Selecting Fishing Line

Selecting fishing line is an easy thing if you know what you are fishing for, the habitat you will be fishing and have selected a fishing rod appropriate for that habitat and species.

Some Types of Line:

Monofilament. Mono is a single strand of line manufactured when molten plastic is poured through a die and forms a single strand. The single-component extrusion process is relatively inexpensive and produces a reasonable line. However, premium grade monofilament line has more additives and is given more attention in the finishing process than normal line to make it abrasion resistant. With the additional processing, it is more expensive than straight mono. Monofiliament is the most popular of fishing lines. However, it it has a tendency to keep to a certain shape if stored for some time. Frequent replacement of the line is best. My favorites include Berkley's Trilene XT and XL lines.

Fused Lines: These line often called "super lines", consists of many layers of microfilaments of gel spun polyethylene fibers are thermally fused together with a coating applied over it to produce a single strand of line. It is ultra thin, has superior strength, and sensitivity, is good abrasion resistance, and is easy to cast. With less stretch, this line provides great hook sets. Spiderwire is the leader in fused line. Fused fishing lines are similar to braided fishing lines. The negative aspects of fused lines and braided lines are their difficultly in cutting without a sharp knife or scissors, their tendency to slide around a bit on the reel spool and their higher visibility to fish.

Braided lines: This type of fishing line is the strongest of the 4 available and consist of inter-wined strands of nylon material, making it a multifilament line. With the addition of synthetic fiber (nylon), braided lines have tremendous strength without sacrificing their thin diameter. Due to its non-stretch properties it is a super sensitive line. Special knots have been designed for these lines so that they remain tied. Due to its strength, it also can be hard on equipment and hands. For live bait jigging, I like Spider wire or FireLine.

Fluorocarbons: This line is made from polymer of fluorine bonded to carbon and has several advantages over the other lines. It comes the closest to the refractive index of water so it is virtually invisible under water - a benefit in clear waters. This line has low stretch and hook sets are excellent. This line doesn’t float and allows your lures or bait to fall faster and deeper quicker. This line doesn’t absorb water like monofilaments and this makes it much stronger. Berkley's Vision and P-Line Flurocarbon are examples of this type of line that I use.

Color:

If you are fishing in dark, muddy, or stained waters a brown colored line is best.

Moss Green is best suited for waters with heavy weeds and other vegetation.

Clear Blue Florescent is great when the sun is out and you need to see your line above the surface, whether it is trolling, casting, or retrieving. It has low visibility under water.

High Visibility Gold is easy to see and detect when a fish strikes. It also makes it easier to detect multiple lines when trolling.

Low Visibility line tends to blend into most waters. It is great for fishing in areas that receive heavy pressure or areas where fish spook easily.

Low Visibility Clear is best suited for ultra clear water, whether it is a stream or a lake.

Testing Fishing Lines:

Standard procedures have been set up by the International Game Fish Association or IGFA to test fishing line. However, it is not clear if this is done or not. Often different results for the same line have a range of results. Each manufacture test its products against its competitors and publishes results that are probably favorable for its own products.

One test measures the "breaking strength" of a line. One end of a line sample is wound around a small disc on the measuring end of the machine, and clip it in place. No knots are allowed to secure the lines to get a more accurate reading. The other end of the line is connected in the same manner to a larger disc at the other end of the machine. The larger wheel rotates at a constant speed until the line snaps. The final poundage is displayed on the measuring device. Each spool of line is supposed to be tested three times to get an average.

Another test is the "abrasion test". Three separate lengths of line are attached to one of the three arms on a machine. Attached to the other ends of each piece of line is an equal amount of weight (approximately 1lb 4oz). The three sections of line are positioned so that their middle section rests over separate drums of fine grade sandpaper. When the machine is activated, the arms move up and down until all three lines have snapped. Each time the arms move up and down, it counts as one cycle. This is recorded on a separate clicker above the respective arm. Once the line breaks, the counting of cycles stops. To get the abrasion ratio, each line’s average number of cycles for the three sections is divided by its diameter. Diameter is measured in the thousandth’s of an inch with a micrometer over its entire length.

Few companies manufacture line in the USA. Excess products are sold to other line companies to market. Normally one should stay with a known manufacturer in order to get quality line. With lesser known companies it is difficult to know the level of quality of their lines since they may be purchasing fishing line on the open market.

Selecting Lines:

In general, for fishing heavy cover and rough conditions like rocks, pick a monofilament designed for that situation. These are usually designated tough, extreme or extra tough. Also try braids and fusion line. For fishing clear water, choose a thin, clear line. Fluorocarbon lines disappear underwater since they refract little light. Others are usually called extra limp, extra thin and other names that designate it as small diameter. For fishing vegetation like lily pads, moss and grass, try a thin, tough line. It can be a braid or a fused line.

For spinning and spin cast reels, choose a thin, limp line for better casting. It can be monofilament, fusion or braid. Bait casting reels handle most any kind of line with stiffer line better suited for them than spinning reels.

Next is Fishing Reels


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