Sharp Salmon Walleye

What’s My Line?

I’ve been walleye fishing a long time and I am pretty set in my ways. For instance, I like to cast for my fish and experience the bite and fight. Trolling, for all its popularity, is a last-gasp choice for me. And I always use a spinning reel because it’s mostly trouble free. Baitcasters remind me of the 1950s…old school.

But when it comes to fishing line selection, I’m intrigued by the latest and greatest. It seems like there’s something new coming out every year. The interesting aspect is that lines are continually in a state of development to make them thinner, stronger and less visible.

Monofilament lines have come a long way since first developed by DuPont in 1939 when the company invented nylon. But fishermen weren’t that impressed with the early mono and kept on using braided Dacron for the next several decades.

My memory of early mono was that it was wiry and difficult to handle and cast. Its two saving graces – good knot strength and very low visibility to the fish – gave it a small but loyal following.

In 1959 DuPont introduced Stren, a thinner and much softer monofilament line that could be used in a large range of reels, including newly introduced spinning and spin casting tackle. Stren’s monofilament lines soon became a favorite with many fishermen because of its overall ease of use.

A few years back, manufacturers started using polyvinylidene fluoride to make what we know now as fluorocarbon line. It’s very much like nylon monofilament, but has several advantages: it is nearly invisible in water and stands up to sharp fish teeth and wear. Also, fluorocarbon doesn’t take up water and it is resistant to UV-light. It is denser than nylon which makes it sink faster.

Dyneema, like polyvinylidene fluoride, is used in the new braided lines. It is stronger, much smaller in diameter and has very little stretch.  So take care to adjust your reel’s drag. An aggressive hook-set, without a light drag, will rip the hook out of the fish’s mouth.

Berkley Fireline is an innovation spun off Dyneema and I use it exclusively on all my reels. The big reason is size. For example, 6-pound test Fireline is the same diameter as 2-pound monofilament and will cast 30 to 40 percent farther than mono of the same pound test. I use the all-around useful 10-pound test.

I like to tell charter clients it is so sensitive that I can feel the fish breathing on it. Honestly, the more I use it the more I believe it. Because Fireline is visible to the fish, I tip my lines with about six feet of 10-pound fluorocarbon, using a uni-knot. 

  While fluorocarbon lines look and feel similar to monofilament they are different in many ways. For example, fluorocarbon lines tend to resist twist even more than monofilament

  You can overcome this characteristic by not filling your reel spool quite so full, employing quality swivels to relieve twist, and by using light pound tests. In addition, fluorocarbon lines don’t dissipate heat nearly as well as monofilament so go slow when tying the knot. Cinch it up quickly and it’s likely to break from friction heat.

While fluorocarbon lines are less visible to fish, realize that even clear fluorocarbon can show up when surrounded by green-colored water, which is prevalent in many freshwater lakes and rivers. Anglers who previously employed low-vis green monofilament for its camouflage like abilities should know that there is now a green tint fluorocarbon available under the Trilene brand.

In addition, tinted fluorocarbon offers the added feature of diffusing unwanted light that has been known to occasionally travel down the length of clear fluorocarbon and produce unwanted sparkle and flash. Sort of like fiber-optics.

Due to high-tech braids having almost zero stretch, they offer increased sensitivity.  In addition, they float better than monofilament and are more tolerant of line twist, which makes most super-lines a dream-come-true for use on a spinning reel. 

  Besides offering extreme strength and thin diameter, when properly selected super-lines can totally eliminate the thought of an unexpected break off.  When choosing for trout, panfish and walleye going with the same test as you would monofilament is the best idea.

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However, when pursuing big fish like steelhead and salmon, stepping up to a higher pound test will offer a significant difference in strength and performance. For example, if you now use 25-pound test monofilament for salmon, select 50 or 65-pound test super-line, which equals the diameter of 12 or 15-pound test monofilament.

On Lake Erie where I do most of my angling trolling boats use 15-20 pound braided line which is plenty strong enough for the 10-12-pound walleyes caught there.

Unlike when first introduced only a few super-lines are a straight braid these days, since most are enhanced with additional processing. This is done to provide body to the line so it resists tip wrapping, which is often associated with single process braids. 

In addition, further processing is used to provide color, smoothness for longer casts, and to seal the line so it will shed water and float higher. For example, Fireline goes through a firing process that fuses it into a single strand after it is first braided.

  Due to their smooth, slick, exterior finish super-lines (regardless of brand) can slip after spooling, which might make you believe your reel has a faulty drag. To counter this, I start out with a few yards of mono backing, then connect the braided line, again, using the uni-knot. Some fishermen will tape the line to the spool but I don’t recommend this.

FACTOID 
Sixteen-year-old Berkley Bedell started selling his hand-tied flies made with hair clipped from the family dog in 1937. That was the beginning of the Berkley line of fishing tackle.

About the Author

I am a retired news journalist who now operates a sportfishing charter business on Lake Erie.

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