TRILENE BIG GAME vs Berkley FireLine: which is safer?

BERKLEY TRILENE BIG GAME is the clear pick. Berkley FireLine carries a failing PFAS grade, and we never recommend buying a failing product.

Our pick

BERKLEY TRILENE BIG GAME

Berkley

TRILENE BIG GAME

PFAS grade

Excellent 85/100

Overall grade

Good 63/100

Verdict

Buy with care

Hazard flags

⚑ 2

Material

monofilament nylon fishing line

Confidence

72%

LikelyUV degradation and embrittlement

PossibleMicroplastic release during use

Berkley FireLine

Berkley FireLine

Berkley FireLine

PFAS grade

Poor 30/100

Overall grade

Bad 0/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

Braided Teflon-family coating composite fishing line

Confidence

68%

LikelyTeflon-family coating environmental persistence

PossibleUndisclosed PFAS additives

ReportedMicrofiber shedding during use and storage

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag UV degradation and embrittlement and Microplastic release during use on the Berkley and not on the Berkley FireLine.
  • We flag Fluoropolymer environmental persistence, Undisclosed PFAS additives and Microfiber shedding during use and storage on the Berkley FireLine and not on the Berkley.
  • The Berkley is monofilament nylon fishing line where the Berkley FireLine is Braided fluoropolymer composite fishing line, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
  • The gap is 55 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Berkley is the one to buy.

Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →

More fishing line: see the full ranking