Way oversized diameter of some braided lines.

[cyclops2]

What is the problem with China & USA braided lines ?   The almost 1/2 the diameter is a lie.  Common complaint.

[Junger]

Are you measuring their thickness with a caliper? If so, report which ones are not accurate.

[WRB]

So how do you measure braid accuraley that isn't perfectly round and rigid using a caliper? 

Tom

[Junger]

8 minutes ago, WRB said:

So how do you measure braid accuraley that isn't perfectly round and rigid using a caliper? 

Tom

Carefully.

[fishwizzard]

3 minutes ago, Junger said:

Carefully.

Hah. 

 

I would think measuring a few dozen times and averaging the results would get one close enough to see if it was close to the advertised size.  

[Junger]

1 minute ago, fishwizzard said:

Hah. 

 

I would think measuring a few dozen times and averaging the results would get one close enough to see if it was close to the advertised size.  

Bingo, of course doing so with full care!

[J Francho]

I can't for the life of me figure what he's talking about or why it matters.

[Fried Lemons]

http://web.archive.org/web/20171123043625/http://www.paulusjustfishing.com:80/4linetesting.htm

 

Not all brands are covered but this is the most comprehensive source on this topic.

 

The short answer is labels are generally inaccurate.

[OkobojiEagle]

OP as you surely would know, measuring a thin diameter line is very inaccurate when depth perception is so limited...

 

oe

[J Francho]

Not sure I care about data the author considered old and outdated in 2011.  Not sure I care about the author's data in general.  He talks about the "World's best" testing methods, and says we can't test the way he does, so we will get different results.  If some brand's 50# braid performs as expected, does it matter what the box says?

[MN Fisher]

2 minutes ago, J Francho said:

If some brand's 50# braid performs as expected, does it matter what the box says?

My PP 50# and PP 20# do what I want them to - if the diameter is a couple 10-thousands off what it says, no big deal as I can still spool enough for my needs. Who cares if it's 5-10 yds short of what the 'optimum' diameter would be.

[WRB]

The problem measuring yarn or thread, super braid starts out as micro fiber spun into yarn and braided into thread, is it's not round and it's soft. Measuring devices use presser gage with the "line" under a prescribed tension based on the yarns denier. 3 pieces of line is cut, laid side and 3 measurements are made apart, the 9 measurements are average for "estimated" dia/thickness. 

In other words the labeled diameter is an estimate that varies greatly within the equipment, pre tension and presser foot pressure. The end result is good enough to seperate manufactured runs of line into pound test groups. Accept it for what it is "fishing line".

If you want accurate data it requires encapsulation and micro cross sectioned.

 

Tom

[Deleted account]

8 hours ago, WRB said:

So how do you measure braid accuraley that isn't perfectly round and rigid using a caliper? 

Tom

Oh, I know this one. Laser micrometer (if you have $2k-8k laying around)...

I'm with JF on this one, why?

[Dennis1972]

i agree about braid being thicker than stated. it really matters on super shallow spool bfs reels. mine would only hold about 40 yards of 8lb mono, so i decided to fix it by getting some 15lb {supossedly 4lb diameter} braid for it. to my surprise it held less braid yardage than mono before the line on the spool would  rub the frame.... oh well i never cared for braid anyway.... now even more so.

[Catt]

17 hours ago, J Francho said:

I can't for the life of me figure what he's talking about or why it matters.

 

Spool it up & go fishing!  ?

[DanielG]

Personally, I've given up on commercial lines and for about three years now I make my own. It's extremely thin and pound for pound, the strongest line available. You can too. Here's now.

 

Catch four, or eight large spiders depending on if you want 4 or 8 strand braid. You know those large black spiders that scoot across the floor and startle you. Go to the department store and purchase the largest twist drill you can find and some superglue. Now, carefully glue the belly of the spiders equidistant around the end of the drill and put it in your drill chuck. Glue them good as centrifugal force is a ***** once it gets going.

 

Now the fun begins. Go down to your local high school football field. Touch each spider's abdomens to the goal post so that they start a spinneret strand. Make sure you are pointed up field.  Slowly walk away and run the drill (hopefully you realized you need a battery drill right?). Try to keep the drill turning and your backward walking just fast enough so that the spiders can keep up with their web strand production.

The natural stickiness on the strand that catches flies will adhere the strands together and by the time you reach the far goal line you'll have 300 yards of some of the strongest strands found in nature. Using a sharp knife cut the line and backtrack by winding it up on a spool after it dries. In humid areas drying time might take a few more minutes.

 

For the cost of a drill and a little of your time you've got a 300 yard spool of 4 or 8 strand fishing line that might have cost you $35 if it had been purchased from a tackle store, or $18 on ebay. And the best thing is, you can do it again.

 

Another note: If you plan on making this a one off thing, please safely return the little critters to the wild. After all, they did you a big favor and there are mosquitos out there so they can keep helping us out.

If you plan on keeping them for future line making, you'll need a good supply of flies to get you through the winter. Just put a couple on your windowsill. They breed like crazy, especially if you've got an uncooperative dog, and you'll have plenty.

 

Oh.... put the spiders in separate jars. They eat each other....

 

I hope this tutorial helps those out there who are concerned that their fishing lines aren't a consistent thickness. It's very important.

[cyclops2]

I measure the lines with my eyes.  Line stretched snugly . flouresent tube light. measure the shadow on a white wall.  ?

[JediAmoeba]

Would the best way to measure braid be to measure an exact amount of unstretched line, let's say 150 yards, and spool it on a reel with a set tension - Probably relatively light tension on the line so it doesn't get compacted onto the reel too bad.  I would also want to use a high quality reel with a level wind.

 

Once you have reeled the line into the spool measure with a caliper a few times.

 

Grab another line and repeat the process.  This should at least make it essier to compare lines to other lines and other points tests.  It isn't going to be exact but it would be closer.

[MickD]

On 9/25/2019 at 1:24 PM, J Francho said:

I can't for the life of me figure what he's talking about or why it matters.

The diameter of the braid influences how much of it your reel can hold.  Not an issue for most fishing, but if you're spinning for bonefish, you'd like not only to have a decent pound test, and a lot on your reel, but also a line that casts well for distance.  So a braid that is 20 pound test and has a diameter of .oo6 in is much better for all these parameters than a 20 pound test that is .010 in in diameter.

[cyclops2]

Back from surgery.   I fish a great spot on the St. Lawrence River. Very clear water. Can see a beer can 60 feet down easily. Over the last 2 years I have caught & released loads of big smallies.  But end of last year I started not getting bites. Changed lures galore. tiny bit better. Went to 6 " bait. Bingo But I do not like using live bait.  Changed from 4 # mono to a old spool of green 4 pound braid. Bingo.  So I figure the guys are realizing a boat with a line reflecting in good sunlight is the difference. 

What are my options to reduce the visibility and reflection of the line ? 

 

Almost forgot the very sharp rock ledges they dart to on the way up. The 4 pound braid was better tha the 4 pound mono on the ledges.

 

Thanks for any help.

[OkobojiEagle]

Keep using the 4# braid...