fake line?

[jimmyjoe]

   I've gotten "bad" line. I hear other people talk about bad line. I wonder --- what percentage of the line sold in America each year is bogus? In other words, the box looks perfectly legit, the label looks legit, but the line is a cheap, low-quality substitution. And yes, I would guess that the majority would come from the web. What do you guys think?   5%? 10%? 15%?    jj

[jbsoonerfan]

.05%

[Glaucus]

You're only going to get this from sketchy online dealers and small, sketchy brick and mortar stores. Very little line is going to be fake. If you're worried about fake line, your real worry should be where you're entering or swiping your debit/credit cards.

[CrankFate]

I would think it’s more like 30-40% if you buy on the grey market. Especially the ones that are most popular. I only buy brand name line from brand name sellers unless I have no choice. I recently wanted spiderwire Code Red and it was only available from one guy on eBay, so I took a chance. When it comes to hooks, I would never buy a Gamakatsu hook anywhere but stores like BPS or Dicks. I have definitely got fake hooks online.

[roadwarrior]

57 minutes ago, CrankFate said:

I only buy brand name line from brand name sellers...

 

[Harold Scoggins]

10 minutes ago, roadwarrior said:

I only buy brand name line from brand name sellers...

Good advice, especially when you tie on those $ lures.

[OnthePotomac]

I would guess one would take notice when you see a 500 yd spool of line for $5.98 LOL.

[jimmyjoe]

5 hours ago, OnthePotomac said:

I would guess one would take notice when you see a 500 yd spool of line for $5.98 LOL.

  True. Been there, done that many years ago. What I'm talking about now is line that appears legit in every way ..... including the price ....  but isn't.

[CrankFate]

5 hours ago, OnthePotomac said:

I would guess one would take notice when you see a 500 yd spool of line for $5.98 LOL.

You are literally better off buying a $13.00 spool of Hercules braid or Spectra Extreme on eBay than powerpro or spiderwire.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

I didn’t know counterfeit line was a thing. Any manufacturer can have a QC issue at some point I’d think but should be willing to make good. Has anyone ever lodged a complaint and be told the serial number etc was bogus?

[jimmyjoe]

2 hours ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

 Has anyone ever lodged a complaint and be told the serial number etc was bogus?

   As far as I myself, no. I've heard complaints from other people, but I don't know what they did or didn't do.

   Unless it involves a lot of money, it's usually too much trouble to pursue the issue. I've tried to find out from companies about bogus line, and have never been given a straight answer.

   One person said that his PowerPro was fake. But I looked at his package and I could see that it was obviously fake ... and a poor fake at that. That's something you can see readily.

   I asked here because I figured I can get a better answer from fishermen than from company people. And I'd really like to know whether it's, as you say, "a thing", or whether it's something that's being over-hyped. When I see blurbs in magazines that U.S. companies are vigilant regarding bogus lines, that makes me think that it's "a thing" and not being over-hyped.

     I'd also like to know whether it's something that involves more than just braided lines.    jj

[Stephen B]

3 hours ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

I didn’t know counterfeit line was a thing. Any manufacturer can have a QC issue at some point I’d think but should be willing to make good. Has anyone ever lodged a complaint and be told the serial number etc was bogus?

Unfortunately this is the case. People always look for the cheapest deals and often this can result in receiving fake line. Always buy from reputable people and websites. A lot of high end braid and fluorocarbon line mostly is the line being faked. Most selling fakes will get Seaguar, Gamma, and Sunline packaging and substitute some other cheap line in and sell under the assumption of legit line.

[Boomstick]

4 hours ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

I didn’t know counterfeit line was a thing. Any manufacturer can have a QC issue at some point I’d think but should be willing to make good. Has anyone ever lodged a complaint and be told the serial number etc was bogus?

They counterfeit everything! Tablets, guitars, batteries (which often catch on fire), you name it! I haven't seen any counterfeit line yet though.

[FishTank]

Recently I received some questionable Invizix from Amazon.  After seeing many pictures, I thought the stuff I had was bad.  I sent some pics to Seaguar and they said it was the good stuff. Not sure how the packaging could be so different but I since moved on.

 

There is one fake line that I have seen at shows, online (eBay) and at a small tackle shop and that's Power Pro.  I guess the fake version has been made for years now.  Here is an article on how to spot it....

 

https://www.thecounterfeitreport.com/product/598/Fishing-Lines.html