The Fluorocarbon Advantage
By: “Triton” Mike Bucca
(www.tritonmike.com)
With top name pros like Gary Klein, Takahiro Omori,
Kevin Van Dam, Tommy Martin, Gary Yamamoto, Aaron Martens and many
others relying more and more on fluorocarbon line, you really can’t
help but to listen to some of the talk about this new age line. Big
name tournaments are being won on fluorocarbon lines left and right
and the feedback is very positive from the pros that this could very
well be the next best thing since nylon monofilament was invented in
the early 1900’s. Fluorocarbon lines are without a doubt the
next mega trend in bass fishing lines. Read further to find out why.
Before I go further, I want to explain exactly what fluorocarbon line
is and a little about the history of this relatively new line. As far
as I can research on the internet fluorocarbon was invented in 1970’s
in Japan, but it wasn’t until the mid 90’s that fluorocarbon
was introduced as a fishing leader line, so yes fluorocarbon line is
fairly new to the fishing industry and we have just begun to see its
effect. Many of the early generation fluorocarbons were very stiff
and hard to manage, but the new processing techniques have enabled
the modification of the stiff polymer chains to make this material
more flexible and the resultant line more manageable. This results
in branching of the polymer backbone and enables the tailoring of properties
and improved performance in handling.
Before fluorocarbon was first introduced into bass fishing, fluorocarbon
was and still is used primarily by fly fisherman as tippets and also
by saltwater enthusiasts as leader line due to its stiffness, strength
and abrasion resistance. Most of the fluorocarbon lines are made
from a fluoropolymer called polyvinylidene flouride...PVDF for short.
PVDF is a high grade engineering polymer with good temperature properties
and extremely good chemical resistance. You don't see a lot of it
around the house, but it is used for a lot of piping, valves, seals,
musical instrument strings, etc. It has several other applications
in the electronics industry such as membranes for fuel cells and
batteries.
Do remember that Fluorocarbon lines are a type of monofilament lines.
Mono is simply standing for mono, or single filament. So typically
I will use the phrase nylon monofilament to make the distinction between
itself and fluorocarbon lines.
So what are the advantages of this new age line called fluorocarbon
over the tried and true nylon monofilaments lines anyway?
ADVANTAGES of Fluorocarbon:
-- One of the primary advantages of fluorocarbon is its near invisibility
when it is submerged under water. Fluorocarbon line comes the closest
to the light refractive index of water so it is virtually invisible
when submerged. This fact alone makes this line very useful in situations
that have a clear water environment. A lot of anglers are now using
less-visible 16 lb. fluorocarbon for applications where they may have
used more-visible 12-14 pound mono previously. Anglers are able to
gain extra strength in their fluorocarbon lines due to the less visibility
of fluorocarbon in the water.
-- Fluorocarbon's chemical composition and extrusion methods create
an extremely strong and durable line. Fluorocarbon does not absorb
water like most nylon monofilaments, so it maintains its strength better
than nylon monofilaments, which loses strength when exposed to water
or humidity. Fluorocarbon is also unaffected by the sun’s ultraviolet
rays causing fluorocarbon lines to last significantly longer than nylon
monofilaments as well. I have personally noticed that fluorocarbon
line can last as long as four times the life of nylon monofilaments,
making it an excellent choice for anglers looking for a good value
in fishing lines.
--Yet another advantage of this space age line is that fluorocarbon
has less stretch than typical nylon or copolymer monofilaments. Your
hook sets are always strong and positive and this is a huge plus when
fishing deep water finesse baits where line stretch is detrimental
to a good hook set. The stretchiness characteristic of fluorocarbon
line is more comparable to that of braided lines than nylon monofilaments,
but without the thread look of braided lines that are easily seen in
clear water. When you are flipping and pitching your subtle bites will
go from a barely detectable tap tap while using nylon monofilaments,
to bites feeling like a bolt of lighting up the spine of your rod when
using fluorocarbon. The bites are three times more noticeable in my
hands while using fluorocarbon.
I have to tell a story as it pertains to the sensitivity of fluorocarbon
lines. While giving a tank seminar on jerkbaits at the Atlanta Boat
Show a few weeks ago, I had one rod spooled with 10lb nylon monofilament
and another with 10 lb fluorocarbon. I was using two rods for the sole
purpose of saving time tying on another bait during the middle of a
seminar. In this particular tank the fish were starving and feeding
heavily on almost anything you threw. I was describing the different
actions between a pointer 78 and a flashminnow 95MR in the tank and
while fishing the pointer 78 on monofilament I can clearly see the
fish lightly hitting the bait and quickly spitting it out because the
hard jerkbait didn’t feel real to the fish. I could just barely,
if at all, feel those fish hit that pointer 78. But when I threw the
flashminnow 95MR on the fluorocarbon the fish just picked at the flashminnow
just like they did the pointer 78 and the bites were extremely distinguishable
compared to those hits on pointer 78 using nylon monofilament. I taught
myself a very valuable lesson that day and it made me wonder how many
fish have pocket picked my jerkbaits in the past while I was using
nylon monofilament and I didn’t even know it. Even though the
bites are subtle on inactive fish I could have at the very least has
the opportunity to swing on some of those pocket picking fish in hopes
to sticking them and getting them into the boat. But now that I use
fluorocarbon I will get that opportunity and I will never forget that
test and I hope it will give you the reader something to think about
as well.
Another advantage of fluorocarbon over a braided line is that fluorocarbon
line sinks at much faster rates than nylon line or even much less dense
braided lines, which will float. Because of the chemistry of the material
and the dense packing of the crystal structures in the polymer chains,
fluropolymers are about 1.7 times as dense as nylon, which gives them
a much faster sink rate. The fact that fluorocarbon sinks makes it
a better choice for baits that dive or sink like crankbaits and deep
jig fishing, and it can even help get your deep diving Lucky Craft
jerkbaits like the Staysee 90 get a little deeper than a braided line
normally would get you.
It is the surface tension of water combined with the lower density
that can keep nylon monofilament from sinking under the water’s
surface. It often takes the weight of a lure to let the nylon monofilament
break the surface tension and sink slowly once it gets wet. Often the
dry portion of the nylon monofilament that is unaffected by the weight
of the lure, stays on the surface of the water. Most anglers have seen
this when fishing with artificial lures. Once the lure hits the bottom,
you will notice some of your line still on the surface of the water
and any slack in the nylon line will float or arch creating a bow in
your line. It is most notable especially when fishing at deeper depths.
These bows and arches will not happen with fluorocarbon line. Fluoropolymers,
even though they are hydrophobic or water hating, will easily break
the surface tension and sink at much faster rates than nylon monofilaments,
even without the help of the weight of any artificial lure. This concept
leads to a direct connection to your lure, which is a very important
aspect when fishing deep water with any lure that is worked below the
surface of the water. It is common knowledge that big bows in your
line reduce your ability to detect subtle strikes, especially in deep
water, and by using fluorocarbon line you have just eliminated those
effects.
-The hard finish of fluorocarbon line also provides extreme abrasion
resistance over nylon monofilaments. In fact, fluorocarbon has been
offered for years as a leader material because of this property,
but recent improvements in the processing have enabled makers to
manufacture it with enough flexibility to be used solely as fishing
line for bass.
Now that’s the long list of advantages here is the short list
of disadvantages, but they are very minor compared to the long list
of advantages.
DISADVANTAGES of Fluorocarbon:
-One caution with fluorocarbon lines is that you need to be very careful
when tying your knots to lures. Knot tying with fluorocarbon is VERY
VERY critical to prevent break-offs. A lot of anglers discount the
importance of knot tying with fluorocarbon lines and complain of line
breakages. I can attest that poor knot tying skills are the most common
reasons why anglers break off on fluorocarbon. No matter how long you
have being tying knots with fishing line there is always room for improvement.
Here are the steps I take in getting a good strong knot with fluorocarbon.
I prefer either the Berkley braid knot or the palomar knot when tying
fluorocarbon to lures or hooks. The absolute key to getting a good
knot with fluorocarbon is to make sure that your knot is NEAT and not
sloppy. Meaning you can't have a strand of fluorocarbon overlapping
where it shouldn't be overlapping and you must have a close to perfect
knot as possible. Having said that, fluorocarbon lines are fairly stiff
and slippery materials, and if you kink or damage the line while making
the knot, then the line will be weakened dramatically similar to a
single strand wire, once you kink the wire the wire has been weakened.
So very careful, slow and systematic knot making, lubrication will
help you to form a better knot and offer a stronger bind between your
line and your lure. Once you wrap your knot and you are ready to cinch
your knot you have GOT to slobber up the knot AND the eyelet of the
hook very thoroughly!! Once you wet the knot, SLOWLY SLOWLY SLOWLY,
cinch the knot and put a lot of emphasis that your knot stays straight
and neat during the cinching process. I take 10 seconds to cinch the
knot and I keep checking it to make sure my knot is clean as I am cinching
it downward towards the lure. What I do is cinch the knot a 1/4 of
an inch and stop and slobber it up and keep repeating the process till
your knot is cinched all the way down, but remember to be sure that
your knot is PRETTY. If you did everything correctly test your knot
by pulling on it. With 8lb fluorocarbon line take the lure in one hand,
line in the other with the knot being in between your two hands give
it a good pull to see if your knot is sufficient and do this test as
often as possible and retie as necessary. I do find myself retying
more often on the smaller diameters (8lb test or smaller) than I do
on the larger diameter lines. Yes, it's a little bit of a pain to go
through some of the rituals that I go through in tying knots with fluorocarbon,
but the key to fluorocarbon is some good basic and systematic knot
tying skills. By developing good basic knot skills it allows you to
concentrate on what is important, finding and catching more fish with
the advantages that fluorocarbon provides you. Personally, I just can't
imagine fishing with nylon monofilaments again after seeing the advantages
of fluorocarbon lines with my own two eyes.
As
for knots, I personally like the Berkley braid knot shown below. My
primary reason for liking that knot is it is the easiest knot to
tie and it is the easiest knot to get a pretty knot every time, compared
to the palomar knot, with minimal hassle and alignment. There is very
little chance of line overlapping incorrectly with the Berkley braid
knot as compared to the palomar knot in my opinion, but both knots
are equally as strong if done correctly. The only thing I do differently
than the Berkley braid knot picture to the right is I only wrap the
loop around the main line only 3 times versus 7 times as shown in the
picture.
-- Fluorocarbon is pretty tough for novice anglers
to use on spinning reels. It does work very well on bait casting gear
with no noticeable
problems. If you’re not very comfortable with spinning reels
with regular nylon monofilaments, you will probably have a tough time
with a spinning reel spooled with fluorocarbon without some kind of
a learning curve. In fact, I am finding a lot of anglers using braid
with a fluorocarbon leader since braid is a lot more compatible with
spinning reels than fluorocarbon, but as you can see from the chart
below there is a trade off, line visibility, diving depth of lure and
also a giant arch in your line due to the floating characteristics
of braided lines. The reason why it’s hard to use fluorocarbon
on spinning reels is because the line acts like piano wire and is fairly
stiff compared to nylon monofilaments. Also, fluorocarbon is known
for its twists and loops especially in the smaller diameter fluorocarbon
lines. Basically what happens is when you flip the bail while full
of line on your spinning reel the line just springs off the spool with
almost no effort. However, it can be tamed. There is no way possible
that I have found to spool on new fluorocarbon without the line twisting.
So here is what I do to alleviate this problem. I spool my new fluorocarbon
onto the reel until it is full. Then when I am on the lake and idling
out of the marina I put the tag end of my line through the guides of
the rod and into the water (remember fluorocarbon line sinks) and let
the water take all of the fluorocarbon off of my spinning reel spool.
Once all of the line is off the spool, I then reel the fluorocarbon
back onto the spinning reel while holding the line between my thumb
and index finger. What you have just done is allow the water to undue
the twists in your line for you. Now your fluorocarbon will be a lot
more manageable on a spinning outfit. You will still have the stiffness
in your line, but I have always found that fluorocarbon is like a fine
wine, in that it becomes more limp and softens with age.
-- The final disadvantage of MOST fluorocarbons is that it costs a
bit more than nylon monofilaments. But coupled with the fact that fluorocarbon
lasts four times longer than nylon monofilaments you still come out
way ahead in the value department as nylon monofilaments normally last
for only a month or sometimes less under heavy use. The reason for
the extra cost is that raw PVDF (fluorocarbon) resin costs about four
to five times as much as nylon and since the material is twice as dense
as nylon, you get about half the yield from the same amount.
Since fluorocarbon line is a sinking line that can be claimed as a
disadvantage when using it for hard topwater baits such as a walking
the dog with a Lucky Craft Sammy or Gunfish. The line sinks so readily
that it drastically hampers the action of almost all hard topwater
baits. Because of this simple fact, I find nylon monofilament to be
a better option for topwater fishing. However there is no problem in
using fluorocarbon for most types of buzzbaits, because there is no
action to impart in most buzzer style lures.
Find below a ratings chart in the top 7 criteria that anglers use
when deciding on purchasing their fishing lines. I found it interesting
to see how fluorocarbon stacks up against the rest. Do keep in mind
that a lot of other environmental variables come into play when choosing
your fishing lines other than the 7 criteria I have listed below so
make your choices based on your needs. They include the categories
that we have already discussed.
Ratings Chart
Are you using the right line???
4 = being best; 1 = being worst
Categories |
Cost |
Abrasion Resistance |
Line Stretch |
Life span |
Line Visibility |
Wet line Strength |
Bait Depth |
Friction |
TOTAL SCORE |
Nylon Monofilament |
4 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
17 |
Braid |
2 |
3 |
4 |
4 |
1 |
4 |
1 |
3 |
22 |
Fluorocarbon |
1 |
4 |
3 |
4 |
4 |
3 |
4 |
4 |
27 |
Copolymer |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
18 |
Joining two lines:
Since the cost of fluorocarbon is at a premium price, I use nylon monofilament
as backing on all of my bait casting and spinning reel outfits to maximize
the use of the fluorocarbon with minimal waste. If I already have a
reel spooled with nylon mono, I will go into my yard on or on the water
and make a long cast with a heavy topwater bait. Once my cast is complete
I have then determined my maximum casting distance. I then strip off
another 30 to 40 feet of nylon mono and cut my line and then join the
nylon monofilament with the fluorocarbon line and reel the fluorocarbon
onto the spool of the reel. The extra 30 to 40 feet gives you a buffer
for numerous reties and professional overruns if you have them. There
are a myriad of knots that you can use for this purpose. I personally
like to use either a J-knot or a double uni-knot to join the fluorocarbon
to other lines. These knots will also work well with joining fluorocarbon
to braid or to copolymer lines as well. Just be sure to follow the
instructions I set forth above, i.e. slobber up heavily, make pretty
knots and a slow, slow cinch.
Fluorocarbon Uses:
Having mentioned all the advantages and disadvantages of fluorocarbon,
what techniques are best for the use of fluorocarbon line in bass
fishing? Before I mention the specifics of technique fishing with
fluorocarbon, let me mention one often overlooked advantage of these
lines, and that is the excellent frictional properties. Fluoropolymers,
by nature of their chemistry are very slippery materials. Think about
Teflon as the best known example of a non-stick, slippery fluoropolymer.
Beside the fact that Fluorocarbons won’t stick and bind in
knot tying quite like nylon monos, the other significant edge of
these very slick lines is the reduced friction and wear on guide
surfaces. Low friction also offers advantages in both casting and
retrieving and can translate into longer casts and smoother retrieves,
especially under fighting loads. One slight disadvantage to the stiffer
flurocarbon lines would be in casting very light baits where a somewhat
more flexible line type would offer an improvement. Softer, more
flexible materials can minimize the feedback and interference of
the line when casting light lures which have little momentum.
Aside from the material properties such as low friction, Fluorocarbon
lines offer many advantages for specific techniques. Most dropshot
pro’s almost use fluorocarbon line exclusively for the simple
fact that dropshotting is technically a clear deep water finesse technique.
Sensitivity is paramount for deep finesse fishing in depths of over
40 feet and the limited stretch characteristics of fluorocarbon ties
in very well with any deep water finesse tactics.
Flipping and Pitching is another technique that I like to use with
fluorocarbon lines. Fluorocarbon is very abrasive resistance due to
its hardness, and for those of you that have to line watch with nylon
monofilament, those days are over with the sensitivity (minimal stretch)
features of fluorocarbon. Those subtle bites now become stronger and
you are able to react quicker to those bites before the fish blows
your jig or creature bait out. Because fluorocarbon comes the closest
to the light refractive index of water it is virtually invisible to
the fish when submerged and it is great for clear water flipping and
pitching where as braid is more visible in clear water. If you still
find the need to watch your line you can use a permanent sharpie marker
to color parts of your line that is above the water while you are fishing
your jig. Remember since fluorocarbon has the same light refractive
index as water it is fairly invisible under water so you can upsize
your line with less-visible 16 lb. fluorocarbon for applications where
they may have used more-visible 12-14 pound mono previously.
Fluorocarbon is also an excellent choice for fishing jerkbaits and
crankbaits as well. Again, fluorocarbon has great abrasion resistance
for cranking through heavy laydowns and due to the fact that fluorocarbon
is a sinking line with minimal stretch you will have no problems detecting
bites or pocket picks when fishing jerkbaits and cranks. You might
even get a little more depth out of them than if you used a nylon monofilament
or braided lines.
Spinnerbaits, Swim baits and Traps are other great baits to use with
fluorocarbon. The biggest advantage to using fluorocarbon with spinnerbaits,
swim baits and traps is to be able to set the hook at the end of long
casts. When making a long cast in open water flats with spinnerbaits
and traps, the line stretch of nylon monofilament is enough to cause
you a weak hook set on those long distance casts especially if your
rod is in the wrong position. But with the limited visibility and stretch
of fluorocarbon lines you will be sure that the fish doesn’t
see your line as well as get a decent hook set even if you have bad
fishing form.
I have always used my lines to feel and hold the fish after the hookset.
Having said that take advantage of the action of your rod to land the
fish and use a light drag if possible. If you are unfamiliar with the
free-spooling technique of fighting a fish I would strongly advise
you to read up on this lethal fish fighting technique to even further
your development into a proficient fish fighting angler and watch your
landing percentages sky rocket tremendously.
That pretty much sums everything up on this new age
line that is becoming more and more popular in the sport of bass fishing.
There are lots
of characteristics to take advantage of in fluorocarbon lines with
minimal disadvantages. Since I have switched over to fluorocarbon on
all of my bait casters and spinning reels I can honestly say that is
the best thing I have ever done to improve my fishing. Give it a try
and take the tips and information I have given you here and see for
yourself why this is the best thing to happen to bass fishing since
the invention of nylon monofilament in the early 1900’s and it’s
only the beginning of great things to come from this new age line.
Special thanks to Mark Gibson (Mark G of the BFHP), a Materials Scientist
from Stillwater, MN, for input into the technical portions of this
article.
For a good selection of fluorocarbon line visit
www.tacklewarehouse.com