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Toeing the Line

A Clean Environment Depends on You!

Never leave your line behind. Many piers, docks, marinas and bait and tackle shops have monofilament recycling bins. Use them!
You can also recycle on your own by sending all your worn-out monofilament to: Berkley Recycling Collection Center, 1900 18^th Street, Spirit Lake, IA, 51360-1099. Call 1-800-BERKLEY for details.
Cast with care. Look out for rocks, power lines, bridges, other anglers and other obstacles likely to cause you to have to break off your line.
Collect discarded line whenever you find it – it may not be yours, but you can make a difference.
Obtain and adopt a recycling bin for your favorite fishing and boating area.

Have you ever wondered about how all the different kinds of fishing line are made? In the early 1900s, fishing line was made from linen, silk and cotton. These lines had to be carefully cared for by un-spooling the line, washing it, spreading the line out, and drying it thoroughly to prevent dry rot.

Fortunately, fishing line has come a long way since then.

Monofilament line is the most popular kind of fishing line today, and has been around for years. It is made from a mixture of polymers that are heated until they become a fluid. The fluid is then forced through tiny holes to form strands of line. How big the line will be is controlled by how big a hole the fluid goes through.

Chemicals are added to the mixture that control things like limpness or stiffness, toughness and color. With the proper chemicals, lines can be tailored to fit a wide range of needs.

One common trait of all monofilament line is stretch. All mono lines stretch, which can be good and bad. Stretchy line is more forgiving if a big fish makes a sudden run, but it also makes it a little more difficult to set a hook or turn a fish in a hurry. The amount of stretch can also be controlled by adding other chemicals, but monofilament will always stretch some.

High-quality fishing lines are characterized by consistent strength, color and diameter, and they will last longer whether your reel sits in the garage or gets wet every day.

No matter what kind of line you use, be sure to discard of it carefully. Line carelessly thrown away causes death and injury to many kinds of marine wildlife, and can also cause damage to boat motors and even swimmers.