# Berkely Vanish Sucks!



## JF1 (Mar 25, 2008)

I am here to eat some crow! Last fall there was a post asking what type of line is best...bla bla bla. I mentioned how I loved Vanish and alot of pple posted how it was junk, and it always broke on them, etc. I stuck up for my Vanish, as any loya customer would do. Said I have never had any problems with it, etc.

Well yesterday while fishing my 13acre lake I had a 5+lb bass break me off at shore. I thought to myself, maybe I tied a bad knot?? Maybe there was a nick in my line? Maybe it was my fault? 

Today I get hung up on a tree, try to do the bow and arrow trick, SNAP right at the reel! Hmmmm, maybe it is the line??

10 minutes later, I hook into another fish, no more than one lb, max. A dink by all accounts, While I swing him onto shore, line breaks at reel AGAIN and fish goes flying into yard!

Needless to say, I am no longer a fan or loyal customer! I will be respooling with the new Berkley 100% Flouro. A little more $$, but hopefully alot less Headache!


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## Shortdrift (Apr 5, 2004)

Won't say i told you so ................................But we tried to tell you so.. I don't believe Vanish stores well over a period odf time which might explain why it can be weak right off the shelf if the store or supplier has older stock. I have used any number of mono lines from major major manufacturers and vanish is the only one I had problems with other than some off brand years ago. Good luck on deciding on which manufacturer to use as the selection available today is mind numbing.


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## K gonefishin (May 4, 2004)

Buy Seaguar and you'll NEVER have a problem, that's all they make is flouro. I have used 100% flouro by Berkely for spinners and it was fine but I used 20 pound test it better be fine in 20# I wouln't use it for anything else. 

If #6 seaguar can hold up to 30 inch steelies Mack trucking down a river I'm sure no measly weak ass bass is no match for it.


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## Salmonid (Apr 14, 2004)

I agree with Shortdrift, I had bought a few spools of it and found it to be brittle right out of the box , I just assumed I got what i paid for, and since its the cheapest stuff out there, thats what I got all right!

I would also second the seaguar stuff, been using it for years on salmon and steelies with never a problem. 

Its either time for a new spool or time to switch brands, whichever you do, please let us know how it worked out. 

Good luck
Salmonid


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## Intracoastal (Sep 12, 2009)

I'll agree that there's a risk in buying the cheapest flouro on the market. However, I've had a completely different experience with Vanish so far, and something must account for this difference. I use it only as a leader material and I don't store it in sunny areas. Also, I've only used 6#-30# sizes, so I cannot comment on the really tiny stuff. 

I have used this as leader material in Ohio, New Jersey, and Florida. I have used it on rivers, lakes, ponds, bays, sounds, surf, and even wreck fishing. Fished it around bridge pilings, oyster beds, rocks, dams, logs, etc. Using it as leader in these situations, I have caught at least:

LMB to 5lbs
SMB to 3lbs
Bluefish to 8lbs
Striped Bass to 12lbs
Flounder to 7lbs
Redfish to 10lbs
Snook to 10lbs
Jack Crevalle
Sharks to 5 ft
Walleye to 9lbs
Hybrid Stripers to 9lbs
Steelhead to 28" (on the 6# flouro)
Pike to 20+lbs (see my post in the Pike section; using 14# leader)
Freshwater Drum to 8+lbs
And of course bluegills, white bass, crappies, sauger, and a host of other fresh- and saltwater fish. 

I'm not saying any of you are wrong. It may even be the worst flouro on the market. But that list makes the worst line seem not so bad. I have never once had a break-off on this line. I have tried Seaguar and I like it, but $15 for 25yds is a bit steep for me. If you want to keep using the "better" more expensive flouro, that's your prerogative. I don't mind or judge that one bit. But I'll keep with what remains on my few spools of Vanish until I "learn the hard way," though I hope I never have to. Indeed, it looks like the chances are pretty slim...


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## Hetfieldinn (May 17, 2004)

I'm a big fan of Berkley products, so when it cam time to tie some leaders for Dipsys a few years back, I bought a spool of 20# Vanish. First four fish 'hooked up' with the Vanish leaders resulted in four break-offs. All four leaders snapped right in the middle, nowhere near any terminal tackle. I then realized why they called it Vanish. It makes your fish and tackle 'Vanish'. I saved the rest of the day by peeling some Fireline off my rods and tying some leaders with it on the boat. When I got home, I made the Vanish vanish into the trash can.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

I've tried a lot of different lines over the years and have come to realize that plain ole stren is about as good as any when it comes to mono especially for the price. I don't really know if fluorocarbon makes that big of difference but I use Pline 100% fluorocarbon and like it a lot. You get 250 yrds on a spool so its a little cheaper than most


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

wow, i took some heat last fall for telling my stories of vanish being trashish. cant remember who it was but if it was you then... theyll be better days. try p-line, its reasonably priced and i havent had any problems with it since i switched a few years ago.


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## Dfrenzy (Dec 18, 2008)

Vanish has always held up to it's name. Your fish your lure and your pocket Vanish rite in front of your eyes. I like the Seaguar and the P-Line myself. But thats just my opinion.


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## JF1 (Mar 25, 2008)

LOL you sound like me last fall. I said something very similar, talked about cashing checks in tournaments on Vanish, never a problem. I swore by the stuff, and alot of people here told me it was garbage. Trust me, you will change your mind.....just a matter of time. 





Intracoastal said:


> I'll agree that there's a risk in buying the cheapest flouro on the market. However, I've had a completely different experience with Vanish so far, and something must account for this difference. I use it only as a leader material and I don't store it in sunny areas. Also, I've only used 6#-30# sizes, so I cannot comment on the really tiny stuff.
> 
> I have used this as leader material in Ohio, New Jersey, and Florida. I have used it on rivers, lakes, ponds, bays, sounds, surf, and even wreck fishing. Fished it around bridge pilings, oyster beds, rocks, dams, logs, etc. Using it as leader in these situations, I have caught at least:
> 
> ...


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## Intracoastal (Sep 12, 2009)

JF1 said:


> LOL you sound like me last fall. I said something very similar, talked about cashing checks in tournaments on Vanish, never a problem. I swore by the stuff, and alot of people here told me it was garbage. Trust me, you will change your mind.....just a matter of time.


Well, whether or not I change the brand of flouro I use most often it will not change the fact that I have had the successes I've already posted. If I have a bad experience with it in the future, it won't erase the hundreds of fish of tens of species that I caught, regardless of whether that hypothetical future event influences me to purchase a different brand. No one should interpret my posts on this thread as trumpeting Vanish as the best flouro. It's not the best. It has worked for me and the fact that others have lost fish on it is a misfortune. I'm not trying to convince anyone to buy Vanish.


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## NewbreedFishing (Apr 15, 2004)

that vanish is garbage....it freys and absorbes water quickly. learned this on the salmon river after hiking into a honey hole loaded with coho/kings. luckly a buddy of mine had a spare reel for me to use.

while on this subject of line i made a stoopid error and put 8lb. vicious 100% floro on a new 2500 stradic and this stuff is soo damned stiff it burst off the spool and u can hear it hitting all of the guides. casting distance is greatly affected.
my buddy said u cannot use floro as your main line on spinning reels?? now at least i have a half spool of leader material


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

I hope you didn't buy the Berkley 100%. My first cast with it sent the lure flying after a loud "bang". 

I'm a fan of LC Iron Athlete for FC. Otherwise I use YZH.

Good luck!


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## crittergitter (Jun 9, 2005)

I can't fathom why anyone would want to use flourocarbon as there main line here in Ohio. Our water is turbid, muddy, cruddy..........anything but crystal clear. If you aren't catching fish in Ohio, odds are it is not because the fish are line shy........even in heavily fished water it just isn't likely that they can even see your line.

I never use any kind of Berkley line. For me, it is Spiderwire Ultracast, Suffix Elite or Suffix braid.


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## robertj298 (Feb 23, 2009)

crittergitter said:


> I can't fathom why anyone would want to use flourocarbon as there main line here in Ohio. Our water is turbid, muddy, cruddy..........anything but crystal clear. If you aren't catching fish in Ohio, odds are it is not because the fish are line shy........even in heavily fished water it just isn't likely that they can even see your line.
> 
> I never use any kind of Berkley line. For me, it is Spiderwire Ultracast, Suffix Elite or Suffix braid.


There are several other reasons people use fluoro. Less stretch= more sensitive and fluorocarbon isn't effected by sunlight and won't weaken over time like mono does


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## Barney (Jun 4, 2007)

Is Vanish still junk? I haven't used it for 7 years.

Hey Crittergitter. You said 
_I never use any kind of Berkley line. For me, it is Spiderwire Ultracast_
Uh... its made by Berkley.


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

crittergitter said:


> I can't fathom why anyone would want to use flourocarbon as there main line here in Ohio. Our water is turbid, muddy, cruddy..........anything but crystal clear. If you aren't catching fish in Ohio, odds are it is not because the fish are line shy........even in heavily fished water it just isn't likely that they can even see your line.
> 
> I never use any kind of Berkley line. For me, it is Spiderwire Ultracast, Suffix Elite or Suffix braid.


I have limited uses for FC. Deep cranking is one use, and finesse baitcaster applications (drop shot/shakey head) is the other - especially Erie. That's really about it.

Ewwwww...Spiderwire... 



> There are several other reasons people use fluoro. Less stretch= more sensitive and fluorocarbon isn't effected by sunlight and won't weaken over time like mono does


The fact that FC sinks is another variable that folks like to tinker with. I think most of the improved sensitivity is due to higher density when compared to a nylon monofilament.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

i use a copolymer simply because i can use a higher poundage with smaller diameter, really no other reason


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## crittergitter (Jun 9, 2005)

Barney said:


> Is Vanish still junk? I haven't used it for 7 years.
> 
> Hey Crittergitter. You said
> _I never use any kind of Berkley line. For me, it is Spiderwire Ultracast_
> Uh... its made by Berkley.


Well, dang.....I never knew that. Now, I am going to have to switch my musky reels over to Cortland Bronzeback. 

As for the other applications that FC excel at, it seems to me that a good braid would far out perform FC in all of those applications. That's just my .02.

In fact, I use mono much less today than I did just 3 or 4 years ago.


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## JignPig Guide (Aug 3, 2007)

I learned the hard way about Berkley Flourocarbon. Then I heard it from the source. Berkley pro Hank Parker says they have unexplainable breaks with their flourocarbon. 
I now use Vicious Line. It's made in America (we all could use a job huh?) and it's less expensive than Berkley.

I could be wrong. But I recall this conversation...


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

crittergitter said:


> Well, dang.....I never knew that. Now, I am going to have to switch my musky reels over to Cortland Bronzeback.
> 
> As for the other applications that FC excel at, it seems to me that a good braid would far out perform FC in all of those applications. That's just my .02.
> 
> In fact, I use mono much less today than I did just 3 or 4 years ago.


im not using braid while im cranking, in even remotely clear water unless there are lilly pads involved, not while throwing a spinnerbait, not while finesse fishing the points for smallies in alum. look, braid is great for certain applications but its not nearly as versatile as flouro. topwater, extreme heavy cover, pads, thats when braid is at its best.


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## hoytshooter (Apr 7, 2009)

Thats why they call it vanish because before you know your baits have vanished


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## firstflight111 (May 22, 2008)

JF1 said:


> I am here to eat some crow! Last fall there was a post asking what type of line is best...bla bla bla. I mentioned how I loved Vanish and alot of pple posted how it was junk, and it always broke on them, etc. I stuck up for my Vanish, as any loya customer would do. Said I have never had any problems with it, etc.
> 
> Well yesterday while fishing my 13acre lake I had a 5+lb bass break me off at shore. I thought to myself, maybe I tied a bad knot?? Maybe there was a nick in my line? Maybe it was my fault?
> 
> ...


maybe you should change you line more often i use that for years sounds like you got a bad batch call them tell them thay make it right


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## legendaryyaj (Nov 1, 2005)

Braid will not out perform FC when it comes to rocks and its not good against toothy critters either.

FC seems to hold up better where braid fails. Its all about when and where to use the line.

I currently use FC for all my cranking. BPS for mid and Trilene 100% for deep.


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## JF1 (Mar 25, 2008)

firstflight111 said:


> maybe you should change you line more often i use that for years sounds like you got a bad batch call them tell them thay make it right


I change my line more often than the average angler.... And this was a brand new spool. Hell I don't even have 2hrs on this line, so it wasn't old line.


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## Tokugawa (Apr 29, 2008)

legendaryyaj said:


> Braid will not out perform FC when it comes to rocks and its not good against toothy critters either.
> 
> FC seems to hold up better where braid fails. Its all about when and where to use the line.


I agree 100% with that. I think having spare spools with different line around is the easiest and most cost effective way to deal with different needs.


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## smalliediehard (Oct 28, 2005)

it could've been old stock or like i found last year...a crack in one of my guides and it was nicking the **** out of my line  had to fix the guide and put a whole new spool of line on.me personally...i go with mr.crappie line,they have it in 4,6,8,and 10lb test.haven't found a stronger line.


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