The benefits of silk lines are vast when considering the overall performance of bamboo fly rods. They by far excel in accuracy, loading, and shooting of line. I have pretty much left the world of plastic lines altogether not because of traditional esoterics but because of silks overall performance. It just feels right. The marriage and cadence between fly rod and line is so noticeable that using anything else just does not make a lot of sense to me. The narrow diameter of the line, its overall density, and true to form tapers are much more specific to the very nature of the bamboo fly rod. That said silk lines are no more or less of a hassle to maintain than plastic lines. After about four or five hours of fishing all that is needed is two or three minutes to run a chamois swatch over the casting section of your line. Re-apply the mucilin with your fingers and buff the line lightly with some felt. I get felt at the craft store for about 20 cents a sheet and cut it up into small squares. I carry one or two in my vest along with a swatch of chamois in a small jewelers poly bag (above photo). Silk line if taken care of properly will last indefinitely.
~Clint Bova