You get what you pay for usually, but .......

[Finnz922]

I usually use Sunline after years of going through other lines and being left wanting more. This year I am in need of some line but started to wonder if there are any lines that maybe I haven't tried because they are cheaper that some of you guys have tried and were surprised by its performance. Any such luck with cheaper lines? Open to suggestions. Fluoro or Mono are the only types I'm interested in.

[buster 2900]

What type of reel do you plan to use? In my experience, some lines perform better on a baitcast reel and some on a spinning reel.

Stren Original works very well on a baitcast reel, for example, and Trilene Big Game is probably the best value among lines that work well on a baitcast reel. Some other lines perform better on spinning reels.

[Finnz922]

Baitcaster for worming mostly and another baitcaster for spinnerbait and topwater.

[buster 2900]

I'd say the cheapest mono line that is still very good on a baitcast reel would be Big Game. Others may have different suggestions. I've haven't tried every mono line by any means, but Big Game would be a good choice.

[mprestonSEK]

A fluoro that is a good value is Seaguar Red Label. It has performed really well for me as long as it gets treated with some KVD line conditioner

[tywithay]

I haven't found a cheap fluoro that fishes up to standard. Some are doable, but I'd prefer not to fuss with them. For mono, sunline super natural is good, Seaguar Senshi is good, Trilene XL isn't bad, DAM Tectan if you can find it, Hi-Seas Black Widow is really nice if you aren't fishing around a lot of snags as it's very limp but doesn't have the best abrasion resistance.

Anymore, I just opt for the good stuff though. I finally just asked myself why I can spend $500 on a rod and reel, then try to get by with $10 line. If you wait until stuff goes on sale, it doesn't hurt near as badly.

[vinnieb729]

I haven't found a cheap fluoro that fishes up to standard.

I finally just asked myself why I can spend $500 on a rod and reel, then try to get by with $10 line. If you wait until stuff goes on sale, it doesn't hurt near as badly.

Bingo, no point in tricking out a reel and matching it to a nice rod only to struggle with line. Once you use premium fluoro, inexpensive fluoro will not please you. Use backing or a super shallow spool to limit how much fluoro you load at a time.

Mono on the other hand, Trilene XL, Sufix Elite, Super Natural and Senshi are all reasonably priced and work well... and the lighter pound tests of Big Game are manageable on bait cast reels. Senshi is what I tried at the end of the year and will have spooled up this spring…I like it so far, but haven't put enough miles on it to know for sure. P-Line CX Premium would be my go to mono if I had to pick one.

Waiting for sales makes everything better too!

[Pen3]

Exactly! What i do is buy in bulk so there is no spare line left from a small spool. The good with JDM lines is they come with 75m markers and i only spool 75m for my reels with backing after i do the calculations. Still have over sixteen 600m spools of shooter and sniper. I just buy the bulks whenever they go on sale throughout the years and another neat thing is that flouro carbon doesn't have a shelf life if you store it out of UV.

[Finnz922]

Thanks for the responses guys. I get what you are saying about the money spent on combo so why skimp on what's connecting you to the fish. But I didn't say that I wanted to buy cheap junk line. I asked if any of the cheaper lines are better than you previously thought and are worth a try.

[tywithay]

Thanks for the responses guys. I get what you are saying about the money spent on combo so why skimp on what's connecting you to the fish. But I didn't say that I wanted to buy cheap junk line. I asked if any of the cheaper lines are better than you previously thought and are worth a try.

I get that. I think you can find just about any reputable mono and it will be fine. Good ol' Trilene XL is still just about as good as anything else and you can find it for good prices. When it comes to fluorocarbon, you truly get what you pay for. I haven't found a spool under $20 that fished worth a darn, and the ones over $30-$35 make you wonder why you ever spent $20 on a spool because they're even that much better.

[buster 2900]

Thanks for the responses guys. I get what you are saying about the money spent on combo so why skimp on what's connecting you to the fish. But I didn't say that I wanted to buy cheap junk line. I asked if any of the cheaper lines are better than you previously thought and are worth a try.

Stren Original is a premium mono line that performs very well on a baitcast reel, and it's cheaper than the Sunline mono. It was my mono line of choice for years. But this is admittedly to some degree subjective and a matter of personal preference. Others would prefer Trilene XL, for example, which has different characteristics than Stren but is also a cheaper premium line. Neither line is anywhere close to junk. So in the end you'll need to not only find a less expensive line that isn't junk, but one that also suits your individual preferences.

[kegger37]

I'm going to throw out P-line original mono. You can still get it from BPS and I've always liked it and the price is fair. Otherwise Sufix and good old trilene are hard to beat. As for fluoro...just buy it on sale,, like others have said, you get what you pay for there.

[angry john]

I like Berkeley xl in 6lb for spinning gear and YHB in 10 for light baitcaster work.

[dragon1]

Triplefish Camo worked well for me and bulk is cheap. I have also had good luck with Izorline Platinum and XXX.

My go to mid-price co-poly is still P-Line CXX however.

[crankmaniac]

My go to mid-price co-poly is still P-Line CXX however.[/quote]
2x on that.P-line cxx is the only line i fish beside suffix braid on 2 set up.Oh ! i forget, my jerkbait set up have P-line original 10lb, good line and cheap.