Just how much do you know about the line you are using?

About a year ago I took it upon myself to scientifically test 21 different spools of 15lb mono. I’m glad I decided to do this because it really opened my eyes to the huge world of fishing line.

There are so many factors that govern what we perceive to be a ‘good line’, but simply looking or feeling nice isn’t enough when it comes to buying a quality mainline. Here are the results of a very interesting experiment…

HOW IT WAS DONE?

LINEAR BREAKING STRAIN TEST

You may have seen one of the Berkley line testing machines before. It’s a simple, but very expensive piece of equipment used by both line manufacturers and specialist angling groups alike. All light-line records have to pass the test on this type of machine before they can be accepted – so these results are as good as you will get anywhere in the world.

To test a line sample you must first wind one end around a small disc on the measuring end of the machine, and clip it in place (there are no knots used to secure the lines to get a more accurate reading). You then connect the other end of the line in the same manner to a larger disc at the other end of the machine.

When each test begins, 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 was tested three times to get an average. The line samples were also taken from various depths of each spool (rather than taking the first three metres, samples were taken from the beginning and middle of each one.)

LINEAR BREAKING STRAIN TEST RESULTS

 

Brand of Line

Diameter(mm) Test 1 (lb) Test 2 (lb) Test 3 (lb) Average (lb)
Masterline Yellow 0.393 24.5 23.5 24 24
Masterline Blue 0.393 23 23.5 23.5 23.3
Penn Senator 0.393 21.5 24 23 22.8
Berkley Big Game Inshore 0.368 21.5 21 21.5 21.3
Daiwa Sensor 0.356 21 20.5 21 20.8
Berkley Big Game 0.386 20.5 20.5 20.5 20.5
Shakespeare Omniflex 0.386 20 20 20 20
Sufix Tritanium 0.343 19 20 19 19.3
Daiwa Tournament 0.330 19 19 18.5 18.8
Ultima Tournament 0.330 18.5 17 19 18.1
Shakespeare Superjet 0.356 16.5 17 16.5 16.7
Shimano Baitrunner GT 0.304 17 16 17 16.6
Profish Ghost Line 0.330 16.5 16.5 16.5 16.5
Shakespeare Sigma 0.393 15 16 15.5 15.5
Ultima Seastrike 0.356 15 15 15 15
Ultima Mist Grey 0.343 15 14.5 14.5 14.6
Daiwa Super Shinobi 0.297 14 14 14 14
Mason Bass On 0.343 14 14 14 14
Sylcast Blue 0.356 14 14 14 14
Ultima F1 0.304 14 14 14 14
Silstar Taktiq 0.279 14 13.5 14 13.8

 

ABRASION TEST

The machine I used for this test belongs to Relum UK. It’s a simple, mechanical device that tests three samples of line at once – again to get an average.

Basically you take three 12-inch lengths of line and attach each one to one of the three arms on the machine. To the ends of each sample you attach a 550-gram (about 1lb 4oz) weight. This allows the middle section of each line to rest over three separate drums of fine grade sandpaper at 45-degrees.

When the machine is activated, the arms move up and down (this counts as one cycle) until all three lines have snapped. Each cycle is recorded on a separate clicker above the respective arm.

It’s a very simple operation, but very effective and accurate as you can see from the results.

Each line was tested simultaneously, just in case there were any irregularities with any of the arms.

The results shocked me, and most of the angling trade!

Abrasion Formula

To obtain the abrasion ratio, each line’s average cycles was divided by its diameter.

ABRASION TEST RESULTS

 

Brand of Line  

Test 1
(cycles)

 

Test 2
(cycles)

 

Test 3
(cycles)

 

Average
(cycles)

 

Ratio

Profish Ghost Line 1444 2494 2935 2291 6942
Sufix Tritanium 313 388 707 469.3 1368
Penn Senator 147 158 174 159.7 406
Masterline Blue 72 98 135 101.7 259
Daiwa Tournament 79 80 92 83.7 254
Masterline Yellow 85 90 111 95.3 242
Berkley Big Game 65 79 85 76.3 207
Ultima Mist Grey 58 63 77 66 192
Daiwa Sensor 61 68 74 67.7 190
Berkley Big Game Inshore 65 70 73 69.3 188
Sylcast Blue 56 58 75 63 177
Shakespeare Omniflex 61 63 70 64.7 176
Daiwa Super Shinobi 39 40 63 47.3 170
Shakespeare Sigma 67 67 67 67 170
Shakespeare Superjet 55 58 58 57 160
Ultima Seastrike 47 59 64 56.7 159
Mason Bass On 50 50 57 52.3 152
Ultima Tournament 44 50 57 50.3 152
Shimano Baitrunner GT 37 41 51 43 141
Ultima F1 38 40 43 40.3 133
Silstar Taktiq 27 32 46 35 125

 

CONCLUSION

Remember that all these lines have a stated breaking strain of 15lb.

1. The most consistent line was Ultima Seastrike, which broke at 15lb every time I tested it.

2. The highest average breaking strain was Masterline Yellow at 24lb.

3. The lowest average breaking strain was Silstar Taktiq at 13.8lb.

4. The highest diameter was shared by Shakespeare sigma, Masterline Blue and Yeloow, Penn Senator – all averaging 0.393mm

5. The lowest diameter was shared by Silstar Taktiq and Daiwa Super Shinobi.

6. The best diameter to abrasion resistance ratio was Profish Ghostline, followed by Sufix Tritanium.

7. The lowest abrasion resistance ratio was Silstar Taktiq.

Dave Barham

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Dave Barham

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