Making sense of monofilament lines
Posted: Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Selecting a fishing line used to be an easy proposition. Not anymore.
Take a walk down the isle of any well-stocked sporting goods store and you are going to see hundreds of spools of fishing line, most of them different. Packaging will be in a rainbow of colors as manufactures attempt to lure you to their product. You will find clear lines, fluorescent lines, blue lines, brown lines, green lines, etc. And this is just in monofilament. Through in the new superlines and braids and the whole thing gets very complicated very fast.
Let's take a look at what is most commonly available and try to unsnarl the problem of line selection.
First of all, be aware that manufacturers today are making lines for every possible fishing scenario or application. There are soft lines which offer casting and other advantages. There are stiffer, more abrasion-resistant monofilaments designed for rough fishing conditions such as casting into rocks or timber. There are lines which nearly become invisible in clear water so fish can't see them. There are fluorescent lines that light up in sunlight so the fisherman can see them. And on, and on.
Just how deeply does the average fisherman have to delve into the line selection problem. Not very, in my opinion.
I want to keep this very simple so I'm going to tell you what kind of line I use most of the time. And, I'm going to name the brand. I use Berkley line. It's a good northwest Iowa company and I've used their lines almost exclusively since the mid 1970s when I switched from Stren to Berkley. Ironically, Berkley now owns Stren.
We need to recognize, however, when discussing monofilament lines that there are a few other good companies out there as well. And there are some good lines coming in from overseas manufacturers. There are two recommendations I have for monofilament. Use quality lines from good manufacturers. Avoid those 500-yard spools for twenty-five cents specials. And, buy your lines from stores which sell a lot of line. You don't want a spool that has hung on the shelf for a few years. You want fresh line.
That doesn't mean that monofilament has a short shelf life. It will stay in good shape for a long time if you store it in a dark, cool place. Sunlight and heat will degrade mono quickly. I recommend changing the line on your reels at least once a year. Right now would be a good time to do it. When you are fishing, constantly check the first foot or two of you line for any rough spots. Simply run your thumb and finger along the line, If you feel even a slight roughness, cut it off and retie your lure. Abrasions like that can cut the breaking strength of your line in half or even more.
If you are perplexed about fishing lines, my advice is pretty simple. Buy Berkley Trilene XL. It was the first of the Berkley monofilaments and it has been continually been improve as advancements in technology have been made. It's a soft, small diameter line with good knot strength. It's a strong line which you can depend upon. If you checked my rods you'd find about 75 percent of them have reels spooled with XL.
It comes in clear, fluorescent clear blue and low-viz green colors. I use clear, almost exclusively. If you like to see your line easier while you are fishing, use the fluorescent.
I use six pound test for most of my walleye fishing in natural lakes and reservoirs, eight pound test for walleyes in rivers, four-pound test for panfish. Most of my casting reels, used for both walleyes and bass are spooled with 10 pound test.
If you are a beginning fishermen, use eight pound test in your spin casting reel or spinning reel for anything you decide to fish for, from panfish to largemouth.
If you are after bigger fish in snaggy conditions such as sunken timber, you should have a second outfit spooled with 10, 12 or 14 pound test.
Trilene XL is a great starter line for learning how to fish with a casting reel. It's a soft monofilament and is very forgiving for beginning (or even expert) casters. If you are having trouble with backlashes on casting reels, start thinking about the line. Stiff lines are backlash prone.
Trilene XT is probably the second most popular monofilament in their line. It's a tough, abrasion resistant line, good for casting in snaggy waters that eat up other lines, battling northern pike or pulling largemouth bass out of water lily beds. It comes in the same colors as XL.
So, those are the two basic lines, in my opinion. A general purpose and a tough line for tough fishing conditions.
There are several other lines in the Berkley arsenal. Among them are Big Game, Ironsilk, Big Cat, Spider Wire Super Mono and the various Stren lines. They are all good and if you are more than a casual fisherman, you'll be studying and fishing with them.
Some time we'll take a look at the so-called "super lines," the modern braids which hit the market a few years ago. Many fishermen proclaimed the braids would replace the mono lines, but they were dead wrong.
Mono, with built-in line stretch is a very forgiving line. It's stretch helps prevent slack which can cause you to lose a fish when fighting it and keeps hooks from tearing out so readily.
For the foreseeable future, monofilament will be the dominate line on fishing reels.
Larry Myhre is editor of the Journal. Reach him at (712) 293-4201 or email at: larrymyhre@siouxcityjournal.com
Take a walk down the isle of any well-stocked sporting goods store and you are going to see hundreds of spools of fishing line, most of them different. Packaging will be in a rainbow of colors as manufactures attempt to lure you to their product. You will find clear lines, fluorescent lines, blue lines, brown lines, green lines, etc. And this is just in monofilament. Through in the new superlines and braids and the whole thing gets very complicated very fast.
Let's take a look at what is most commonly available and try to unsnarl the problem of line selection.
First of all, be aware that manufacturers today are making lines for every possible fishing scenario or application. There are soft lines which offer casting and other advantages. There are stiffer, more abrasion-resistant monofilaments designed for rough fishing conditions such as casting into rocks or timber. There are lines which nearly become invisible in clear water so fish can't see them. There are fluorescent lines that light up in sunlight so the fisherman can see them. And on, and on.
Just how deeply does the average fisherman have to delve into the line selection problem. Not very, in my opinion.
I want to keep this very simple so I'm going to tell you what kind of line I use most of the time. And, I'm going to name the brand. I use Berkley line. It's a good northwest Iowa company and I've used their lines almost exclusively since the mid 1970s when I switched from Stren to Berkley. Ironically, Berkley now owns Stren.
We need to recognize, however, when discussing monofilament lines that there are a few other good companies out there as well. And there are some good lines coming in from overseas manufacturers. There are two recommendations I have for monofilament. Use quality lines from good manufacturers. Avoid those 500-yard spools for twenty-five cents specials. And, buy your lines from stores which sell a lot of line. You don't want a spool that has hung on the shelf for a few years. You want fresh line.
That doesn't mean that monofilament has a short shelf life. It will stay in good shape for a long time if you store it in a dark, cool place. Sunlight and heat will degrade mono quickly. I recommend changing the line on your reels at least once a year. Right now would be a good time to do it. When you are fishing, constantly check the first foot or two of you line for any rough spots. Simply run your thumb and finger along the line, If you feel even a slight roughness, cut it off and retie your lure. Abrasions like that can cut the breaking strength of your line in half or even more.
If you are perplexed about fishing lines, my advice is pretty simple. Buy Berkley Trilene XL. It was the first of the Berkley monofilaments and it has been continually been improve as advancements in technology have been made. It's a soft, small diameter line with good knot strength. It's a strong line which you can depend upon. If you checked my rods you'd find about 75 percent of them have reels spooled with XL.
It comes in clear, fluorescent clear blue and low-viz green colors. I use clear, almost exclusively. If you like to see your line easier while you are fishing, use the fluorescent.
I use six pound test for most of my walleye fishing in natural lakes and reservoirs, eight pound test for walleyes in rivers, four-pound test for panfish. Most of my casting reels, used for both walleyes and bass are spooled with 10 pound test.
If you are a beginning fishermen, use eight pound test in your spin casting reel or spinning reel for anything you decide to fish for, from panfish to largemouth.
If you are after bigger fish in snaggy conditions such as sunken timber, you should have a second outfit spooled with 10, 12 or 14 pound test.
Trilene XL is a great starter line for learning how to fish with a casting reel. It's a soft monofilament and is very forgiving for beginning (or even expert) casters. If you are having trouble with backlashes on casting reels, start thinking about the line. Stiff lines are backlash prone.
Trilene XT is probably the second most popular monofilament in their line. It's a tough, abrasion resistant line, good for casting in snaggy waters that eat up other lines, battling northern pike or pulling largemouth bass out of water lily beds. It comes in the same colors as XL.
So, those are the two basic lines, in my opinion. A general purpose and a tough line for tough fishing conditions.
There are several other lines in the Berkley arsenal. Among them are Big Game, Ironsilk, Big Cat, Spider Wire Super Mono and the various Stren lines. They are all good and if you are more than a casual fisherman, you'll be studying and fishing with them.
Some time we'll take a look at the so-called "super lines," the modern braids which hit the market a few years ago. Many fishermen proclaimed the braids would replace the mono lines, but they were dead wrong.
Mono, with built-in line stretch is a very forgiving line. It's stretch helps prevent slack which can cause you to lose a fish when fighting it and keeps hooks from tearing out so readily.
For the foreseeable future, monofilament will be the dominate line on fishing reels.
Larry Myhre is editor of the Journal. Reach him at (712) 293-4201 or email at: larrymyhre@siouxcityjournal.com
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