Why do most divers use monofilament nylon, surely it can cut on the reef easier?
Monofilament nylon is better in many areas; it has a much greater breaking strain than the standard polyester of the same diameter. It is easier to handle in the water because it is stiffer than other lines. When firing the gun, the spear with mono nylon will be much faster through the water than that with a polyester multi-fibre line. This is because being a mono fibre, it doesn’t hold water like a multi-filament which would slow the spear down when the gun is fired. With polyester, the knot in the line is also larger than that of a crimp on nylon, therefore the drag is greater. In terms of being cut on reef, the best is to do a test at home with mono line and similar diameter polyester on a very rough rock or sharp surface. We have found mono line to be much better.
