i'm looking for a Tokyo hotel and got sidetracked.  Goh.   in Japan, fishing line is sold and categorized by diameter?  Goh is just a random #.  ?

 

from what i can tell, 5 Goh is 16lbs?

 

grams, meters, cm, mm...i got it.  Goh?  rhymes with Huh?  okay, it doesn't.  

Here is the guide line chart I use for diameter and breaking strength, which has been pretty close to accurate. 

 

Some lines there, like YGK Ohdragon, are lower lb strength to diameter than other lines. They note this somehow on the box. 

 

 

Here is an article that explains it. 

 

https://www.jpfishingtacklenews.com/japanese-line-size/?srsltid=AfmBOoorH636aPofMyLmmjRbAuLTBQKYx-Z1v9TJ_E5VivaXOnZvhA7d

 

Gou - - it's traditional silk thread diameter scale.  

Also represented by PE#

It's also the most intelligent way to think about PE braid, things like, what line should I fish, spool capacity, what line does this rod cast best, etc.    

Note that PE#1 is the same diameter as 4-lb mono.  

Japan has a line committee with JAFTMA standard for PE braid:  

A shimano 1520 spool is 200-m capacity w/ PE#1.5

 

0815 spool is 150 m PE#0.8 (killer finesse spool on 3000-size reel)

1215 spool is 150 m PE#1.2, etc.  

You also don't have to remember Gou, just get your mind out of lb-test, and think about braid by PE#