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Rio fluoroflex plus tippet breaks too easy

8K views 55 replies 19 participants last post by  holster 
#1 · (Edited)
Recently bought spools of 4x, 5x and 6x fluorocarbon tippet from Rio. All of them break with very little stress. Anyone else having any issues? Sent an email to Rio, have yet to get a response. Guide spools that cost nearly $40 should not break like they are and Rio should stand by their product. Anyways just seeing if others have had any problems like this.
 
#3 ·
Recently bought spools of 4x,5x and 6x fluorocarbon tippet from Rio. All of them break with very little stress. Anyone else having any issues? Sent an email to Rio, have yet to get a response. Guide spools that cost nearly $40 should not break like they are and Rio should stand by their product. Anyways just seeing if others have had any problems like this.
Where is your line breaking? Line knots? At the eye of the hook?
 
#4 ·
This doesn’t have anything to do with my knots. I can pull a couple feet off a spool and pull with my fingers and it breaks. This product is flawed. At first I thought it was my knots but trust me, I’ve been fishing over 30 years it has nothing to do with me. This stuff breaks like it’s 8/0 tying thread.
 
#5 ·
For me it's the opposite. Rio fluoroflex plus is my goto material. I've found that the material either breaks while tightening the knot or doesn't at all (in other words if I do the knot right). I've had issues with other brands, but not the Rio stuff.

That's just my experience. If you are finding it breaking like crazy, I would either try another spool bought elsewhere (not the same retailer), or just get a Rio rep to hopefully replace refund, and the stick to another brand you are happy with.

It's expensive stuff and you are right not to be happy is you think it's flawed.

Just my 0.02$
 
#13 ·
Fluorocarbon line is made from Polyvinylidene fluoride, which is very resistance to degradation. You can hand on on the tree at Spring and by Fall it will still hold like a new.

May be it was bad batch, not properly extruded or Rio spooled wrong line.

I had few issues with Rio line in the past and they always send me new product and never asked to send back the original.

Juts called them.
 
#7 ·
Also, these aren’t my first spools of fluoroflex plus. I’ve had plenty of this stuff and never had an issue. But I think there’s a bad batch out there or perhaps these spools were exposed to the sun or something. I’ve had them less than a month and they’ve been in my gear bag. I’m just wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience and also to warn anyone thinking about buying some to test it before purchasing.
 
#16 ·
You would get skunked repeatedly on some of my systems then ha! Fluoro has it's time and place for sure!!

I think you probably have an old or 'bad' batch I would think RIO would remedy this once you get a hold of them

Good luck
 
#18 ·
I had a similar issues with rio tippet. The spool i had broke easier then cheaper berkely,seaguar,and maxima at similar poundage.

A interesting fact is many lines advertised brake point is underestimated on purpose. I.E a 4 pound test line sold may not brake until 6 or 7 pounds, if you brake a line or tippet class world record you have to send in the line for testing. Ive heard Rio is a company that tries to be precise and even makes a exact tippet for world record attempting
This is what i chalked it up as. Though i don't buy rio for tippet
 
#21 ·
Not sure I agree here- its good stuff IMO.

FWIW I believe everyone charges way too much for tippet.

Try another option.

Sufix Finesse Fluoro, I get in 200 yard spools online and it's VERY good stuff. Only goes down to 5X, but I don't go smaller than for nymphing anyway.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Do it in water and post the video!
I already know the answer so no need for a test. For any subsurface fishing I am using FC ( Seaguar STS; Red is also a good one), tie correctly the proper knot and yet to see a failure due to rock or strange breakup.

Since you have doubts, do it for yourself.

Also, anyone can post video without any proof that the line on a spool is the real line , not the one a sponsor likes........

In early days I run maxima brown and FC on wet rock and have not seen any major difference. But prefer FC due to UV resistance, sinking rate and strength per REAL diameter and been resistant to water absorption.

For trout I like flexible Rio Fluoroflex plus for Steelhead only Seaguar


BTW, anyone can make test and run one line via 800 grid sandpaper and other via 220 grid and completely reverse the results, and a viewer will never know which sandpaper was used on which line.....

Also, any claim that FC is very expensive are false. 100 yards of Seaguar STS cost on Amazon $ 10-15, and Seguar Red can be purchased at Bass Pro Shop at $ 20 or so for 180 yards, not much more then maxima .
 
#23 ·
The dumbest test I have seen. Everybody knows that Fluorocarbon dissipate heat not so well as nylon, this is why saliva is needed when tying a knot.

In the real fishing conditions water very effectively dissipate heat when FC goes through a rock. In the above manufactured to fail test, any heat created during friction can not be dissipated.


Also Nylon, depending on specific microstructure, absorbs 3-7% of water and weakness not dramatically but noticeable, due to dimensional change, not to mention negative affect of sun exposure.

Fluorocarbon ( Polyvinylidene fluoride) essentially does not absorb water ( less then 0.01%) and is extremely resistance to UV ( Sun rays).
 
#49 ·
Trouthunters FC comes from Seaguar Japan.

This material incorporates double structure ( see image) . Saugar sells 4-25 lb under name Seguar Tatsu and and 12-80 lb under name of Seguar Premier.

On Amazon one can buy Premier 50 yards for $ 22, but the same Tatsu 200 yards spool cost I( 4-25 lb) cost $ 30-45 .

Most fishing tackle outfits buys monster spool like 10,000 y re-spool it on small spools ( which in bulk cost 50 cents) and double or triple price.

For example 200 yards of Maxima Chameleon/Ultragreen cost $ 18, where 30 yards spool cost $ 5.50.................
 

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#32 ·
I was once told by a knowledgeable friend that regular mono permanently looses a good fraction of its strength when exposed to only 108 degrees F. Of course he chose to tell me this when I had my leader making kit back in the trunk of my car on a 100+ degree day in July on a 4 day camping style trip on the Deschutes - so I crossed my fingers.

Fluro doesn’t break down readily in the environment, but is it possible the strength got compromised in a similar way during shipping? Maybe Bolen can cast some light on this. We really miss here someone like Speyducer to do some detailed heating experiments on fluorocarbon. :chuckle:

But more likely the worker in the factory just was having a bad day and got sloppy with the formula. Rio had a brief issue like this with the cores of their sink tips a few years back.
 
#33 ·
A Glass transition of dry Nylon 6 , used for monofilament fishing line is about 42-45 C ( ca. 110 F) and it will tend to creep under load what affect tensile strength . Glass transition of wet Nylon 6, which absorbs water ( up to 7% or so) is vine lower. So what your friend told you makes perfect sense.

FC, is more sensitive then Nylon when cinching knot and this is why for any line puling should be slow with plenty of saliva to dissipate heat. Temps when cinching knot can easily go over 220 F.

Also UV, over time will weaken noticeable nylon, but not FC. Nylon will lose about 10-15% of tensile strength when wet, while FC essentially absorbs no no water ( less then 0.01% ) and won't loose any strength when wet.
 
#35 ·
I’ll be honest, after experimenting with lots of different tippet materials and brands including Seagar and other top brands, I’m sold on Maxima Ultragreen. I’ll never switch, it always come through when it counts most. All others I worry

Had an aggressive Chinook snap 15lb flouro on the initial take once......it was viscous, but I’m done playing around!
 
#36 ·
Maxima's reputation was built by calling their line lighter and thiner than it actually is. Marketing hype which gives illusion of strong and low diameter line.

When you use 15 lb Seaguar , it is truly 15 lb and diameter 0.013".

Maxima so-called 15 lb is really near 20 lb and has diameter not 0.015' but 0.0165". Just measure with caliper.

To compare it with FC of equal diameter ( 0.0165") you need to use 25 lb FC.

Otherwise it is apple vs. orange.


12 lb Maxima is really 17 lb, and not 0.013' but 0.0155" ( an equivalent of 20 lb FC)

Anyone can sell 17 lb line as 12 lb and everybody will be bragging how great line it is.

Even 10 lb Maxima true diameter is larger ( 0.0145") then 15 lb Seaguar.


All lines should be judge based on true diameter and compare based on true diameter not marketing lies.

If you want to compare 15 lb FC to Maxima based on true diameter 0.013", you need to go to 8 lb maxima...........
 
#40 ·
There is a very easy stiffness test of tippet/leader material.

Maxima Brown and FC by Seaguar ( STS or AbrazX ) of equal True diameter ( as measured by caliper) are essentially the same.

So 20 lb Seaguar STS has the same stiffness and diameter as so called 12 lb Maxima. I always use 20 lb FC for subsurface fishing wherever a wild Steelhead in 35-40" is relatively common.
 
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