anyone who has used nippers, nail clippers, fishing pliers or even a knife to cut braided line knows that you don’t get a great result.

You can easily end up with frayed ends and a less than clean cut.

How to Cut Braided Fishing Line

The best way to cut braided lines is with scissors or line cutters. We’ll discuss the best scissors for cutting braid a little later on, but first we want to focus on the best method to achieve a clean and quick cut to your braided fishing line.

The easiest way to cut braid is create some tension in the line by pulling it out from the rod tip (or fishing reel if you are yet to rig up) with one hand. Then with the other hand, place the opened scissors at the point where you want to cut the braided line and snip.

If you have good scissors, you’ll end up with a neat cut and no fraying when you are cutting braided lines.

What makes good scissors for cutting braid?

Macro pic fly tying scissors and hooks close up and peacock herl
One must consider the size, quality & precision, material, and sharpness when choosing the right scissors for cutting braid.

The key things to pay attention to when selecting scissors for cutting braid are:

Size

You should choose a small pair of scissors to cut braided line. Scissors that are between 2 and 4 inches are best. The reason being that the smaller the scissors, the easier they are to carry in a fishing vest or on a lanyard and the less likely they are to have a gap between the blades that impacts on their cutting ability when it comes trimming braided lines.

Quality and Precision

The better the quality the scissors are, then the more likely they are to not only have sharp blades, but also be well designed and assembled so that the blades slide snugly against each other with no gap. A good pair is one that’s made with precision.

Material

We will only buy stainless steel scissors for cutting braid. Although we mostly fish in fresh water, we do a bit of saltwater fishing too and no one wants scissors that are going to corrode. It weakens the scissors and the rust can stain your vest or shirt or fishing tackle bag.

Sharpness

Obviously one of the key criteria on assessing scissors or any kind of line cutters is sharpness. You need to consider not only how sharp they are out of the box, but how they can maintain their edge for years of cutting fishing line. Chances are you will use these same scissors for cutting mono and flouro line too, so they need to have decent hardness in the blades so they don’t go blunt. Dull scissors struggle to cut braided lines properly

Best Scissors and Line Cutters for Cutting Braided Line

Here are our top four line cutters for braided fishing line. These are all proper tools that won’t rust and will make the job of cutting braided fishing lines nice and easy.

Dr Slick Braid Scissors
Dr Slick Braid Scissors
Dr Slick Braid Scissors
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Dr Slick is a quality maker of scissors and other fly fishing tools.

These 4″ stainless steel scissors are a great choice for cutting braided fishing line. We like the rounded points on the sharp blades and the large hand grips.

They are great for cutting braided fishing line even in difficult situations such as out in the waves on the kayak.

Clip these to your lanyard and you’ve got a great braided fishing line cutter.

  • Corrosion resistant sharp blades great for cutting fishing line
  • Quality Japanese stainless steel with a decent hardness rating
  • Perfect size
FiriKer Folding Stainless Steel Scissors
FiriKer Folding Stainless Steel Scissors
FiriKer Folding Stainless Steel Scissors
Our Score

We love these scissors.

I have them in my fly fishing vest because they are so compact and I am thinking about getting another pair to put in the kayak to cut braided line when I am out fishing.

These stainless steel scissors fold up ingeniously so the points are covered so they can sit comfortably in your jeans pocket or other small spaces.

They unfold easily and I have found the blades align well enough that there is no significant gap and they make a great line cutter for braided line.

  • Stainless steel
  • Safe and convenient folding design
  • Durable and sharp blades
SAMSFX Fishing Braid Line Scissors Shears with Non-Slip Grip Handles (Black Handle)
SAMSFX Fishing Braid Line Scissors Shears with Non-Slip Grip Handles (Black Handle)
SAMSFX Fishing Braid Line Scissors Shears with Non-Slip Grip Handles (Black Handle)
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These ones come with a magnet release and carabiner clip and are specifically designed for cutting fishing line: braided line, mono and fluoro.

They are made from 3Cr13 stainless steel construction and are corrosion resistant, durable and long lasting.

  • Blunt tip
  • Built in hook sharpener
  • Magnetic release is handy
Boomerang Braided Line Cutter
Boomerang Braided Line Cutter
Boomerang Braided Line Cutter
Our Score

The great braided line cutter comes on a zinger that you can clip to your vest or jacket. Braided fishing line cutters are essentially very small scissors with extended plastic grips and very short blades.

Inside the Boomerang braided line cutter is a sharp blade that lets you cut braided line, mono or flouro up to 5olb with ease.

  • High quality 420 stainless steel serrated cutters are corrosion resistant
  • 36″ retractable zinger
  • Hugely popular product for cutting fishing line
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AUTHOR
Rick Wallace is a passionate angler and fly fisher whose work has appeared in fishing publications including FlyLife. He's appeared in fishing movies, founded a successful fishing site and spends every spare moment on the water. He's into kayak fishing, ultralight lure fishing and pretty much any other kind of fishing out there.
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