fly lines (Question from Oz)

[trevorc]

I have been given two fly lines by a mate who has just closed his tackle shop after 19yrs of business. They are a medium green color. The only problem is They have no visible markings on them and the person who gave them to me has no idea what weight they are or if floating or sinking.
Is there any way of telling this info from length and by weighing etc etc.
Both lines are brand new never used but not in any packaging.
Or is the only way to compare to existing lines I have and try in a rod??
Any sugestions welcomed.
Cheers
Trev

[gadabout]

Trev,

I'd say the easiest way is to get an Umpqua fly line scale. This will allow you to weigh the lines and determine the AFTMA line weight. They cost about $20 in the U.S.



[This message has been edited by gadabout (edited 29 April 2006).]

[Marco]

Actually Trev, you hit upon one of my pet peeves. Electrical wiring as small as 20 guage can have printed indentification along it's length so why cannot flyline be similarly marked.It wouldn't have to be along the entire length but..... Granted the wire has a more durable cover on which to print but "shirley" THAT can be overcome by todays technology. I would venture that even with the aforementioned scale, you'd still be guessing at the results.
Sorry bout the slight misdirection from your original post.

Mark

------------------
I'd rather be in Wyoming!

[J Castwell]

Cortland 'Lazer" lines are marked.Toss them in some water,, if the sink or float, that will be a start. Your post office should have some good scales. Measure the first 30 ft. (not including the level tip section) Weight it.

[dudley]

Eye-ball 'em to lines that you know the weights of.
Then try them on some rods.
It doesn't matter how the manufacturer rated the lines,
it's how they work on your rod.

[trevorc]

Thanks for the replies.
I will see if they float or sink and then compare them to my other lines.
As for marking lines I use a method I got from an Aussie fishing mag. It was listed as "Lefty Kreh's simple fly line ID". Using a permanent pen to put marks on the line. Blue for floating and black for sinking. A long mark = 5 and a short mark = 1. So 1 long mark and 2 short marks in blue would add to 7
XXXX X X so a 7 wt floating.
XXXX XXXX X = an 11 wt etc It works well as long as you know what the line is to start with.
Thanks again for the advice.
Cheers
Trev

[gadabout]

If you want the super low cost way of doing it, read the following article: [url=http://www.common-cents.info/part4.pdf:7a03d]http://www.common-cents.info/part4.pdf[/url:7a03d] .

[This message has been edited by gadabout (edited 29 April 2006).]