Berkley Vanish fluorocarbon line as leader

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Originally Posted by steve999

I also tried the lighter stuff for freshwater. Kept having unexpected breakoffs. Then tied a piece of vanish to a lighter weight Berkeley XL monofilament, and pulled on it till it broke. The vanish side broke every time. The mono in the test was 8 lb, and the vanish was 10 or 12. I'd get you the exact number for the vanish, except I can't because I threw it in the trash.

That's definitely not a ringing endorsement!

If I end up buying the spool, I'll waste forty yards or so doing some extended stress tests and see what happens. Have to break out the scale and measure some quasi-realistic breaking strengths and various lengths and stuff. I found that simply pulling with hands is a non-starter. Even 50# mono is a cinch to snap if you wrap it around your gloved hands and give it a tug. There's just not enough sensitivity there (at least not in my hands) to get a real feel for the line's consistency and real-world strength.