Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

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Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Prancing Pony » Sun Mar 05, 2017 11:37 am

I've heard that the US manufacturers use knot strength and the Japanese use tensile strength for reference, so US lines are always heavier and stronger than Japanese lines of equal lb. Is that true?
I have a 10lb Spiderwire Stealth I bought in the US and it is indeed extremely thick for a 10lb braid.
Last edited by Prancing Pony on Mon Mar 06, 2017 11:11 am, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Mike and Pike » Sun Mar 05, 2017 11:44 am

There are spreadsheets out there with all the true/ tensile breaking strengths of all the major manufacturers. I will try to dig one out . Knot strength is dependent on too many variables /knots .
In general a lot of Japanese braids are close to ( more close to) tensile break strength. Samurai is almost dead on in a lot of their stuff.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Prancing Pony » Sun Mar 05, 2017 12:35 pm

I just looked up http://www.paulusjustfishing.com to check out the Spiderwire Stealth and as expected,
20lb US market broke @ 36.65lb
20lb EU market broke @ 22.99lb

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Mike and Pike » Sun Mar 05, 2017 12:45 pm

There are a few spreadsheets out there with all the test breaking strength from all of the companies .
I will do my best to dig one out .
Good topic and good data to have across the board.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Prancing Pony » Sun Mar 05, 2017 10:27 pm

I've mentioned this in another post but again,
20lb Sufix 832 diameter on their international website: 0.15mm
20lb Sufix 832 diameter on their US website: 0.23mm
Yup, US market's lb rating system clearly differs from other markets.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Randingo » Mon Mar 06, 2017 1:51 am

I think, in a nutshell, EU and Japan markets rate lines according to true (IGFA) break strength, while lines made and sold in the US have an almost arbitrary rating, based perhaps on some historical standard, much like tippet material for trout. Some brands are worse than others in this respect, and as a consumer, you need to be aware of what to expect when switching between USDM and other lines. Look at the diameter of Sunline Supernatural compared to Gamma--it's crazy.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by toddmc » Mon Mar 06, 2017 6:37 am

Randingo wrote:I think, in a nutshell, EU and Japan markets rate lines according to true (IGFA) break strength, while lines made and sold in the US have an almost arbitrary rating, based perhaps on some historical standard, much like tippet material for trout. Some brands are worse than others in this respect, and as a consumer, you need to be aware of what to expect when switching between USDM and other lines. Look at the diameter of Sunline Supernatural compared to Gamma--it's crazy.
This is correct. IGFA rated lines must break at or below the stated rating. Most domestic line manufacturers have simply made up numbers. Most domestic lines will break above the IGFA rating. This needs to be taken into consideration if you are fishing for a line class world record only. Your average 14lb. Trilene XT will break at 17lbs. That is why we often say on TT to choose lines based on a known diameter that you are looking for/used to. The pound test ratings on domestic lines is arbitrary to say the least.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Prancing Pony » Mon Mar 06, 2017 10:26 am

I believe that US manufacturers(and distributors) are using the knot strength method to rate their lines. Average knot strength of a braid is known to be something like 50% of its tensile strengh, and the 20lb Spiderwire Stealth breaking at 36.65lb is pretty much dead on with its knot strength @ 18.3lb!
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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by njbasscat » Mon Mar 06, 2017 10:45 am

One needs to judge lines based on diameter. Japanese lines are rated pretty accurately. USDM lines are often overrated which is why they are thicker. I don't think knot strength has anything to do with the USDM rating. I think it's just the way line is marketed here. Toughest or strongest sells in the US.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by mark poulson » Mon Mar 06, 2017 11:08 am

This is a great thread. Thanks.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Tim Kelly » Mon Mar 06, 2017 3:22 pm

Even diameter is a bit variable between USDM and EU/JDM markets. A lot of the line diameters quoted in the one market don't exist in the other market, and I doubt they make different line for the different markets! This is especially prevalent with braided line where diameters must be a guess at best.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Randingo » Tue Mar 07, 2017 6:01 am

I think buying based on diameter isn't necessarily the answer either. Within monofilament, fluoro, and braid, specific materials have substantially different tensile strengths. For example, just within the PowerPro lineup, Maxcuatro in the same diameter as Super Slick is going to break at a much higher strength. Mono and fluoro are the same. Go look at tippet material for fly fishing. The diameter of any, let's say, 5X tippet is going to be the same, but breaking strength varies widely. If you compare the high tensile strength tippet of one manufacturer, for instance, Rio, with their hard mono for saltwater in the same diameter, the high tensile strength material often is IGFA rated 50% stronger than the hard mono. So diameter is useful to keep in mind, but it's not even close to true to suggest that just because you have two lines from the same family (mono, fluoro, braid) in the same diameter that they will break at the same strength or behave the same.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Prancing Pony » Sat Mar 18, 2017 8:07 pm

I'm very pissed atm because I can't figure out what my Spiderwire Stealth's true breaking strain is. I have spools of 6lb and 10lb, and I swear the 6lb Stealth's diameter is at least as large as a 20lb average braid.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by Randingo » Sun Mar 19, 2017 1:50 am

I remember a little blurb in an issue of In Fisherman probably 10-12 years ago. A guy caught a fish on 6lb Fireline he thought might qualify as a line class record. So he sent the documentation on the fish and a sample of his line to the IGFA to try to get his record certified. When the IGFA got back to him, they determined that his 6# Fireline broke at just over 20 pounds! Six pound Fireline is tiny, so it isn't just diameter. We're still learning about the properties of gel spun PE and how to best incorporate it into fishing lines. At the end of the day, you want to find a line that behaves the way you want and is consistent. It doesn't matter if 20# 832 actually breaks at 30 if it does what you want it to do, and if Sunline FX2 in 50# isn't as strong as you want it be, buy it in 60 instead. Those lines perform consistently, and even if Sunline labels their line with its true breaking strength and Sufix understates the breaking strength on their labels, you just need to find the one that works for you and the intended application.

I mention Sufix and Sunline because I have more experience with them. I'm sure Seaguar, Maxima, and many others are also consistent within their lines, so just find something you like that is consistent across different pound tests and stick with it.

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Re: Is it true that US and Japanese line manufacturers have different lb rating system

Post by mark poulson » Sun Mar 19, 2017 10:35 am

Randingo wrote:I remember a little blurb in an issue of In Fisherman probably 10-12 years ago. A guy caught a fish on 6lb Fireline he thought might qualify as a line class record. So he sent the documentation on the fish and a sample of his line to the IGFA to try to get his record certified. When the IGFA got back to him, they determined that his 6# Fireline broke at just over 20 pounds! Six pound Fireline is tiny, so it isn't just diameter. We're still learning about the properties of gel spun PE and how to best incorporate it into fishing lines. At the end of the day, you want to find a line that behaves the way you want and is consistent. It doesn't matter if 20# 832 actually breaks at 30 if it does what you want it to do, and if Sunline FX2 in 50# isn't as strong as you want it be, buy it in 60 instead. Those lines perform consistently, and even if Sunline labels their line with its true breaking strength and Sufix understates the breaking strength on their labels, you just need to find the one that works for you and the intended application.

I mention Sufix and Sunline because I have more experience with them. I'm sure Seaguar, Maxima, and many others are also consistent within their lines, so just find something you like that is consistent across different pound tests and stick with it.
Exactly. Most of us fish for fun, not world records. Find what works for you, and go fishing.

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