Fluorocarbon vs. Monofilament - what’s the difference
Author: Trout's Staff
Introduced in 1971, fluorocarbon quickly established itself as a superior product to monofilament for three main reasons. First, fluorocarbon is more transparent underwater than monofilament.
Water to air has a refraction index (a numerical value assigned to how light is bent when something extends from air to water) of about 1.33. Air to fluorocarbon has a refraction index of 1.42, while air to monofilament has a refraction index of 1.62. From these numbers one can conclude that fluorocarbon refracts light closer to water, thus making it more difficult to see when under water.
The second benefit to fluorocarbon is that it is more abrasion resistant than monofilament. This comes in handy when you have a nice fish on that is trying to run under a rock or around a submerged log. While using fluorocarbon won’t guarantee that you will land the fish, it will certainly increase your chances of keeping it on.
