Over the past 8+ years I have become somewhat of a line junkie, meaning that I really enjoy trying out new lines (usually braids). Each season I would spool up with a few new lines and given them a thorough test drive and only repurchasing those I truly loved.. In 2011 I got my first look at Japanese lines (SunLine) and it kind of opened my eyes to what was actually possible and brought me back around to using a mix of fluorocarbon and braided line. Although impressed with Sunline I was not hooked, and continued on my journey to test out newer and better lines, skip ahead to 2013
This year I got my hands on 3 different sub-brands in the Toray family of lines. In this review I will focus on my (now) primary fluorcarbon line Soloram Super Hard Upgrade
SuperHard Upgrade is a 100% Fluorocarbon line known for its strength, sensitivity and durability. In reviews done by the team at TackleTour it proved to be approximately 13% stronger then its actual on box rating (14lb line broke at 16lbs pressure) and unlike many lines it kept upwards of 93% of its rated strength at the knot (Click here to see the full Tackle Tour Review). Both of these were big pluses for me, as other then memory, line strength and knot strength are the main reasons I moved to using primarily braided lines.
I know, I know these are just numbers.. you want to know how it fishes!
Pros:
SuperHard Upgrade although strong, is very limp with a very low memory. I honestly cant remember the last time I was this impressed with a fluorocarbon line and how well it sat on the reel. It's thin diameter also allows for you great casting distance, I have done the majority of my testing with top-water baits and flipping jigs. SuperHard casts and flips smoothly and does not seem to bunch up on the spool like the SunLine FC Sniper I had been using. It very comfortable to cast with
Above in the numbers portion I covered off the strength side of things, but I would be remiss not to mention it again here. Durability goes along with strength, and believe me this line takes some serious abuse and stands up to the roughest of structure (trees, rocks and more!). On average Toray lines last twice as long as their competitors line, and 4x longer then many off the shelf fluorocarbons.
Fact: Toray owns most of the fluorocarbon technology in the world. They make a good portion of the lines on the market and many of he ones they dont make, they provide the raw material to... when you own the technology its easy to always use the best, highest quality fluorocarbon for Toray brand lines
In the below image you will see that looks like a res laser beam coming coming off my spool, what it actually is, is a halfway matter letting you know that you have hit the halfway point on the spool or 75meters. I really love this as it takes the guessing game out of refilling your spool. (see below for a trick on how to best spool your reel with high grade line)
Cons
I'll be honest here, I have yet to find a flaw in this line, I have been fishing it for a few weeks now, and it has performed incredibly well. If I had to choose a few areas on pick on it would be the pricing ($30-$39 a spool) and availability. The pricing although expensive is on par with other high quality high grade lines, and since it out performs these lines I guess you get what you pay for. Remember what I stated above.. this line will last 2x longer then the majority of fluoro lines on the market, when you take this into consideration Toray lines are actually cheaper then the competition.
Fact: Time is money, many anglers don't like to spend their hard earned money on a quality line, but when you think about it, if your replacing your cheaper line twice as often, how much are you actually saving? between the cost of replacing the line, and the time it takes to strip your reels and re-spool, you would be in a much better position picking up a spool of Toray and getting the job done right the first time.. believe me, you'll be glad you did
As for availability, your best bet is to buy direct from the guys at Blackwater, they are the exclusive Norther American dealer of Toray lines (and a few of their own).
Spooling Up:
If your paying $30+ for a spool of line you best not waste it. Way to many anglers don't use any form of backing on their reel and simply fill their spool up with their line of choice.. this is a mistake. By the time you get to the back end of the spool the line has been abused and/or you don't have enough left to properly fish with it. Here is a trick I was taught and have been using ever since.. I fill up my reels with a cheaper fluorocarbon ($6 spool) that is the same diameter/strength as the line I want to use on my reel. Then I spool the reel to where I like it. Once there I strip off between 50-75meters of line (you can be ruff, use your arm as a measurement). Once I attache my Superhard to the backing I then fill the spool back up, thus only using 50-75 meters of the good line (if you do it right you should be at the red line in the image above). If you strip off 50 meters your spool of Superhard will now be good for 2 more refills. If you use the 75meter mark (like I do) then you have 1 more refill int he tank. I think youll find this will lengthen the life of your line and make that purchase price a bit easier to swallow.. try it out and let me know what your think
tip: After attaching your mainline to the backing, take a piece of hockey/duct tape and wrap it around the spool. If you get a little fast and loose on the water this will ensure your backlash will only go so far back
Great tips and review! Although I use backing for all my lines to also save money, I really like how you know how much backing is on there, the red line, and also the tape tip. I'll have to try that too, even with braid when it digs in.
ReplyDeleteI think that rather than strip the backing off, since I'm a cheapskate, I'll just wind it on the second reel that I want to spool. Then, get two reels spooled with backing and the new line all at once.
I might have to try this line out!
Question for ya, how did you apply the red line, use a red marker?