Introduction: Bass anglers in search of not just premium fishing gear, but in particular premium fishing line are already familiar with one upper echelon brand from Japan that is now avaliable in North America, Sunline. But as with most tackle manufacturers within Japan, the battle over the number one spot, at least in the eyes of the consumer, is never cut and dry hence the debates over Shimano vs Daiwa, Megabass vs Evergreen, etc.. There are always at least two. Well, thanks to Blackwater International, there is yet another battle for "best" ready to take place at a waterway near you. Here's a brief synopsis of the premium brand fishing line product brought to us by Blackwater International, Japan's Toray fishing line.
 

Super Hard Strong Fluorocarbon: This 100% Fluorocarbon line was designed by K.Okumura, founder and president of DEPS, as a big bait and heavy cover jig line. The primary intent of this line in K.Okumura's vision was a fluorocarbon product suitable for big wake baits. Retail cost for this line is right around $27 for a 100 meter spool, and it is available in ratings from ten to thirty pound test (30lb test spool is 80 meters).
 

A first generation fluorocarbon, demand for this product is so high in Japan, Toray cannot discontinue production.
 

Superhard Premium-Plus Fluorocarbon: This product is actually a first generation fluorocarbon line still being produced because tournament bass fishermen in Japan demand it. It is considered a multi-purpose fluorocarbon product and is available in ratings from three to twenty pound test. It retails for the median price of $30 for a 100 meter spool.
 

Designed by Toray pro-staff, this is the first fluorocarbon by Toray to be colored for better visibility above water.
 

Solaroam Bass Hi-Class Fluorocarbon: This line was developed by Toray pro-staff and is the first Toray Fluorocarbon product to go through a pigmentation process enroute to coloring the line. It is designed as a more affordable product although the spools are smaller too. A standard 80 meter spool of this product in four to ten pound test has an msrp of fifteen dollars ($15) while a spool of twelve to sixteen pound test has an msrp of seventeen dollars ($17).
 

The Superhard Super Finesse product from Toray is intended, of course, for finesse applications with spinning reels.
 

Superhard Super Finesse Fluorocarbon: As its name implies, this line is designed specifically for finesse applications and for use on spinning reels. It is available in ratings from two to six pound test only with many half steps (e.g. 2.5lb, 3.5lb, etc.). It comes in spools of 100 meters for a retail price of thirty three dollars ($33) per spool.
 

Bawo Superhard Polyamide Plus is a premium grade nylon monofilament designed to fish like braid.
 

Superhard Polyamide Plus Nylon: A premium nylon line designed to be low stretch and therefore, very sensitive. Touted as having very good abrasion resistance and knot strength, it is recommended for hard baits and marketed as having all the positive characteristics of braid with the handling characteristics of a nylon mono. This product is made in a sort of watermelon green color and is available in ratings from four to thirty pound test at a median retail cost of twenty one dollars ($21) per spool of 150 meters (30lb test comes in a spool of 100 meters).
 

Blackwater/Toray's general purpose monofilament is the Solaroam II Super Strong Nylon.
 

Solaroam II Super Strong Nylon: Designed as a general purpose casting line, this 100% nylon product is touted as having a super smooth finish that lends itself well to superior casting performance. It is a mist green color and available in ratings of ten to thirty pounds. All sizes are available in 100 meter spools with a median cost of eighteen dollars ($18) per spool.
 

Designed to perform as its name infers, Shock Leader^TM is designed specifically for saltwater top shot applications but can be used anywhere.
 

Shock Leader 100% Fluorocarbon: Blackwater is also having Toray extrude 100% Fluorocarbon Leader material in twenty five and fifty meter spools rated from fifteen all the way up to one hundred thirty pound test (80, 100 & 130lb test available in 25 meters only). This product is made with saltwater species in mind with the intention of providing just what the name suggests - shock absorbing stretch for hard hitting and long running species. It is intended as a short topshot line but can be applied to any fishing situation where a fluoro leader to braid primary line is beneficial. The fifteen pound test, twenty five meter spool starts at nine dollars ($9) per spool, but the costs quickly ramp up from there.
 

Blackwater/Toray offers a unique, Hollow Braid product and is set to debut their 9-strand braided line in North America during June of 2008.
 

Conclusion: Also in their array of product are some hollow braided lines for saltwater applications ideal for making the connection for top shots, and a new, 8 strand spectra line set to debut in June 2008. These are all super premium products with distribution ramping up across North America. Blackwater's braid, spectra, and fluorocarbon lines are among the most expensive if not the most expensive options on the market today and are that way for a reason. The tooling necessary to produce the lines and lay them onto their product spools nice and even and in a non-crossing manner is quite extensive. The benefit of this even-lay is no flatspots in the lines from criss-crossing which equates to smoother, more consistent performance. Those of us at TackleTour are already familiar with a few of their offerings which have been in process of review for the past year or so. We're set to begin the writeups, so stay tuned for our official ratings on the Blackwater International Toray lines to come.