Textured fly lines

[dryflyguy]

Time for me to get a new 5 weight fly line.
I've been using Airflo Ridge for about the last 10 years now. And like them.
But am considering trying one of these shark skin, wave or whatever lines. Orvis even has one called hydros.

Have read reviews about how well they cast.
But also some negative points:

They're noisy going through the guides.
You can cut you fingers if you're not careful.
They wear out fast.

Another thing I wonder about - seems to me that all that texture would hold a lot of dirt. And probably be rather tough to clean.

Any thoughts?

 

[afishinado]

dryflyguy wrote:
Time for me to get a new 5 weight fly line.
I've been using Airflo Ridge for about the last 10 years now. And like them.
But am considering trying one of these shark skin, wave or whatever lines. Orvis even has one called hydros.

Have read reviews about how well they cast.
But also some negative points:

They're noisy going through the guides.
You can cut you fingers if you're not careful.
They wear out fast.

Another thing I wonder about - seems to me that all that texture would hold a lot of dirt. And probably be rather tough to clean.

Any thoughts?

Hey DFG,

My favorite lines for trout fishing are the Orvis Hydros HD, aka a textured line.

To address your inquiry/concerns above:

Noisy?....Don't even notice it at all. Not a big deal to most anglers.

Hurt fingers?....The HD line (made by Sci Anglers and owned by Orvis) is unlike the old SA shark skin line. The texture is more like the dimples on a golf ball. It doesn't hurt your fingers, in fact it's advantage is that it is less slippery when you strip in line.

Durability?....They seem to last longer than my conventional lines have in the past.

Hold dirt?.....Not a problem. In fact, I have to clean them less than conventional lines. Also they float well. I always cleaned my lines when they begin to sink, but the HD lines seem to float longer between cleanings. I believe the dimples form tiny pockets of air when on the water, allowing them to float better.

They fly!....No doubt the texture reduces friction and the textured line shoots much farther than a conventional smooth line. I, as well as many casters have tested this many times and there is no doubt in my mind. How much further it shoots depends on your casting.

Anyway, I've had great luck with textured lines and would recommend you choose one from the several manufacturers that offer them.

Good luck.

 

[dryflyguy]

Thanks for the response Afish!

So, if I'd go Orvis - I'd wanna get the Hydros HD, instead of the regular Hydros - which is $20 cheaper?

 

[afishinado]

dryflyguy wrote:
Thanks for the response Afish!

So, if I'd go Orvis - I'd wanna get the Hydros HD, instead of the regular Hydros - which is $20 cheaper?

Yeah, Hydros HD....the performance and durability is worth the $20 extra, IMO.

 

[moon1284]

I haven't used the orvis hd, but I've used sa gpx textured and sa shark wave. I agree with afish there is an advantage to textures lines. I use them on my streamer setups, but I'm sure they'd work fine for all applications. I prefer double taper lines for dry flies because of their mending properties and the fact I can turn it around when one end wears out. If i could find textured DT lines, I'd switch to those right away

 

[PennKev]

They're noisy going through the guides.

Soimetimes, but doesn't matter to me.

You can cut you fingers if you're not careful.

Yes, but you have to really strip pretty hard from my own experience. If you do a lot of streamer fishing it may be something to watch out for.

They wear out fast.

I have not found that to be the case, but I have several rod/line configurations I swap between so it can be hard to tell.

Another thing I wonder about - seems to me that all that texture would hold a lot of dirt. And probably be rather tough to clean.

Some textured lines are only textured on the running line area so as to improve casting, the front portion is just like a normal line. I have a couple SA lines that are like this. I want to say they are Sharkwave lines but don't have them on hand to verify which ones they are. Either way, I haven't noticed them to be particularly bad when it comes to dirt.

Any thoughts?

I also have a few Airflo Ridge lines and prefer the SA textured lines. They are slicker, float somewhat better and have less memory.

Regardless of which you choose DO NOT pay full price. That goes for any line really. There are a ton of closeouts this time of year on lines including textured lines. I got my Sharkwaves on closeout because they were a discontinued color. Madison River Fishing Company and Sierra Trading Post are pretty much my go to's for fly lines. Between the two they almost always have something that will fulfill my needs at a reasonable price.

 

[dryflyguy]

Thanks Kev.
Yeah I really don't wanna pay $100 for a fly line - especially when I can't get a DT and turn it around
I've been checking those sites, and others.
Problem with the closeouts - I can't seem to find a 5 weight available. I guess it's the most popular size.

I do have a $25 discount for Orvis that came in the mail the other day, though.

 

[ryansheehan]

dryflyguy wrote:
Thanks Kev.
Yeah I really don't wanna pay $100 for a fly line - especially when I can't get a DT and turn it around
I've been checking those sites, and others.
Problem with the closeouts - I can't seem to find a 5 weight available. I guess it's the most popular size.

I do have a $25 discount for Orvis that came in the mail the other day, though.

Those coupons don't apply to fishing anymore, atleast in my neck of the woods. Love the hydros hd line, the easy mend is what I have purchased the last few times.

 

[afishinado]

ryansheehan wrote:

dryflyguy wrote:
Thanks Kev.
Yeah I really don't wanna pay $100 for a fly line - especially when I can't get a DT and turn it around
I've been checking those sites, and others.
Problem with the closeouts - I can't seem to find a 5 weight available. I guess it's the most popular size.

I do have a $25 discount for Orvis that came in the mail the other day, though.

Those coupons don't apply to fishing anymore, atleast in my neck of the woods. Love the hydros hd line, the easy mend is what I have purchased the last few times.

Yeah, coupons not good for fishing stuff at Orvis anymore.

I also use the Easy Mend HD for all my trout fishing lines.

DFG, like PennKev posted above, if you're not in too much of a hurry, you should be able to find a deal on some brand of textured line.

 

[JackM]

"Yeah, coupons not good for fishing stuff at Orvis anymore."

That's a shame and probably will turn out to be a bad business move.

 

[afishinado]

JackM wrote:
"Yeah, coupons not good for fishing stuff at Orvis anymore."

That's a shame and probably will turn out to be a bad business move.

^ Agreed

 

[ryansheehan]

I used to get a coupon in the mail and would make a trip to the store with nothing in mind to purchase. I would have a plan of spending 50 bucks and getting 25 off. I would get to the store and spend 150 after the coupon, that's just kind of what happens when I step into a fly shop. Now I get the coupon, it goes in the trash and I don't make the trip.

 

[dryflyguy]

Glad yinz guys mentioned that little stip with the orvis discount card.
After checking the fine print, I do see now that it's not valid on fishing.
Pretty odd for a company that became famous for it's fly fishing gear.

And the card itself is kinda deceiving.
In the bar along the top of it, they have listed all of the things Orvis provides for gift giving - among them FLYFISHING, in bold letters.
And right below it, the big $25 off promo in a red circle.
Then of course, the fine print is hidden on the back

 

[ryansheehan]

The sharkwave ultimate trout line is on sale for around $50 on multiple sights. I have one that I like in a wf4, all things being equal I like the hydros better but....

 

[dryflyguy]

Ryan-
Yeah - at half the price.

Anyway - I'm in no hurry. Don't really need it until april.
I'll just keep my eyes open until then.

Thanks for all the input

 

[dryflyguy]

Just thought I'd pull this thread up from last fall. And let yinz guys know what I ended up buying.
I kept my eyes peeled for a deal on the Orvis Hydros HD line over the winter
And finally find a used one for sale on ebay, in the weight I wanted. Not really sure about buying a used line - but decided to bid on it anyway. And ended up winning the auction for a price about one third the cost of a new one - which is about as high as I was gonna go.

Finally got to use it for the first time a couple of weeks ago.
And am pretty impressed with the way it shoots and floats. Definitely makes casting easier.
However, it does make a bit of a sawing noise while flying through the guides.
Not a big deal though, and I'm getting used to it

 

[tomgamber]

I won a sharkskin in a drawing at least ten years ago. I just swapped it out last week because it had a crack up near the loop and after a hour of fishing or so the core would get water logged and would sink. I kept it as cutting it back a whole 4 inches makes it still very usable. Better than the backup I currently have.

Cast really easily. Shoots very well the end of a roll cast. Does made a little noise but I didn't mind. If you do fish a lot of streamers in a days fishing, you can saw a groove into your finger. I did it several times. I lived to tell about it. I would never spend that kind of money on fly-line. I would recommend it based on it's performance. If you have money to burn I'd try it or one of the other textured lines.