Platypus Super - 100
A little over one year ago, I was contacted by an distributor friend from up in Canada in regards to doing a review of some Australian fishing line that he was handling. We are both kokanee enthusiasts and as such have been comparing notes as to the differences of targeting this great fish in his location as opposed to my location.
For many northern areas, the kokanee Obsession has not really set in just yet and as such they are still using techniques that have been used in days gone by. By that, I mean using gang trolls and lead line. The downrigger system has not really caught on in many of those Northern communities nor has the use of some of the more modern tackle including but not limited to UV coatings and Glow coatings. In fact, while traveling and giving seminars, it seems more the exception than the rule that the majority of people North of the Oregon Border do not use downriggers.
This downrigger thing was also true of Oregon not so long ago! I am sure that the kokanee fishermen from below our Southern border looked at us like we were still in the dark ages. The simple truth is, that the technology is slowly spreading north and hopefully will lead to even more revelations in the form of tackle design since our Northern fanatical kokanee friends are still excellent fishermen even though their tackle design is a bit foreign to us down in these parts.
In any event, I digress; the focus of this article is the 10# Platypus Super 100 Line. I fished this line on two rods for the entire 2011 season and I fished some 10# P-Line Original on two rods as a comparison. There are some major differences between the two; the most obvious being the diameter of the line. The Platypus 100 has a diameter of 22 millimeters or in USA speak: .0086 inches in diameter. The P-Line has a diameter of .28 MM or .011 inches. Both of these lines have a very similar breaking strength and quality even though the Platypus is much thinner.
The first reason that the diameter is critical in the scheme of things is very simple, especially for the kokanee fisherman and that is LINE DRAG. The thicker the line, the more blow back when fishing at depth using downriggers. Less drag relates to a lighter release weight on the clips as well as fewer pre-releases due to line resistance.
The second reason is that when long lining in the spring, there is once again less line drag which allows you to fish closer to the boat with your presentation while still achieving the same depth you were when using a heavier line such as the P-Line. This relates to less time to the boat which relates to less chance for soft mouthed kokanee to throw the hook.
The only drawback that I found for this line is that there are no US outlets for this line. They will however ship to the US so that is not a deal breaker.
| Platypus 100 | P-Line Original | Stren Original | Berkley Trilene XL | |
| 8-Lb. | .20 mm | .23 mm | .28 mm | .25 mm |
| 10-Lb. | .22 mm | .28 mm | .30 mm | .27 mm |
| 12-Lb. | .24 mm | .33 mm | .33 mm | .33 mm |
Here’s what I want you to do now …
- First, in the comments section below, lets hear about your line experiences… Note that I will delete links that do not pertain to the topic.
Red Stag
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See you in the comments!
Kent Cannon
