Kryston

Super-Nova | Merlin | Silkworm | Super-Silk | Snake-bite | Super Mantis | Snyde | Krystonite

Review by Darren Wilson

Kryston are synonymous with the supply & manufacturer of high quality advanced hooklink materials, and have been at the forefront of the market for 20 years. Using only the highest quality materials and workmanship, Kryston have been able to bring developments of angling hooklink materials way ahead of their times, and have also played a huge part in the development of new rigs.

With the vast array of different hooklink materials available within the Kryston range, it is shocking how many anglers do not actually know how or why the very different, but very similar hooklink materials can give the angler a huge advantage over using something that they think “will do”. I have used Kryston hooklink materials for many years now, and they are generally my first choice when thinking about how to approach a new water or situation.

Hopefully this review will give the thinking angler something to work on or allow the angler that “makes do” maybe think about how changing the hooklink material to match the conditions could improve their results and put more fish on the bank.

Kryston Super-Nova

Super-Nova is a camouflaged braided hooklink material that is super supple. When wet, the braid becomes almost as supple as silkweed which to a fish, should present very little danger to even the most wary of fish. Having a green tint to the braided fibres, Super-Nova offers superb camouflage when fishing in or around weed.

When immersed in water, Super-Nova slowly sinks without any additional weight, although running the braid through a block of Heavy Metal to place tiny slithers of the putty onto the braid will enable the braid to sink faster, which offers unrivalled movement in the water itself. If you don’t wish to have a fast sinking hooklink, but still wish for it to sink faster than it does naturally, simply submerging the braid within water, and running your fingers along it to release any minute air bubbles trapped within the fibres will enable Super-Nova to sink slightly faster than normal.
If I am fishing a new water or an area where I am not 100% of the bottom substrate, Super-Nova is my first choice hooklink material. Super-Nova is always present within my rig box.

Super-Nova is available in breaking strains of 12lb, 15lb and 25lb on 20 metre spools.

Kryston Merlin

Merlin is a firm favourite of many carp anglers, both in the UK and overseas. Merlin is a supple braid constructed from Dyneema filaments and Polyester, producing a tough but supple material. Merlin is slightly weighted and sinks very well if any trapped air bubbles in the braided fibres are removed before casting.

The green & white camouflage construction of the braid allows it to blend in well on most bottom substrates along with the suppleness of the fibres, low diameter and high abrasion resistance, making Merlin one of the all time top hooklink material choices. Merlin has a firm place in my rig box, and is used almost as often as Super-Nova is especially when I require the lower breaking strains available for my Tench and Bream angling on weedy summer waters.

Merlin is available in breaking strains of 8lb, 10lb, 12lb, 15lb and 25lb on 20 metre spools.

Kryston Silkworm

Silkworm is probably one of Kryston’s most easily identifiable hooklink materials due to the sheer number of years it has been available to anglers. When first launched in 1990, Silkworm took the specimen angling market by storm as it was super supple, ultra low diameter and silky smooth, compared to the other braided materials available such as Black Spider Dacron and Gudebrod braids.

Silkworm is a neutral buoyancy material which can be made to sink very easily but is also good for fishing in silt. When used in silt, the braid darkens as the silt particles are absorbed into the fibres, as well as remaining super supple, leaving the hook bait to move around like a free offering would. Knot strength is superb with Silkworm as long as the right knots are used. I prefer to use a 5 turn Grinner knot for attaching swivels and the basic knotless knot works very well.

Due to the wide variations of breaking strains available, Silkworm can be used for virtually all braided hooklink tasks, and also for other situations where anglers would shy away from braided hooklink’s due to the diameters. I have used the 4lb and 6lb breaking strains on small rivers in the past for big Roach and Chub with success where a monofilament hooklink has resulted in no bites.

Silkworm is available in 4lb, 6lb, 8lb, 10lb, 12lb, 12lb Ultra Soft, 15lb and 25lb, all on 20 metre spools.

Kryston Super-Silk

Super-Silk is amongst one of the most popular braided hooklink materials due to the wide array of variations that it can be used in. Being of an extremely fine diameter, superb bait and rig presentation is guaranteed when in the water. Super-Silk is also abrasion resilient. Constructed from high strength neutral buoyancy fibres, Super-Silk can be made to sink very easily by running it across Heavy Metal putty or even mud/clay. As Super-Silk is an un-dyed white in colour, it can be easily coloured with marker pens or even the bank-side mud or clay, enabling the angler to pick and choose the exact camouflage that they require for the hooklink.

Available in 14lb and 20lb breaking strains on 20 metre spools.

Kryston Snake-Bite

Kryston market Snake-Bite as “probably the most successful hooklink ever developed”, and who am I to disagree with that statement! Snake-Bite was the very first coated braided hooklink material and opened up a whole new world of rig presentation to the thinking angler. For the first time, a braided hooklink material could be used as combi rigs, stiff rigs and hinge rigs, leaving the only limitation to the anglers’ thoughts, without having to resort to connecting multiple materials together and increasing failure by adding potential weak spots on the hooklink through additional knots.

Since Snake-Bite hit the market, a multitude of similar products soon hit the shelves, and although the others all have their own place within the market, Snake-Bite continued to be as popular as ever due to the multi-layered coating (no less than 24 layers make up the outer coating!), meaning that Snake-Bite was a little more difficult to strip back, but also meant that the coating stayed intact when rubbed against underwater obstructions – where other materials with only a single coating or more easily strippable outer coating could render a hooklink useless after even one cast!

As well as the outer coating being ultra abrasion resilient, the inner braided core is also very abrasion resistant, making Snake-Bite almost the ultimate hooklink material for the thinking angler.

Available in two colours (Weed Green and Gravel Gold) and also in two breaking strains in each colour, 15lb and 25lb. All are provided on handy 20m spools.

Kryston Super Mantis

At first impressions, the angler can be mistaken in thinking that Snake-Bite and Super Mantis are virtually identical in both being coated braids, but that is basically where the similarities end. Super Mantis has been developed to act like a monofilament hooklink but offers the same flexibility in use as a coated braid. The ultra fine braided inner is super supple as well as being very abrasion resistant, whilst the outer coating allows the material to be used straight through like monofilament if required. Due to the nature of Super Mantis, certain knots are recommended for best use with the material. Instead of the standard figure of 8 loop knot or overhand loop knot, best results are obtained by using the “no slip” loop knot (also known as the Rapala knot), to which detailed instructions on how to tie the knot are included in the packaging for the hooklink.
If tied as a straight through rig, with only the hair stripped back, Super Mantis can be easily changed on the bank in seconds to a whole multitude of rig variations simply by breaking the outer coating to create hinges or fully supple sections.

Without any shadow of a doubt, Super Mantis will open a whole new world of rig ideas for the truly thinking angler. Every tackle box should have at least one spool of Super Mantis in it!

Available in 3 colours (Weed Green, Gravel Brown & Dark), as well as in 2 breaking strains of 15lb and 25lb.

Kryston Snyde

As most people will know, I am a firm user of braided mainlines where I can use them, and when I was asked by Ray to try out Kryston Snyde, I must admit I was a little down hearted about it as I have been disappointed so many times by monofilament and co-polymer reel lines having great marketing campaigns and magazine reviews, only to fall flat on their faces when I have used them (some that I have used have not lasted more than a few casts believe it or not!).

When I spooled up the Snyde, I soaked it as per my normal process in hot water for 30 minutes to soften up the material. This I find gives much better line lay on the reel as well as removing a lot of the twist and memory that the line has had put in it when spooled up at the factory. I was impressed by how soft the co-polymer construction of the Snyde became when heated up in the water, and the line lay perfectly on the spool of the reel that I was putting it on. A few hours after loading the reel up, I went back to the reel and pulled the cooled line off it. There was no bedding or coiling of the line as it pulled off the spool straight. VERY IMPRESSIVE!

The next day, myself and Ray went on a 48 hour session at Bluebell Lakes to give a lot of the bits & pieces that we had been sent a full review. From reading the marketing info for Snyde, I was expecting it to sink well and also to give good casting potential for the given diameters. I was not disappointed either. The line sank very well indeed without the need for line sink spray, and also was very abrasion resistant, which was only proved evident when the lake froze and I reeled the line through the ice that had formed around it and no roughing or crimping of the line was evident upon closer inspection.

Casting performance was also very good for its given diameter. I spooled up with the 16lb version that has a stated diameter of 0.40mm. Upon putting it under the digital micrometer I use for checking lines, I was very impressed to find that the stated diameter was exactly what the digital read out said. This was tested at random areas over 20 or so yards of the line I pulled off the spool, and also on line that I pulled off the bulk spool for testing purposes.

What surprised me the most was that the most effective knot for the line was the 5 turn Half Blood Knot! This gave the best knot strength on the lengths of line I tested. Usually with a monofilament line, the use of a Half Blood Knot will cause the line to strangulate itself, causing the knot to break at a much lower strength than say a Grinner or Palomar knot. Because Snyde is not a traditional monofilament, the co-polymer composition of the line allows the “strangulation” to be absorbed by the material thus not creating a weaker join. The best loop knot by far, was again the “no slip” loop or Rapala knot. I can say with certainty that once you have used this knot for any loops, you will not go back to the previous knots that you used.

My final conclusion on Snyde? Well let’s say that unless I am forced in to using braided mainlines, it will be the first choice from now on, and I never thought I would say that!

Krystonite

Following the success of Krystonite Super Mono we are now introducing new 150mt spools to cater for the carp, match carp, pleasure, and all round specialist angler. In the short time Krystonite has been available it has been highly acclaimed by many leading anglers and writers.

By normal mono standards it is unique in many respects. This outstanding hybrid product is manufactured from an extremely high quality clear copolymer, which has then received a fine fluorocarbon coating. Its no great secret that pure fluorocarbon does not cast well also its abrasion resistance leaves a great deal to be desired. 

Do not confuse Krystonite with pure fluorocarbon it is a completely different animal.       

The fluoro coating gives Krystonite two important attributes. First it gives added density ensuring Krystonite readily sinks; secondly, it gives the line extra zip giving the angler vastly increased casting distance.

Anyone who has used this product cannot have failed to notice how quiet the line is during casting. Krystonite effortlessly peels of the spool and runs silently through the rings, in short this mono cast like a dream. 

The end result is a low diameter clear mono combining extreme suppleness with low memory and exceptional strength. Lack of memory coupled with low diameter and fluoro coating means only one thing, the line literally zips through the rings guaranteeing the angler much longer smoother cast. 

When Krystonite first hit the market the first thing many anglers observed was the increase in line bites they were receiving. This was even happening on waters where they had never experienced line bites before. Obviously fish were bumping into Krystonite simply because they could not see it. On crystal clear waters Krystonites superb transparency really does come into a league of its own. Its clarity is there for all to see…except that is, you cannot! Forget your refractive index and other technical jargon this mono has true low visibility and has proved to be so. 

Krystonite is now available in a brand new 6lb version along with 8lb 10lb 12lb and 15lb breaking strains, all on practical 150mt spools. The new one-shot filler spool is tailor made for Mr Average as well as the specialist who fishes anything from close to medium range and is ideal for all river-fishing applications.

This product has already proved itself as a superb hooklength so carp anglers will find the 150mt spool a godsend taking up little valuable space in their tackle box. There are breaking strains to suit whatever species you pursue. Carp, Chub, Tench, Bream, Barbel and Pike are all covered; even Roach are fooled on this superb low diameter mono especially when using the stunning new 6lb version.Premium quality monos on 150mt spools are a rare breed these days and the price for this exceptional product is sure to please many. Fill your boots its an absolute bargain!  

              For info visit www.kryston.com

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