How long does fly line last?

I have a spool of 6 wt. floating line and a spool of 6 wt. intermediate sinking line (which I'm embarrassed to say was never used) that have been boxed and in storage for 10 years now.   Are they any good?

-Allen

Maybe.  UV exposure, dirt, and abrasion are what kills fly lines.  Age doesn't help, but if it has been kept in a box, it might still be ok.

Take it out and examine it pretty closely in the light, make a few tight loops in it and look to see if the coating is cracked.  Run it through your fingers and see if it feels smooth or rough.

If it has no major cracking and is fairly smooth, it should still be fine.  I think you can buy fly line conditioner at fly shops (Cortland includes a little piece of cloth pre-soaked with the stuff w/ new lines).  Run a coat of it all over the line, and you will be good to go.

Cool.  Will try it.  Thanks for the insight.

-Allen

hi folks, new guy here, but way old time feather caster. [ since i was like, 9 .. am now almost 50]

yeah, have had lines last as long as 10 years, but you have to; a. take them out every few months and treat them with line dressing/cleaner..also, cool dry dark place but do not store on a spool!! instead, make large lazy loops hanging from a wooden dowel..this takes the majority of the stress off the outer coatings and also doesn't cause the line to "set' into hard coils.

b. take the darn thing off the reel.. and remove and discard the backing every year..this prevents the reel oils from penetrating the line and backing and aiding that big fish in escaping you by having a weak line. even good backing is cheap, good fly lines arent.
rich

On the backing, I've been using the newer braided lines instead of the traditional dacron. Zero memory, and it seems to last almost forever.
 
I wish I could get my casting lines to last 10 years! The only time that happens, is if I don't use them!

just had a thought..p-line has a new gel spun floating line out designed for ..what else, float fishing.. after having  the new super braids mentioned as a replacement for the old stand by dacron backing, i was wondering if this might also be a viable alternative of new tech replacing old tech.. you can find it listed in the new products section of the current issue of salmon trout and steelhead magazine. it comes in 20-30-50 lb.test. not sure on the size of the spools.

was scrolling thru my book marks and remembered we'd had a discussion of how long did fly line last..well flyanglersonline has a good article on how to maintain a line and what to look for.

here's the site; http://www.flyanglersonline.com/begin/101

and here's the article on line maintenance; http://www.flyanglersonline.com/begin/101/linecare.php

hope this helps
Rich