Does fishing line expire???

[df909]

Hello-

I just inherited the mother lode of saltwater fishing stuff, but it's all at least 10 years old. I have 1200 yard spools of mono & spectra line as well as SS. Will the mono & spectra still be good after all these years or am I asking for a line to break? Thanks.

 

[lowkee]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

I replace my line every year, sometime twice a year. Mono will degrade quite quickly. I find if I use it the following year (being cheap/stupid) I'll lose more in tackle than the next 5 years of mono would have cost.

 

[Black as]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

Hello-

I just inherited the mother lode of saltwater fishing stuff, but it's all at least 10 years old. I have 1200 yard spools of mono & spectra line as well as SS. Will the mono & spectra still be good after all these years or am I asking for a line to break? Thanks.

I replace my line at the most every one to two years depending on what rod I'm using

 

[df909]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

I guess I'll toss all the line. Now, what about the trolling lures? There are some with steel line and I imagine they are ok, but I have several dozens trolling lures that have mono on them. They look good and I dont feel anything when I run the line between my fingers, but I'm not sure if that's a good way to test. Should I change out the line on the lures too?

 

[thurps]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

I would. With the price of luers these days, you just can't do enough to protect them, especially the ones made in the USA and not you know where.

 

[ezwitter]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

here here ! i replace mind every one to two years

 

[capt sam]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

Where was it stored? What was the climate? It may be fine, line sits in stores for years sometimes without going "bad". I change my line out on most of my reels every 3 months or so but I fish saltwater and frequently and the sun here is brutual.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

The braid is fine. As cheap as mono is I'd throw it away. Not worth risking that fish of a lifetime to suspect mono.

 

[df909]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

Everything has been in an over the garage attic for the last several years. I'll get new mono and re-do the lures. How long is the spectra usually good for sitting on a shelf?

 

[dingbat]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

Everything has been in an over the garage attic for the last several years. I'll get new mono and re-do the lures. How long is the spectra usually good for sitting on a shelf?

Spectra does not deteriorate from UV , heat etc. Probably longer that yours and my shelf life.

 

[thurps]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

Garage attic? The heat is probably worse than a little sun exposure. You could always strip off a few yards from the spools, throw it away, then test the line stringth. http://www.ehow.com/how_5130551_measure-fishing-line-strength.html

 

[robert graham]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

Synthetics like polypropylene, nylon, polyester, and aramids like Kevlar, Spectra, Nomex all degrade from ultraviolet light(sunlight), heat and moisture. Ballistic(bulletproof) vests can lose 30+% of their projectile-stopping effectiveness in just a couple of years, in large part to the effects of moisture(perspiration) and UV light. Fishing lines definitely degrade but I rarely catch anything much so I don't worry too much about it, but do replace line every year or so, just in case a big fish ever stumbles upon my line. You can always run a bit heavier line than you need just to take care of line weakening.

 

[df909]

Re: Does fishing line expire???

That's a good idea to test it. I already put all the mono in the recycle bin which just left in the trash truck. I'm more into fishing than catching but hopefully that'll change this year. I plan on going to Bass Pro & re-doing the lures with fresh line and having the reels I have cleaned-up & lubed.

Now that I have all this stuff, I should catch fish, right???