So Frustrating...

[jason41987]

i was fishing earlier this morning.. i was using a texas rigged worm, and i got a big hit.. so i went to set the hook.. my thumb must have hit the thumb bar and disengaged the reel so on the hook set it backlashed so bad i had to cut the line.. it made me so angry as i spent an hour trying to get it untangled, that hour is when 90% of the biting occurs

 

anyone ever have this happen?.. did i accidently hit the thumb bar or did something else happen i should be aware of so i can avoid doing it again?

 

on the plus side when i decided to pick up the tangled mess and throw it back in the truck, the fish was still on the other end.. idiot swallowed the hook though and it was caught further back than his gills, but with some long fingers i still managed to unhook it and throw him back alive and well

[Stren_g]

Never had that happen, I have tried to set the hook when my drag was really loose for reasons that I can't remember. As for nasty backlashes... When I was first learning to use a baitcaster I threw a 1/2oz spinnerbait pretty hard down the bank of a pond, and on the edge of the bank was a metal pole. My bait nailed it, biggest backlash I've ever seen. I was mad, spent an hour trying to work it out and ended up cutting the line and respooling.

[Bluebasser86]

It happens sometime if your thumb slips off the side of the reel if you palm your reel during the hookset. I've never done that on a hookset but I've hit stuff while bank fishing on my backcast. That blows a reel up about as bad as anything.

[jason41987]

hmm, never had these issues with spinning reels.. i think baitcasters, even the round one i use is just so much more comfortable to use.. but these seemingly random backlashes are a pain in the ass.. i think im going to place an order with abu garcia to order a second spool.. have it spooled up, filled, tape over the line, and toss it in my tackle box so when i backlash that way i can just pop the old spool out, put the new one in, and deal with the backlash later

[loudcherokee]

hmm, never had these issues with spinning reels.. i think baitcasters, even the round one i use is just so much more comfortable to use.. but these seemingly random backlashes are a pain in the ass.. i think im going to place an order with abu garcia to order a second spool.. have it spooled up, filled, tape over the line, and toss it in my tackle box so when i backlash that way i can just pop the old spool out, put the new one in, and deal with the backlash later

that's an excellent idea! I never thought of that.

LC

[stk]

Yeah backlashes are the worst, especially when you've got your lure out there.  I'm so nervous to get a bite when i'm untangling a birdsnest, though it probably makes me fish my stickbait way slower than I normally would.  One thing I've done is straighten out a paperclip and put a little bend on it to pick out the birdsnest.

[Glenn]

I'd fathom a bet you didn't crank the handle after the cast, thus engaging the thumb bar.  I catch myself doing that every now and then. Or sometime I turn the handle, but the thumbar doesn't engage for whatever reason.

[Bankbeater]

I have had the anti reverse turned off on a spinning reel, snagged something behind me while casting, and have forgotten to tighten up my drag when I got out to the lake.  Good job on getting the fish in.

[Ratherbfishing]

 

I'd fathom a bet you didn't crank the handle after the cast, thus engaging the thumb bar.  I catch myself doing that every now and then. Or sometime I turn the handle, but the thumbar doesn't engage for whatever reason.

What he said.

[gallowaypt]

Haven't had that happen but my second time ever fishing with a baitcaster, I would have had 6 good fish but all came unbuttoned when they jumped. I never engage my drag

[ClackerBuzz]

tighten down ur drag.  yes you may shave 15 ft off ur farthest cast but avoiding backlashes means more time fishing.  i loosened mine after mastering my righty cast.  but i was still getting lashes when casting leffty b/c of a jarring swing w/ an abrupt ending. more drag fixed it.  

and it helps with the 'spinnerbait into the wind' learning curve.

also switch to braid. the 'waxy' coating makes it easy to pick out and it doesn't backlash near as easy. and the sensitivity sucks  

[BadContrakt]

I haven't read any of the other replies so if I'm repeating someone's answer I'm sorry but I don't have a lot of time to read read read.

 

Number one rule for accidental spool tangles, backlashes, broken handles, bails, WHATEVER. Always have an extra.

 

It really sucks to get your line tangled and have to fix it. But it sucks even more to get on the water, and then spend your precious time on the water fixing crap you could be fixing at home.

 

When I go out I always always always bring my extra rod all rigged up with a Texas Rig. So let's say I'm pitching around a jig under docks and it gets hooked on the dock, I SET THE HOOK! And find out that it back-lashed because I caught a dock not a fish. Then I can calmly set the rod down and pick up my T-Rig and go on with my day. Then during my lunch break I'll eat some snacks and fix the mess on my spool... Two birds with one stone.

 

Oh and if you don't have an extra rod you could just carry an extra reel spooled up with line if you have one laying around, even if it's not the greatest reel... You can spend the time fishing rather than doing crap work. Reels are easy enough to exchange out if one gets tangled up. If you don't have an extra reel maybe you could just order up a spool for your particular reel and carry that around in the tacklebox with line on it. I have a buddy that does that and it's come in handy 2-3 times already this season. Spools generally aren't too spendy even if you have an expensive ass reel.

 

Always carry backups! Bet you learned your lesson though.

[jhoffman]

drag or spool tension?

[jhoffman]

figuring out how to tame a backlash fast is part of the game

[Mud River Matt]

I had a cheaper reel last year that I always used for my spinnerbaits and when it was dying on me, I would set the hook and get some backlashes. After about the 3rd time of that, I figured the reel was wearing out so I tossed it. Good luck

[bassguytom]

Backlashes are part of the game. They are going to happen at some point no matter how experienced you are. The best way to get a backlash out that I know is after the backlash happens tighten the drag put you thumb on the spool click it down and put pressure on the spool while you turn the handle. Pull line out of the backlash and repeat. Give it a try it works very well. If its really bad I just use another rod.

[jimmykm21]

Sometimes a back lash can happen but I wouldn't spend a hour trying to fix it.

I pickup another rod and continue fishing. The reel can be fixed when I get home.

[jason41987]

now i know why some people carry dental picks when they go fishing.. would be so much easier to loosen a backlash..  and eddie.. i read your post about snagging a bush behind you when casting.. and i was thinking geeze.. id never do that.. and today i did just that. HUGE backlash.. didnt take me long at all to loosen it up though and i got it taken care of.. but it was frustrating..

[jhoffman]

My best way to get out a backlash is to pull line out till I hit it where it stops. Pinch the line and pull strait up from the spool, pull out of the front.

[zwhiten12]

I hate when making a cast and the bait catches a bush behind me and wow

That is the absolute worst!!!!

[zwhiten12]

That has never happened to me but at least you got the fish!!!!

[jason41987]

actually, fishing today, as im learning to cast left handed as well as previously, i could only cast overhand right handed, and side arm right handed away from my body, ive decided to learn how to cast left handed too as im fishing around bushes where this is the only way i can cast.. its a good thing to learn as well.. but anyway, i shanked a cast and instead of going where i was aiming, it went probably 45 degrees to the right and smacked into a big concrete pillar holding the bridge up..  i stopped it before it backlashed though.. lucky me... im getting pretty good at detecking a shank and aborting almost immediately with my thumb

 

in fact.. one time i caught a bush and was able to abort the cast in time before it backlashed

 

kind of off topic, but perhaps one of you could help me with this.. when i cast really hard.. and i mean really gun my line out there to an incredibly distance, my line actually loosens on the spool like its going to backlash, but then straightens out before hitting the water... as it hits the water with a clean tight spool, all should be fine but seeing the line pull up into a bunch mid-flight worries me..is one of my brake/tension settings off? if so, which one, and should it be looser or tighter?