The Age Of Your Fishing Line

Joda911 · November 27, 2004, 05:17:10 PM

Has anyone here ever heard of this fishing line, and if so, have you ever used any of it?

RAPTOR Thermo-Fused DYNEEMA Micro-Thin Fishing Line $:-\$

Mike Cork · November 27, 2004, 05:34:45 PM

Nope, never heard of it before. Looks very interesting and may be worth a try but they are sold out of all supplies. Interesting, Marketing ploy? or is it really that good?

Joda911 · November 27, 2004, 05:38:53 PM

I don't know Mike, but I certainly will attempt to find out about the stuff, wouldn't you?

Mike Cork · November 27, 2004, 06:14:27 PM

I will also do some checking, I am very interested in this new technology had to read it twice to try and make some sense out of it but they say all the right things.

Joda911 · November 27, 2004, 06:24:16 PM

Thanks Mike, post whatever you find out here, I'll do the same. I sure would like to try some of it out too...

Joda911 · November 30, 2004, 12:19:17 AM

Mike, I can't seem to locate any smaller diameter than 20lb. Here are two locations;

gascatch.com/store/category.asp?ID=10#cat63

gofishin.com/index.cgi?cart_id=8423477.30302&mgf=2100000000&show_details=45033&cat=250&keywords=&sort=&tb=&hmn=&sw=

Mike Cork · November 30, 2004, 05:17:04 PM

You are doing better than I, I got to dig a little yesterday and came up empty handed

Joda911 · December 04, 2004, 07:46:55 PM

The fact that this product is so hard to track down gives me negative impressions after reading the article below.

Cabela's Raptor

If imitation is the highest form of flattery, then Berkley should be proud that Cabela's has introduced a house brand of thermofused Dyneema line. Berkley is probably also happy that it really doesn't come close to performing as well as Fireline. Cabela's Raptor forgot the all important coating. For a tight weave, this wouldn't be a problem. For this line, it is. Dyneema shares a lot of properties with Spectra, including very little stretch, no memory, and very small diameter to tensile strength ratio. But a few things it doesn't do quite as well. It soaks up water better, (a problem for fishing line), doesn't weave as strong, and is also a harder material to get consistent over a long run, like say a spool of fishing line. So, make a product out of Dyneema without a coating and you have a relatively weak line with no memory at all and weak spots along it's length which gets a little worse as the day goes on. Given the tiny diameters everyone is trying for, you also get quite a backlash problem.

Try fishing a long day with that line and at the end of the day you'll have much more frustration than fish. Cabela's has a lot of "generic" lines they import which are very good alternatives to the name brand line with which they compete. This isn't one of them.

Lipripper · December 04, 2004, 08:24:44 PM

Thanks for that info joda I saw that same thing somewhere else when I was surffing on the Raptor brand that ya'll were talking about. Tkey said it might be good for trolling but like you said good luck trying to do anything else with it

Good Show ol beens

Mike Cork · December 04, 2004, 09:14:37 PM

Joda, the link you gave us made this line sound incredible. But I am with you now, I have to wonder. I think I would still like to play with it. My luck though I would get one of the good spools and really like the stuff then it would turn bad on me

Joda911 · December 05, 2004, 12:51:04 AM

Lip, and Mike, my goal is to get my hands on some of it, then make my evaluations from first hand experience. I'm thinking negatively though, because I have yet to be able to find less than 20# test for purchase, what gives with that?

I'll keep you all posted on my progress....

Fishaholic · December 07, 2004, 01:44:19 AM

I totally change out the line on all the reels I use 4-5 times a year...but then, I fish a lot of real heavy cover casting into snags, rocks and docks and I'm usually using pretty light line.

The heaviest line on any reel is 17 lb., then 10 lb. after that, no reel carries line heavier than 6 lb. test and some have 2 lb. test.

Sometimes, when fishing is really tough, I pull out my super ultralite with 2 lb. test line and a 1/32 oz. tube jig...you'd be surprised at all the hawgs that'll grab that tiny bait when it seems like they've shut down.

bass1cpr · March 16, 2005, 09:50:19 PM

Joda I just dug up this old thread. Funny I posted in another thread that I use to use Raptor line. I still have a 20# spool of it in the basement. I was thinking of putting it back on my carolina rig rod again.
I read the article you posted and would like to know where that came from.
Like I said I use to have it on my carolina rig main line. At the time I thought it was pretty strong and I didn't have the problems with backlashes like the article said.
I will agree that it wasn't the smoothest texture when you ran your fingers down it , but i didn't have a problem with it breaking. I used it most of the 1999 season and did a lot of carolina rigging that year. It did fray some but I think I boiled that down to the brass sinkers I was using at that time. When I cahnged from them that problem went away.

I haven't seen it anywhere in a long time but I could launch a carolina rig a mile with it. I went to P-Line for my main line and just haven't went back to a braid because it works for me.

I have been thinking of trying it on my c-rig again and finding this thread makes me think about it more. I'm going back and checking the two links that you put up for mike and check them out. Have you ever found any of it?

fishing nut · March 17, 2005, 05:08:12 PM

I usually respool mono every couple of weeks if i am fishing a lot, braid usually every season.

Da FISHINKING · March 17, 2005, 05:51:14 PM

I am lazy so I usually respool 2 x a year..mostly 12lb spider...always has worked well for me.

Pferox · March 19, 2005, 05:35:20 AM

I'm no pro, but I do fish alot both fresh and salt, with the Florida sun, I used to respool quite often with mono, now I have started to use either power pro or Ripcord Plus from Cabella's, and I have yet to see the need for respooling, and my go to reels have line on em for over 2 years. Yea, I'm cheap.

I am forced to use spinning reels exclusively now so to control line twist I almost always use a good ball bearing swivle and then adjust the weight of the leader to suit my needs, I use florocarbon for leader material, except for Big toothy fish, which then I have to use wire.

I change leaders quite often due to wear, and retying lures and such, but it saves the expensive braid.

I just bought some of Berkley's Gorilla line in 35 pound for a couple of salt rigs, gonna try it and see how it works.

cmegee · March 25, 2005, 12:12:08 PM

I usually spooll up my bass rigs before every tournament a day or two in advance and then go out to the pool and make a few casts with each rod to get the bugs worked out, and have the line tention on the spool correctly.

conniek · March 29, 2005, 08:11:31 PM

well, ya'll have made good points, I'm like Papa, i hate to lose a fish due to bad line. that would be a huge GRRR! for me. I pay attention to my line and cover, if fishing lots of cover, brush, etc, the line could get a nick and you might not know it. so, that factors in when to change as well as memory.....Some of our customers send in reels that have a tiny piece of tape on reel with date of last line change. And liek mentioned above, keep the line away from sun. In shop, we cover line with a towel so the fluorescent light doesn't hit the line or thread we use to repair guides with. Leaving rod on boat deck while traveling is not a good thing to do, hard on line as well as reel. connie

The Witchdoctor · March 31, 2005, 08:14:08 AM

I SPOOL DOWN to about 3/4 spool, then tie new line to it and spool back up. You will be amazed and how much line you save! I respool in the winter every weekeend, in the spring and summer every 2nd week unless needed, and in the fall every weekend. I fish every weekend, well i might miss 4 weekends per year due to other stuff, but usually in a tourney somewhere! UNTIL THE GAS WENT UP!