The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

Just got some for the first time6lb strength on 4ld diameter. Not so sure now though

Try not to strike too hard, pull into the fish. And steer clear of any obstructions, snags, branches etc....you should be ok.

Yes, I think I'd rather stick with lower breaking strain lines line Sensor or Maxima 8-10lb and know their limitations, this pre stretched stuff is not working well for me. I would like a clear line recommendation though, one to rely on! Any suggestions? Berkley Big Game or one of the new brands?

Eustace Pro gold clear? I use the pro gold green line in the lower breaking strains for trotting as it floats fairly well, its very supple and have found it ultra reliable.

RBTraditional wrote:Drennan have not long released a new line Supplex....it is superb, very limp and without getting a micrometer out I'd say very thin for each given breaking strain. We used the Double strength stuff on opening night back in the eighties when it first came out, what we didn't realise was that it was pre-stretched (there was no info at the time to indicate this was the case).....you can guess.... every run met by a resounding CRACK! as the bloody stuff snapped. In the morning light we re-spooled with trusty old Sylcast. If memory serves me right Big Game came out on the UK market the following year....what a blessing that was. Ha!

I've used 10lb ESP Synchro XT, which I suspect is the same line, for my barbel fishing reel lines for a year now and not had any problems with it. I think on hindsight that I'd use the 12lb. Drennan have done the opposite of what they did with double strength! The statement on the 10lb line is 10lb breaking strain with an average knot, but will break at up to 15lb with a well tied knot such as a 5 turn grinner. So have I bought an average diameter 10lb line or a really thin 15lb line?

Berkley Trilene XL is one I've used with success when floater fishing, extremely supple, casts like a dream, clear and strong.....

http://www.wsftackle.com/acatalog/berkl ... line.shtml

I used it in 8lbs....

I use Fladen Maxxinus 8lb for my main line might go up to 10 or 12 if needed. I find it floats when you want it to float and sinks when I want it to sink. It lies quite flat when surface fishing and doesn't have the habit of pig tailing like other budget lines. I have tried Rovex Devil mono but found it a bit on the wirey side.

Last october I spooled up with Drennan double strength for floatfishing for Barbel.The first time out it seemed ok, coping well with the good bag that I landed.
The following trip saw me doing just as well but I had to take the line off halfway thro the day as it was totally unusable, another hooked fish would have been lost for sure.
Ultima did it for me from then on right up to the end of the season with no sign of wear/duress.
I would never use the Drennan line again.

I had a good season using it combined with a very soft rod (11' Avon). I used multi-strand hook length then 6lbs D/S. Open water fishing taking fish to 14lbs (carp). I'm certain it was the very soft rod that saved the day. We (the whole group of fly fishers I fished with including some very capable anglers) gave up on it. We even tried a foot of elastic but fishing static buzzers you get real smash takes and the D/S just couldn't cope and would break. Glued knots etc still droppers broke off. Everybody pretty much migrated to Flurocarbon.

These days I wouldn't go anywhere near the stuff and would go as far as to say I think it's a danger to the fish with all the possible break-offs.

I've since used Pro Gold or Berkley and both have been fine.

The relatively new Drennan 'Supplex' line looked too good to be true. At 12lbs it has a stated diameter of 0.28mm (less than my faithful Maxima 10lb at 0.3mm) and very much more supple to boot..it both floats well and becomes virtually invisible in water (to the human eye). Perfect for floater fishing.

I carried out numerous tests before I used it and found the BS to be correct and it has a very good knotted strength.

One issue I've found the hard way is that I don't think it is very resilient. I could be wrong but on the strike of a good fish at Redmire I connected with some over-hanging Dog Rose branches and the line parted along with the fish of a life-time. The line broke where I hit the bush. Perhaps I wouldn't have connected at all had I been using the thicker line (the fish didn't seem to be fearful of this line at all) and maybe in the circumstances the Maxima would have parted as well but I still haven't quite recovered from that lost fish.

I continue to use 'Supplex' but think perhaps its performance mirrors that of 'Double Stength' and am selective where and when I think it will be suitable.