I hear ya little angler. I too used Spider Wire exclusively for my bass fishing for years. Then, a couple years ago, I must have bought a bad batch. I had the same problems you mentioned with the line breaking, even just tying the knots. Pulled it all off and, coincidently as Mike said, switched over to Stren Super braid. So far, I like it and have not had any problems. Presently using 12# or 14#, depending on how thick the slop is. For pike and musky, I have been using 80# power pro with a 2' or 3' Flouro leader. On the other hand, my father uses Fireline on most of his rods, and he likes it. Good luck !