Fireline Crystal

[lew]

I was watching Izumi last night and he was using Berkely Fireline Crystal. Not sure how long it's been around but it was new to me and I wondered if anyone has used it and what you thought of it.

 

Sposed to be a braided line that becomes invisible under the water.

 

http://www.berkley-fishing.com/prod.php?k=...14&u=FLFSCY

[Mike the Pike]

Hey Lew my Buddie Kenny had it on his baitcaster in Quinte(My last report) and hooked that 11lb sheepy on it.It seems to be less slippery than regular fireline and it has a really small diameter .I didn't know it had low visibility though.He said he will be buying some more.

[lew]

Thanks Mike, I was thinking of maybe trying it next year while nightime trolling for Quinte pickeral in the spring. I currentely use Power Pro with a mono leader but may have a look at this stuff.

[knotaclue]

Lew, I’ve used it since it came out and really like it, but I prefer Fireline over the other braids

[lew]

knotaclue, I tried regular Fireline a few years back and had problems with it breaking too easy, infact I had 30 pound breaking on small bass, so I gave up on it.

 

I like PP for musky but will try this new stuff on my pickeral reels and see how it goes. The small PP I'm currently using needs changing next year anyways, so I'll give it a try.

[fishindevil]

Hey lew,i tried it on my bottom-bouncer set-up on my baitcaster and i found it didnt hold up as good as power pro,it has more memmory too,but yes its very slippery,and prob would hold up better for other applications,as for bottom bouncing in the ottawa river its always dragging over the rocks and takes more of a beating than in other areas...it does have more memory but i would try it again for jiggin,or for trolling,and yes it does dissapear ,very cleanly...hope it helps....

[Guest Fishing For Life]

HI everyone,

 

I got two spool when it was on special sale @ Canadian Tire. ($15/150 yards)

they were 6lb & 10lb

 

The plan was to use 6lb for average fishing and 10lb for salmon fishing.

6lb is a piece of crap because it keeps breaking for no reasons.

But 10lb is AWESOME, it is so strong that I can horse a 35lb salmon to shore!

 

when comparing to the original Fireline,

it is way smoother, way less memory, way more transparent, thinner diameter,

way more sensitive

 

when comparing to the new invisible-spider braided line,

Because it is chemically braided together, Crystill Fireline does not get smushed

(splits at end of line and along the line) as much as invisible-spider and PowerPro

(splits makes tying knots very very difficult)

 

But when comparing to PowerPro,

PowerPro is thinner, more sensitive, smoother, less invisible & less memory

 

But for my salmon fishing, I would pick Crystall over PowerPro.

The reason is that

- PP is too thin so thin that other anglers & I can hardly see it and results

in line tangling

- PP is too smooth so that it gets crawled up on my rod tip after setting hooks.

PP is soo smooth which makes it is easier for salmon to pull lines!

- PP is also too thinner and smooth that it forms little knots

 

Crystal also has a special characteristic. When used in straight line (no leaders),

you can snap Crystal when snagged. (you have to cut PP)

 

====================================================================================

 

Just to give you a quick summary why I like Crystal:

- It is strong

- It only has very little memory

- Less smushes makes tying knots easier

- It is visible white above the water and yet semi-transprant in the water

- It is visible white abover the water to make line management easier

 

 

Hope this helps!

[Moosebunk]

Lew, here's what I posted earlier this month when someone else asked...

 

 

 

Considered at one point to be ICAST's "Best In Show," I might have to call it, "Garbage I Know."

 

 

 

 

Pretty solid add compaigning. You could find this line anywhere.

 

I picked up two spools last Xmas. Spooled an Abu Cardinal C3 spinning and an ultralight Quantum reel. Both saw a fair bit of testing with this line over the course of the year. 20 and 10lb test.

 

Out of the box I was like "WHAT THE FEEERAWK???" This is weird brittle stuff that kinks like wire. Figured though with it's heavy teflon-like treatment it should be smooth... well it was not, not at all.

 

The line frayed like no other. It frayed and kept fraying and got noisy. The woven strands in the line came unwoven and retying every time you could find somewhere on the line where the strands had separated.

 

Knots slipped. This happens, sometimes with any line, but this line more than others. And it was a palomar every time.

 

For ice fishing it doesn't repel ice any better than any other line and is therefor pretty much same as any line on the ice.

 

The one OK thing I could say about it though, was for garbage it seemed pretty tough. When I got hung up the line would hold strong as any other but, instead of a bent hook like say, on a jig, what would happen is the knot would slip too easy.

 

Two spooled up outfits with this line, January to October, two thumbs down.

[Zib]

I tried it this year because a guy from another fishing site that I fish with every so often highly recommended it. I cannot recommend it at all & I say don’t waste your money on it.

 

The line frays a lot & is by no means nearly invisible under water. I caught easily over 100 smallies this year on the line but I also lost a lot due to break offs. The only thing I liked about the line is that it cast really nice but it’s not even close as sensitive as Stren Super Braid. The line kind of reminds me of dental floss.

 

Btw, I was using 6 lb Crystal for throwing light jigs/plastics & spinners on a med. light rod.

Edited November 2, 2007 by Zib

[lew]

hmmmmm, lotsa good stuff said about Crystal, but now I'm seeing too many negatives to go along with it , and I certainly don't want to try something new that's gonna give me grief just when I need it the most.

 

Thanks for everyones input, but I think I'll just re-spool my pickeral rigs with new Power Pro and know for certain that I've got a guaranteed good product between the fish & my fish'n pole.

 

Tanks boyz

[tbayboy]

Ive been using it for "light" applications all year and have been very happy with it. By light I mean tossing tubes for smallies, jigging for eyes and other finesse type presentations. I've been using the 6 and 8lb versions and haven't had a break off or a knot slip that wasn't my own fault. I tried regular fireline and absolutely hated it so I'm no fanboy of theirs but the crystal hasn't let me down. I outfished my buddies who stuck to their mono pickeral setups to the point where I sold them my spare spool on the trip this year but I do have to point out that you plan to use it for trolling and for big fish which are two things I haven't used this for so I can't speak to that (though I did bring in a 42" muskie in may on it when the obviously hungry girl decided my worm harness would make a meal).

[sharper]

I got the 10lb fireline crystal and I really like it, I'll probably get more when the time comes. In terms of visibility, it is not exactly

invisible in the water. It appears white and floats on the surface so you can see where your line is. Casts real good and very low memory

and extremely strong since I have hauled in a 20lb+ salmon with it.