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Line Review


Introducing Sunline's New P-Ion Assassin FC

 

Date: 5/1/15
Tackle Type: Fishing Line
Manufacturer: Sunline
Reviewer: Cal






Total Score: 7.23 - GOOD

Introduction:
Line manufacturers continually seek to out do one another with what they refer to as the latest and greatest in technological achievements. Nevermind that the majority of the world's fishing lines, like a lot of our products, are made in a handful of factories worldwide. But several years ago, Sunline managed to align themselves with the proprietors of one new technology: A professor at the University of Tokyo Institute of Technology found a way to use plasma, the 4th state of matter, to alter both nylon and fluorocarbon materials in a way that enhances their performance as a fishing line.

 


Mike McClelland was one of many Sunline Pros on hand to introduce us to the company's new product back in the fall of 2014.

 

It all began in 2008, when a professor from the University of Tokyo's Institute of Technology began experimenting with plasma in conjunction with fishing line and found he could improve the line's handling characteristics, resistance to abrasion, and knot strength. Aware of his work, Sunline began working with this professor late in 2009 in an effort to bring to market the next generation in fluorocarbon and nylon fishing lines. Finally, in February of 2013, Sunline debuted the technology they named "P-Ion" at the Osaka Fishing show in Japan. In October 2014, Sunline was awarded patents for the technology in US, Japan, and China, in conjunction with shipping the first P-Ion fishing line, Sunline Fine Float, for the Japanese market. The reception by anglers in Japan? Sunline recorded sales.

 


Sunline is one of many line companies continually pushing the boundaries in search of the next breakthrough.

 

Later that same month, Sunline introduced a new fluorocarbon line made from their new P-Ion technology to a handful of media members at their annual writer's conference held at Lake Eufaula, Georgia. TackleTour received several spools of this line in five different weights and here now is not only the official debut of the product, but the first, full blown review of Sunline's new Assassin Fluorocarbon fishing line enhanced by P-Ion technology.

 

Sunline Assassin FC Specifications

Line Type Fluorocarbon
Colors Available clear
Colors Tested clear
Line Weights 8, 10, 12, 15, 20, 25
Line Weight Tested in Lab 12
Line Weights Fished 8 & 10
MSRP $19.99/225 yd spool

 

Quality : We received one spool in almost every line weight targeted for availability, but the weight tested in our lab was the one closest in diameter to 0.300mm - this turned out to be the twelve (12) pound test. This is our target diameter when running fluorocarbon, monofilament, and copolymer line tests in the lab making it easier and more relevant to compare data between brands.

 


With their new, patented, P-Ion technology, Sunline hopes to redefine the fishing line marketplace.

Consistency: Pulling a length of 12 pound test off from the spool and running it through my fingers, it was easy to get a sense of the line's overall consistency. My impression was good. I later confirmed my impressions in the lab by measuring the line at five different spots along a three foot length. Its diameters along these five points of measurement were within 0.67% of each other.

Surface: As mentioned earlier, one of the targeted benefits of this P-Ion technology is to provide a smoother surface that's more resistant to abrasion yet helps with handling and longevity of the fishing line. Indeed, when run through my fingers, the line is not only consistent, but its surface is very slick as well.

Spooling: We're going to assume the sample spools provided to us are indicative of the final product or at least close in terms of final packaging. The Assassin FC line on these spools were not precision wound but they were also not excessively crossed over either. We rate Assassin FC "average" in this category.

Sunline Assassin FC Diameter Tests for QC

Line Weight
Published Dia (PD)
PD Converted to MM
Avg Tested Diameter
% Deviation
8
0.0094"
0.239mm
0.233mm
3%
10
0.0104"
0.264mm
0.277mm
5%
12
0.0116"
0.295mm
0.283mm
4%
15
0.0134"
0.340mm
0.339mm
1%
20
0.0150"
0.381mm
0.381mm
0%

Diameter: The published diameter of Sunline's new Assassin FC was given to us in inches, but we converted to millimeters. We then compared this data against our measured average for each line weight. Across five different line weights, our measurements were within 5% of published diameter.

Quality Ratings for Sunline Assassin FC

Consis-tency (1-5)
Surface (1-3)
Spooling (1-5)
Published Diameter (1-3)
Total
Possible
Rating (= Tot/Pos * 10)
4
3
3
3
13
16
8.125

 


Spooled up and ready to go with some 8lb Assassin FC.

 

Performance: We ran Sunline's new Assassin FC through our Fluorocarbon Performance Index (FPI) tests and found it to perform very well when compared to the overall average, and also up against its sibling Sniper and Shooter lines. However, what we've come to find since the debut of our fishing line performance indexes is that lab results don't necessarily correlate with on the water performance. It's taken us a couple of years to shake the process out, but as with our RoD and Smooth Drag charts, our fishing line performance indexes are going to serve as a baseline of what to maybe expect from a product. We'll then take what we found in the lab and either validate or invalidate those findings out on the water.

 

TackleTour's Fluorocarbon Performance Index (FPI)

 

Quality (20 points)
Strength (30 points)
Stretch (10+ Points
Abrasion Cycles
F P I
 
PW
DIA
TS v RS
MS
KS v RS
KS v TS
STR
DR
Max Points
5
5
10
10
10
10
5+
5+
No Limit
-
Sunline Assassin FC (12lb/ 0.28 mm dia)
0
4.3
7.6
4.3
5.1
6.4
3.8
10.1
13.67
55.2
Sunline Sniper FC (12lb/ 0.30 mm dia)
0
4.7
9.5
4.6
6.3
6.5
3.0
4.1
19
57.7
Sunline Shooter FC (14lb/ 0.31 mm dia)
5
3.8
7.7
4.3
5.5
6.6
3.8
5.5
14.33
56.5
FC Average (~0.30 mm dia)
2.8
3.9
8.2
4.5
6.5
7.1
2.8
4.2
14.9
48.2
PW = Precision Wound : DIA = Diameter : TS vs RS = Tested Strength vs Rated Strength : MS = Material Strength : KS vs RS = Knot Strength vs Rated Strength : KS v TS = Knot Strength vs Tested Strength : STR = Stretch : DR = Deformity : For a full explanation of our FPI table, please read our FPI Introduction article

I managed to get out on the water with this line on a couple different occasions and fished it on two different reels. I spooled my Daiwa Certate Finesse 2004 with the 8lb Assassin FC and my Daiwa Alphas SV with the 10lb Assassin FC.


This Alphas SV baitcasting reel is spooled with 10lb Sunline Assassin.

Cast/Pitch: Most anglers who have fished fluorocarbon lines know, fishing line made from this material can be rather unruly at times. It seems most of the more expensive fluorocarbons are this way, while the softer, more manageable fluorocarbons don't perform as well in sensitivity or abrasion resistance. The trick is to find the happy medium. That's another goal with Sunline's new P-Ion technology and its use with fluorocarbon lines - to enhance the materials handling characteristics while not sacrificing performance in other areas.

Assassin FC certainly handles very well in casting and pitching duties. Although some of what I experienced may have been due to Daiwa Japan's new Alphas SV casting reel, my Assassin FC came off that reel's spool nicely with very few instances of that tell tale fluorocarbon fluff.

Next Section: Sensitivity of the Assassin FC

 

   

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