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Getting A Line On Technology

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By FRANK SARGEANT | The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 11, 2008

For saltwater anglers, the arrival of microfiber lines was an epochal event. The soft, thin, strong "superline" virtually replaced monofilament overnight, particularly among saltwater anglers who appreciate the extra life span and the pulling power of these no-stretch lines.

But superline now has competition, and it already has gained wide acceptance in the professional bass fishing field, often a harbinger of things to come for the fishing public.

"About 75 percent of the pro bass fishermen now use new-breed fluorocarbon for some or all of their fishing," said Dave Burkhardt, president of Clermont-based Triple Fish Lines. "They like the fact that fish can't see it, that it's tougher than mono, and that it has so little stretch."

Burkhardt, whose company also sells mono and microfiber, said "reinvented" fluorocarbon has a combination of features that could make it a winner among freshwater and saltwater anglers.

"Fluorocarbon is a completely different formula and requires higher temperatures and more pressure to produce, which is why it was so expensive for years that most anglers only used it for leaders," Burkhardt said. "But now our company has come up with a process that allows rapid, mass production, and we have cut the price in half."

He said a 200-yard spool of Triple Fish fluoro in the popular range from 6- to 15-pound test typically sells for $7.98 to $10.98, or about the same price as quality mono, and considerably cheaper than most microfiber lines.

Several Advantages

Fluorocarbon has some unusual qualities that make it an interesting material for certain types of fishing. It's twice as dense as mono and much heavier than microfiber, so it sinks rapidly. For anglers who want to get lures deep - as in trolling big plugs for grouper or kings, or in freshwater when fishing crank baits for largemouths - it can add considerably to the depth a lure runs, usually an advantage.

The extra density also makes it a very "hard" line, resistant to abrasion. That's the quality that first made it popular with tarpon and snook anglers; they use it as leader material to prevent abrasion from the rough jaws of these species.

Also, fluoro is very hard to see in the water.

"It has the same light refraction index as water, which makes it almost invisible under the surface," Burkhardt said. "In clear, calm water or with fish that have been pressured a lot, having invisible line can be a big advantage."

Burkhardt said when fluoro first came out, the quality that made it hard also made it wiry, and that made it difficult to cast. But, he said, formulation of the new breed of line has solved the issue, making the material highly competitive with premium mono and with microfiber.

"It's really the ideal line on baitcasters. I use a lot of 12- and 15-pound test for my bass fishing, and inshore anglers will do very well with those same tests or on up to 20-pound," Burkhardt said. "You can use 25-pound with no leader for snook - no knots to catch in the eyelet or slip - and for grouper fishing or blue water, we have it in tests up to 400 pounds."

6 Months Later ...

Some anglers say fluoro is less likely to create wind knots on spinning tackle, as well, a bugaboo of fiber lines when used with artificial lures. And it holds knots as readily as mono.

Fiber lines tend to slip when used with many popular fishing knots.

"I also like the fact that there's no memory in this generation of fluorocarbon," Burkhardt said. "You can spool it up, put the reel in the closet for six months, and when you take it out to fish, the line lays flat after just a couple of casts. A lot of mono lines won't do that."

Fluorocarbon is not the answer to every application, to be sure. For guides and anglers who fish several times a week, it's likely that the longer lifespan of microfiber will still win out, despite the higher initial cost of the fiber line. Some anglers fish the same line for more than a year with no reduction in strength. And in cases where you don't want the line to sink - as in fishing a topwater over emergent weeds - fluoro can cause problems.

However, it seems to offer a nice combination of low visibility, durability and pulling power, at a price that is now much more affordable.

MORE INFO

For more on fluorocarbon and other lines, visit:

• www.triplefish.net

• www.berkley-fishing.com

• www.spiderwire.com

• www.hiseas.net

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