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power pro super 8 slick hivis = skybond


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So I was at wsikf and was rambling on with an old guy like myself who was flying a 4d, he could fly like two or three at a time, I noticed the lines he was using and he said it was powerpro depth hunter fishing line, the multi-colored one in 50# and 40' or so. I started thinking well why not, I've read all the stuff about not using fishing line ect.ect. but curiosity got the better of me so I looked around at powerpro's website and came across one of their newest offerings, super slick 8 in hivis yellow. It is an 8 strand braid like the kite version,  is made of spectra of course, is manufactured under high tension so its pre- stretched, thinner and smother and as a result is like skybond, and comes in yellow- I said to me, who would ever know? If I put this on a winder and had a kite shop and stuck it under the counter, I could call it skybond  and rake in the cash. I bought a spool of 150 yds of 50#, {wanted some cause I bought a fwings airwave zero last week for my boy} I made up a 120' set a 50' set and still have enough left over for another 40-50' set. Paid 20$ for the spool. My boy flew it tonight on his zero in 1-2mph wind [if that- I couldn't see any grass moving at all} the kite flew fine and the lines were taught and straight all the way to the kite. They only make this from 10#-80# though. Good enough for lite wind flying for us at least. 80 may be good for a quad though but I already have some 90# x 120' skybond I paid almost 100$ for.

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The difference is in the weave. Fishing line has a looser weave to absorb the shock of a strike. Kite line is made tighter for a more direct line of communication to the kite. In many cases of flying alone, fishing lines (especially the newer braids, I would stay away from mono) are commonplace and reasonably acceptable. But beware of stretching! The more constant pull of a kite on the lines (unlike fishing where you get infrequent bites) may cause the line to stretch or "creep" while the strain causes the lines to lengthen under stress.

Flying it in groups? Not too sure on how it would handle in a group situation. Not really sure on it's abrasion with other lines. 

Even if made in the same factory - think about the numbers. Amount of people fishing against number of people flying. Good kite lines are a small percentage of a line maker's overall production and as such get a premium for their production!

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On ‎9‎/‎12‎/‎2016 at 9:27 AM, Wayne Dowler said:

The difference is in the weave. Fishing line has a looser weave to absorb the shock of a strike. Kite line is made tighter for a more direct line of communication to the kite. In many cases of flying alone, fishing lines (especially the newer braids, I would stay away from mono) are commonplace and reasonably acceptable. But beware of stretching! The more constant pull of a kite on the lines (unlike fishing where you get infrequent bites) may cause the line to stretch or "creep" while the strain causes the lines to lengthen under stress.

Yes I was aware of this about the weave and the stretching from other posts I had read but it may be worth checking into as this is a new or rather newer line and looks to be made with a different process than the older fishing lines. This line is supposed to be thinner, smoother : because it has more strands than the older fishing lines, supposed to be made under tension so it has virtually no stretch. Near zero according to powerpro. and has no memory. Amazon has quite a lot of reviews on it, I learned quite a bit about it there. It's sold in quite a few stores as well [yellow is a little harder to get, green in pretty common\ even Walmart sells it, take a look next time your there. Groups, yea I would not try that till I was more sure, but for us at least we will use it only for sul or ul duallies in the 50# or lighter. I might chance it in 80# strength for his quad in a single fly setting but not for groups at this point. I already had some 90# skybond for his quad but needed a lighter line for his zero and the zephyr. I swear it feels just like skybond, check it out at Walmart next time your there, see for yourself. I made up  120' of it and we pulled from both ends to see if we could stretch it any and it didn't seem like it stretched any at all, at least not any more than regular spectra. I'd say for those on a tight budget, and are looking for a sul dually line its worth checking out at that price, and its readily available.  I just noticed these replys tonight btw.

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