An Unlikely Winner: Zebco's Omniflex Monophilament

Cheap fishing line.  Let me rephrase that – inexpensive, yet outstanding quality fishing line.  It exists and I wish I had known about Zebco’s Omniflex monophilament years ago.  At $2.50 for a 700 yard spool of 12lb test and lighter, you just can’t go wrong given the exceptional price and performance ($2.50 also buys 500 yards of 15lb test and 250 yards of 25lb).  I’ve been using this product for a little over two months now and it has performed as well, if not better, than the more notable Berkley, Stren or Sufix brands.

I’ve had experience with bargain priced line in the past.  A handful of bird-nested reels and snap offs resulting in a string of expletives that would make a sailor proud have kept me from dipping back into the sub-Berkley Trilene market for well over a decade.  To illustrate the cost comparison, I usually buy Berkley Trilene XL which runs approximately $7 for 330 yards of 12lb test.  That same $7 will buy around 2,400 yards of Omniflex.  Insert skepticism here (I did).

On a whim I purchased a spool of Zebco’s 6lb test to put on one of my river reels.  The store I went to was sold out of all of my go-to brands in that weight so I reluctantly went the cheaper route.  I wasn’t expecting much at all from the Omniflex.  In fact, I was quite sure I would be returning to another store to replace this stuff before the week was out.  I was delightfully mistaken.

I fished the reel spooled with the Omniflex over the course of a couple of weekends and couldn’t get over how well it casted.  No bird nests, no ringlets, smooth action, durability and great knot strength make this choice a winner.  I was expecting this line to have issues and I have yet to find one problem with it!  I like it so much that I decided to spool almost all of my other reels with Omniflex.  Since I respool all my reels every spring, the cash savings alone was quite significant.  I do not notice a difference in performance between this line and Trilene XL or Sufix.  Dare I say it may even cast better than both of these brands.

If this product continues to hold up throughout the season, it will be my new go-to option.   To date, I have tested the 6, 8, 10, and 12 lb offerings and each performs exceptionally well.  And apparently I'm not the only one who likes the stuff.  After a rather detailed search on various fishing forums, I found quite a few posts from folks that share the same opinion about this line as I do.  I urge you to give Zebco’s Omniflex monophilament a try.  I think you will be surprised to find out what a great product it really is regardless of its low price. You can thank me later.

- Paul 

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