Review: Sufix 832 Advanced Superline

Awhile back, I was picked via random drawing to review the new Sufix  832 Advanced Superline braid for the Outdoor Blogger Network. 

It has taken me too long (way too long, sorry OBN and Sufix) to finally come to a conclusion.  The reason it's taken so long is I kept trying to give the Superline a chance to really impress me, thinking that using it with topwater or carp fishing on the bottom or any of half a dozen other presentations would let the line shine.  Unfortunately, it never really did.

I selected the high-visibility lime green option, visions of line-watching Senko-fishing dancing in my head.  The problem with fishing with a high-visibility mini rope is it's just as high visibility to the fish. 

Therefore, it's highly recommended that you attach a flourocarbon leader to the end of the braid.  The biggest things braid has going for it are:

• Strength:  Even the weakest braid is several times stronger than mono or flouro of the same diameter.  This really appealed to me because more often than not I'm snagged on something.  I figured that with 40lb braid (same diameter of 10lb mono), I could pull any snag up to and including old tires out of the water, saving my lures and the time it takes to retie.
• It floats:  This, combined with the high visibility supposedly make braid a perfect candidate for fishing soft plastics, giving you a good indicator if a fish has grabbed your bait and made off with it without tugging on your rod.  The buoyancy also makes braid a good topwater line.
• It doesn't stretch:  Mono stretches, which some anglers say causes poor hooksets.

However, having to use a flourocarbon leader negates two of the three advantages of using braid.  the strength of your setup is lowered to whatever poundage flouro you use (plus you have to tie another knot to connect the two, adding another point of weakness to your setup.). 

I found myself getting snagged and snapping the line somewhere along the leader, which would usually require that I cut the braid, cut a new leader, tie the leader to the braid, and then tie on a new lure.  Compared to using mono or flouro, where you just tie on a new lure, it's not a very time efficient way to do things.  There were a couple times I was using a topwater lure and could tie the braid directly to the lure.  When I would snag in these cases, it was nice to be able to drag the snag out most of the time.  If you can't though, you'll probably have to cut your line.  (Or risk having sharp hooks flying at your face at roughly the speed of sound.)

Also, flourocarbon sinks.  I don't know how much this depletes the advantage of being able to see your line since I was never able to "see" a bite.  The only fish I caught on this line were caught after "feeling" the bite.

This may or may not have anything to do with the line itself but I've only experienced it with the Sufix Superline.  The line seems to... catch on the eyelets of my pole.  So my cast will get halfway to where I want it, will catch and PLOP! into the water, leaving six inches or so of line dangling and tangled between my second and third or third and fourth eyelets.  I have to take a second to fix that so any bite I may have noticed on the fall is long gone.  I'll be spooling up the Pflueger reel that I was using with the Sufix line with regular mono and using it a few times before reviewing the reel itself so I'll come back and edit this if I find out it was a problem with the reel or pole and not the line.

So all in all I don't think I can recommend Sufix Superline, especially not for beginning anglers.  The advantages gained are not worth the hassle of having to tie on a leader and deal with the casting issues I've dealt with.  The only reason I'd recommend this line to family, friend, or some guy in the fishing line aisle is if they're using it strictly for topwater presentations.  Even then, a heavier monofilament line will do the trick so... why bother?  I really wanted to be impressed with this product and write a glowing review but in the end I was pretty disappointed.  Stick with mono and save yourself some grief.

Disclaimer: I was given the Superline free of charge to try out and give an honest opinion.  I received no other compensation.  All opinions are my own and not influenced by the makers of Sufix (obviously).

Remember that BPS employee Dustin?

The one who helped me pick out a new fly setup?

He knows his sh*t.

Weigh-in 10/4

AKA:  Never doubt Tony edition.

Remember how I gained 5lbs last week?  Well Tony from Snug Harbor Bay took me to school, basically saying its impossible to gain 5lbs of fat in a week and not to get discouraged.  Well I got back on the wagon diet wise and got a couple workouts in and lost the 5lbs again!

Tony runs a weekly post on Snug Harbor called Tony's Tips.  He lost 80+ lbs in his senior year of high school the right way and has been giving tips for the past few months, they've been invaluable when I get discouraged or don't understand something.  Go check it out along with Paul's Healthy Outdoorsman site if you wanna get serious about weight loss.  Both have helped me out considerably.

Anybody else losing out there?

Oh yeah!  We live in a duplex and a guy moved in a couple weeks ago.  I had my first conversation with him and he works a few days a week at my gym.  Weird huh?  It'll be cool to see someone I know down there once in awhile.

If this kid didn't have a girlfriend before...

... he will now.

"Jeremiah reported the animal’s breath smelled like “dead rabbits.""

"Jeremiah told his parents he starting swinging his hunting knife in an attempt to get the animal to leave. He cut it, but not deeply, and the animal knocked him backwards again. Jeremiah hit it in the ribs again and let go of his knife."


That's pretty damn manly.  Got a few scratches on his face, a shredded hat and jacket to mark the occasion. 
Man, it'd be nice if IL hunters could carry a concealed gun to protect themselves, rather than a hunting knife and a shot to the ribs...

Quest for the Holy Handgun: PPK

Does the thought of an ultra-concealable pocket pistol appeal to you?  Do you think the ability to have a pistol with you at all times is worth the tradeoff in firepower?  Do you take your vodka martinis shaken, not stirred?  Then I present the PPK, From Walther With Love.

Any bets on how many cheesy 007 references I can work in here.

The Walther PP was released in 1929 and developed a huge following.  Two years later, demand for a smaller, more concealable pistol led to the release of the PPK, which is basically a scaled down version.

During WWII, the PPK was issued to German police and Nazi soldiers.  (According to Wikipedia, Hitler actually shot and killed himself with a PPK chambered in .32ACP.)  However, the gun's biggest claim to fame, as I already alluded to, is that it served James Bond as an everyday carry gun from early in his career up until the Pierce Brosnan movies.

"Suck it Trebec!"

Ian Fleming actually originally wrote Bond to carry a Beretta in .25ACP until a firearms expert from Scotland (last name Boothroyd) wrote Fleming and said the cartridge was woefully underpowered, and no self respecting secret agent would carry a gun chambered in it.  Fleming made up the character Q and had him set Bond up with a PPK in .32ACP, and named him Major Boothroyd in thanks.

When every man wants to be you, it only makes sense that every man wants to carry your gun.  The PPK has soared in popularity over the past 50+ years, and has inspired quite a few lookalikes (including the CZ-82 we looked at a few weeks back by way of the Russian Makarov pistol) and proven itself as a great concealed carry option.  Let's break it down a little bit and look at the details.

Reliability: Do a search on PPK reliability and you'll find a mixed bag.  It seems that Smith & Wesson has taken over manufacture of PPKs in recent years and reliability has fallen off a bit, sometimes requiring a person to shoot their gun a bit, identify the issues, and send it to a S&W gunsmith to straighten out any issues.  However, it's much easier to find negative things than positive, especially secondhand from the internet.  In any case, all reports seem to agree that the earlier German/French made models are more reliable.  Doesn't seem to be a huge issue and this also isn't a gun that you'd be out shooting tens of thousands of rounds through due to it's size so reliability shouldn't be an issue.

Capacity:  The standard magazine for a PPK in .380ACP is 7 rounds.   Yeesh.  Then again, when you're buying this gun, you're not buying a gun to carry with you into Kandahar.  You buy this gun to stick in your pocket or inside your jacket in case some crackhead corners you in the parking lot.  Still, if you look at modern pocket guns, you can regularly get 7-8 rounds of 9mm, which is a much more powerful cartridge.  Modern guns in .380 still run around 7-8 rounds but are much smaller and more concealable.  The PPK's capacity doesn't impress.

Price:  The PPK can regularly be had for around $500 new.  This puts it roughly $200 above similar pistols (pocket .380s such as the Ruger LCP and Kel-Tec p38t) and right on par with many of the full sized service pistols with over double the capacity in a more effective caliber.  Couple that with the fact that .380 is still pretty expensive from the "Obama Scare of '08" (Basically everybody bought as much ammo as they could, assuming that the Democrats in power would implement crazy gun laws, raising the cost of everything, especially .380, which had blown up in popularity because of the likes of the aforementioned LCP and p38t.).  .380 usually runs about 1/3rd more expensive than 9mm, so you'll have to fork over more cash to get a bunch of practice ammo to get proficient with it.  the PPK certainly isn't a budget option.  However,  one of those guns inspired by the PPK is called the Bersa Thunder, is almost an exact copy, has some good reviews, and can be had for $200-250.  So anyone looking for a PPKish gun on a budget should check them out.

PPK for tightwads.

Caliber:  The .380ACP round is regarded by most as the bare minimum for self defense. The muzzle energy is only about 1/3rd of the 9mm Parabellum round but most self defense loadings in the cartridge will penetrate around the FBI recommended 12" and achieve full expansion.

I certainly wouldn't want that ripping through my midsection.

The .380ACP round isn't the best option out there but if things were to get bad, it'd be better than throwing punches.

Carryability:  One of the PPK's greatest strengths.  It is on the upper side of "pocket pistol" size but would definitely conceal very easily in just about any other position, be it inside waist band, outside waist band, shoulder carry, jacket pocket, etc.  Outside of modern pocket pistols/derringers that slide easily into a jeans pocket, this is as good as it gets.

Looks:  When I look at other pistols, I give them points for looking like a PPK.  Enough said.

Unless they look like this one.

Customizability:  No accessory rail kind of limits your options here.  This isn't a gun you load flashlights, lasers, and a red dot on.  There are custom grips, you can always DuraKote it a different color, and there are different internal modifications you can make.  Plus you can always gold plate it. Other than that, not a whole lot going on.

History/Track Record:  If it's good enough for Hitler...  Um...  Er...  Seriously though, forgoing any bias against it for being carried by the Nazis, the PP series has been used in combat by a couple dozen different militaries and police departments.  The track record is there to back it up.

So how do I feel about it?  It's an awesome piece of history and for me personally the cool factor is off the charts but I can't justify the extra cost.  If I were looking for a pocket gun, I'd look first to the modern pocket 9mm guns that cost half as much, use a much more powerful round, and have just as good capacity (if not better in some cases).  Like the Kel-Tec p11:

10 round magazine, three times the muzzle energy, half the cost.

Also, you might have noticed that I left out the PROs and CONs.  I feel like alot of this is subjective and contextual.  For example, there's no way you can compare the PPK to the Glock 17 in terms of capacity, because they're made for different things.  Also, what may be a PRO for me could be a CON for you so I guess I just prefer to lay it all out there, compare it to similar guns and then give my overall opinion on it.  Then you can tell me how you think it matches up.  Sound good?  Sound terrible?  Let me know.

THE END

of

"PPK"

QUEST FOR THE HOLY HANDGUN WILL RETUN

in

"EAA WITNESS P"

Weigh-in 9/28/11

Had a crappy couple of days.  Didn't feel good and therefore I didn't follow my nutrition or workout regimen.

Gained 5 lbs.

Now feel much worse.

Back on the wagon as of today with more ground to make up.

Blah.

Bass Pro Shops!

Ok, before we get to the good stuff, I gotta bitch for a second.  The area of East Peoria that now holds Bass Pro Shops has the most confusing roads ever.  Add to that the fact that Bass Pro hasn't been added to Google Maps and "Bass Pro Road" doesn't exist on any map and I circled the place twice before actually finding my way to the right road.

The place is huuuuuuge.

Like HUUUUUUGE.

There's a giant 27,000 gallon fish tank holding all the native IL river species.  I just stood and watched the fishies for awhile, blocking the view of the children behind me.  

Here's a moose.

When I had enough of the fish I went straight for the footwear department and asked if they had any boots in size 15...

One pair. 

They don't fit.

Oh well, guess I'm not getting boots.  This opens up a majority of the money I had available to spend.  

Excellent.

I head over to the fly fishing section and start bumming around.  

I had thought of maybe picking up one of their $20 Bugger rods if I had enough money left over after boots but with boots out of the picture, I didn't really know where to start.

I was approached by a John who pointed me in the direction of a complete White River setup.  While we were talking about it, another employee named Dustin came over and gave some input too.  We were discussing the best weight rod to go with and I brought up that the trout at the Hooked on Fishing pond (remember?) were probably the biggest thing I'd be catching.  

Dustin goes "I knew I recognized you from from somewhere.  You were the guy in the corner catching all the fish!"

Hehe.

So I settled on a 6wt Dogwood Canyon setup and we drifted to the counter and I think I asked about looped leader connector thingys.  Dustin pulled out a tackle box and showed me how to use a nail knot tool to make quick nail knots, how to make a perfection loop out of mono so I'd always have my own looped leader connector thingys, and a couple other things my mind was too slow to absorb.   (When I asked about looped leader connector thingys at Gander Mountain awhile back, the guy handed me 8wt fly line.)

I learned more in the 15 minutes at the counter than I could learn in 3 hours surfing online and looking at knot illustrations.  

Anyone interested in learning how to get started in fly fishing in central IL should head over to Bass Pro and talk to Dustin.  He'll get you hooked up with a decent set up and teach you the knots.   Then get ahold of me and we'll go catch some fish.

(By the way, when I told Dustin I had a blog called Intro to the Outdoors to ask his permission to do a little write up of what he helped me out with, his response was "I know.  I've read it."  My brain exploded.)

So, after learning a bunch, I walked out of the store -$110 and +one complete 9ft 6wt setup and a nail knot tool.  

A little over a week ago, the same anonymous person who tipped me off to the gun sales at Bass Pro also left a comment that just said "NorthTrail Park pond in Peoria...Go Fish".  With a new rod all set up to fish sitting in the back of my Explorer and my fly box in the center console, I Googled "North Trail park"  and off I went. When i got there I tied on a brown Woolly Bugger and walked to the water's edge.

Both of the fly rods I had before were older.  Like 15ish years old.  You could strip out line, false cast until it was all out and then fling the fly in the general direction when it was all out but it wouldn't shoot line.  The Dogwood Canyon setup shoots line. 

My first full cast with it was two false casts and "shhhwwwt!"  The 10-15 yards of line I had stripped out shot out and the fly tumbled over and landed in the pond.  That felt good.  I did that a couple more times and then got down to business of trying to catch something.  

I headed up on top of a pier and cast down the bank about 6-7 feet out from shore and after a few strips, I got a hit!  I had to play him to the side of the pier, swing him onto shore, lower my rod down and run around the edge of the pier to go get a picture:

First fish on the 6wt!

He was missing an eye, pirate style.  (Probably why he was fooled by my erratic stripping of the line.

I got him back in the water and I tried a few more casts down the shore to no avail.  I moved along, trying to find open space to get some casting going.  Eventually I cast out and had my fly sitting on the bottom for a moment when a fish came to the surface nearby.  I jerked the rod up to cast to that spot and nearly pulled this fish out of the water:

Had no idea he had picked up the fly.

I kept moving along until I got to a good spot with at least 30 yards clear of foliage.  I stripped out a bunch of the line and started to let her loose.  I don't know exacts but I'd say I was getting to the point of shooting out 35-40 yard of line before getting to the point that I felt I was putting my face in danger of being hooked.  Felt good.

I stayed in that area and casted until my back and shoulder started to get sore, then walked the rest of the way around the pond, flicking a few casts here and there.  

I'm very happy with my purchase so far.  I'll keep you updated on the Dogwood Canyon setup's progress.  If you live in central IL or are visiting, take a minute to check out the fly fishing section and chew the fat with Dustin and the other employees.  The way he explained it to me, the more people we get in there, the more cool fly fishing stuff he can order.  

Who wants to go fishing?  I wanna wear this thing out.  


EDIT:  Clif from Lunker Hunt went to the Grand Opening ceremony Wednesday night.  Seems like he came away with a similar opinion of the fly shop and its employees.  Check out his coverage here.