I often have a perusal of the Sport Fishing blog and came across this article regarding the test of a range of 20lb lines.


The results make rather interesting reading; take a peek

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Benjamin

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well ive fished for more years than i can remember and that asso is the best strength in line ive ever seen i gave it the test of its life and the hook broke before the line.size 10 hook and asso 7lb flouo. ill be having a box of it very soon when my mates seen it do this we club to gether.as i will need some for my trips to india 20lb and 30lb if i can get it.as well as 4lb 7lb for the trout. i was shocked at its strength.i did give it some pulling it was snagged on a concrete slab in the waters edge.so i walked back and back till it snapped ive only ever do that much pulling on a line that big once before and that line was 12lb and the line snapped not the hook.great stuff.

phil

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stop buying bottled water we have,nt got enuff to fish in now so stop it get the water companies to do there job and clean the water every where!!!!

The figures in the tests go to show how line is marketed, 'our 20lb line is stronger than brand Z' it's a complete nonsense. Some lines are strong, some are thin, some are stiff, some stretch and some don't, each have their place; except Drennan “Double Strength” which is rubbish in every way, shape and form.

One thing which I have learned is don't ever believe what it says on the spool in terms of breaking strain (sic) or diameter. I have used some lines which seem very strong, but when measured they have been way over the stated diameter.

The manufacturers can test the lines to give pretty much whatever results they want. You can vary the load at which a line will break by varying the strain rate i.e. a sharp tug can break a line (like a smash take) which will withstand much higher loads applied more slowly (like pulling for a break when your stuck up a tree).

Just pick something you have confidence in.

Yes i agree with that weightforward.I like to try differant ones now and again and this asso seems to be ok. but im not so sure about the snap takes as you say only time will tell with this

phil

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stop buying bottled water we have,nt got enuff to fish in now so stop it get the water companies to do there job and clean the water every where!!!!

All very interesting.......but it all goes out of the window when you put a knot in them (or even get them wet) or put a different knot in them. Knowing the true breaking strain of a particular line is all well and good, but not really much use in practicle terms.......just a guide..................birdsnest

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Fear not if I steal from your side, as of yore, from paradise streams to fish Teifi once more.
BN based in Wolverhampton

when i test a line i have to put a knot in it to keep it on the hook. so when they say the line broke at this test weight!! how else did they get the line to stay on the hook to test it then are you saying the line will always snap at the hook knot.

phil

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stop buying bottled water we have,nt got enuff to fish in now so stop it get the water companies to do there job and clean the water every where!!!!

The line will always snap at the weakest point, whether this is a knot or damage or thinning. I do not know how lines are tested commercially, but as a test engineer I sometimes test my own (mainly the higher breaking strains). The test rig that I use uses "wrap around" grips. A bit like wrapping the line around both hands and pulling. No knots. As I said previously, this is not what you get when you go fishing since you have a knot or knots that invariably weaken the strength of the unit at that point (it may of course be even weaker elsewhere). I guess thats's why some manufacturers quote a "knot strength"...............birdsnest

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Fear not if I steal from your side, as of yore, from paradise streams to fish Teifi once more.
BN based in Wolverhampton

When testing any materials strength is vital to avoid anything which would cause an unwanted stress concentration, so no knots will be tied in the line when measuring the B.S. The line will pass over a series of rollers between 2 reels which are controlled to apply a load.

In the vast majority of cases line will fail at a knot because no matter how good you are at tying knots they are never stronger than the line itself, in most cases the line is plastically deformed as the knot is tightened so a much lower load is needed to break it.

*Cross posted with Birdsnest

I now look at the diameter vs breaking strain for my trout fishing, mainly because I feel more comfortable with a thinner diameter giving my fly more movement in the water instead of being pulled along by a "ski-rope".


However, were I to spool up a reel for tropical fishing, I usually look for IGFA rated lines as I know, for certain, that line has been tested to IGFA regs.

Aside from that, for general fishing, it is still breaking strain to diameter as I know I can generally spool more on to my reel - a habit I developed in SA to ensure I always have as much as I can cram on. A strange habit, perhaps, but it has stuck with me.

When that fish of a life-time comes along, I may consider it a good habit



Benjamin

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This is an very good point and one that I think more anglers would benefit from if they understood it.

There is no such thing as a 100% breaking strength knot. One of the fishing mags over here ran a "best knot" contest for hook to line knots and found that the best knot submitted averaged 90-some % BS.

That was the BEST knot in the test. The average was between 70 and 80%. So if you look at that in practical terms, if you are fishing with what you believe to be 10 pound test, you're really fishing with 7-8 pound test once you put a not in it.

But that assumes that your 10 pound test is really that--10 pound test. Which it almost NEVER is.

IMO, it's a big benefit if one settles on a brand and sticks with it rather than bouncing from brand to brand. I honestly believe that over time you develop a feel for that brand and type and you can just sense where the break point is. With the variation and the variables like knot strength, the only counter is having a fingertip feel for where the breakoff point is.

Grouse