Line tangling

[Gray Hill]

Hi all,

 

I recently got into fishing and when I was putting my line on my new reel it took me probably 5 tries to finally get it. It kept tangling no matter what I did. After putting the line on the reel, I've been fishing several times. Today I had a bass and no matter how much I reeled the fish in, I wasn't making any progress. The line wouldn't reel in, rather it kept twisting on itself. Even when I wasn't reeling a fish in, the line would come off the spool. I did the trick where you put the spool full of line in warm water for a few minutes to get rid of it's memory after you've filled your reel with line, but it doesn't seem to have helped. Any suggestions? 

 

Thanks 

[MN Fisher]

Question 1: Baitcaster or Spinning?

Question 2: Did you secure the end of the line to the spool with an Arbor Knot or some other way?

Question 3: When spooling the line, did you align the source with the reel-spool so that it goes on the spool the same way it comes off the source?

[Gray Hill]

1. Spinning

2. I did a double knot and put a little piece of tape over it. (Per a YouTube video)

3. Yes 

[Hammer 4]

What brand line.

What is the lb of it.

And, is it mono or fluro..?

Lastly, when you spooled the line on, did you keep some tension on the line so it laid flat..?

[MN Fisher]

2 minutes ago, Gray Hill said:

1. Spinning

Okay - spinning reels are MUCH more prone to line-twist than BCs. Sometimes it's unavoidable, but there are things you can do to mitigate it.

 - Don't back-reel - let the drag do it's work.

 - Treat the line with a good conditioner - I prefer KVD, others may suggest something else

 - If you're using inline spinners (Mepps, Blue Fox, etc) use a swivel - otherwise don't use one.

2 minutes ago, Gray Hill said:

2. I did a double knot and put a little piece of tape over it. (Per a YouTube video)

Regular double overhand - like a Scout square knot? Unless you're real careful, it might not tighten on the spool properly. I always use an Arbor Knot, never have to tape or secure it with more than just the knot, and I run mono, hybrid and braid.

4 minutes ago, Gray Hill said:

3. Yes 

Did you make sure there was tension on the line when spooling it up?

[Gray Hill]

Trilene XL smooth casting

12lb

mono

My first attempts at putting the line on I kept tension but every time it would twist on itself. Some attempts I the spool was on one side and some attempts it was on the opposite side to see if that would help. My “successful” attempt, the spool was on the correct side. I will say I didn’t have as much tension bc as soon as I used some tension it would tangle. My gut says it’s probably not on tight enough. 
the knot was two regular overhand knots. I know it’s not the best, for this situation. 

[MN Fisher]

I've used XL in the past - it's a good line, not the greatest, but I didn't have the issues you're having.

 

I would suggest stripping the line off - yes, you can save and re-use it.

 

Tie it on with an Arbor Knot -

 

Re-spool it keeping tension on the line...if it starts tangling - work the tangle out. If it starts twisting, turn the source around to remove the twist. Always keep the tension on.

 

I'm sure the slippage you're getting is because the line is loose on the spool.

 

1 hour ago, Gray Hill said:

I did the trick where you put the spool full of line in warm water for a few minutes to get rid of it's memory after you've filled your reel with line, but it doesn't seem to have helped.

If you're going to use the hot-water trick...make sure it's HOT water - not boiling but hotter than you'd be comfortable sticking your hand into for more than a couple seconds.

[Hammer 4]

If you have a size 2500 reel, 12 lb is going to be a bit to heavy for that reel. Drop down to 8 or 10 lb. I never went above 8 lb on my spinning reels..and caught some fairly good bass on it, for years.

 

Make sure to spool the line so it comes off the spool counter clock wise..

[MN Fisher]

1 minute ago, Hammer 4 said:

If you have a size 2500 reel, 12 lb is going to be a bit to heavy for that reel. Drop down to 8 or 10 lb. I never went above 8 lb on my spinning reels..and caught some fairly good bass on it, for years.

Ya - smaller spools need lighter line - which reel are you using?

[Gray Hill]

The reel is a Okuma Stratus VI Spinning Reel, size 3000

[Hammer 4]

2 minutes ago, Gray Hill said:

The reel is a Okuma Stratus VI Spinning Reel, size 3000

 

I have a 3000, and still would not go any heavier than 10 lb test. Keep in mind, different brands in 10 lb will have different diameters, try to use something in the middle. 

[MN Fisher]

2 minutes ago, Gray Hill said:

The reel is a Okuma Stratus VI Spinning Reel, size 3000

Decent reel - made by Okuma for Dicks Sporting Goods.

 

3000 size should handle 12# - I'm running 10# Yo-Zuri Hybrid (12# diameter) on my Pflueger Trion-35...which is 3000 size (close enough) and rarely have issues.

[Gray Hill]

Gotcha, I think I'll give 10lb a try, anything has to be better than my current situation. I'll look into the Yo-Zuri Hybrid, ya'll have another other suggestions for line?

[MN Fisher]

2 minutes ago, Gray Hill said:

Gotcha, I think I'll give 10lb a try, anything has to be better than my current situation. I'll look into the Yo-Zuri Hybrid, ya'll have another other suggestions for line?

I would hold off on the Yo-Zuri for a bit...get use to casting with mono first. Hybrid is it's own special 'animal' and almost requires use of a line conditioner - the hot-water treatment isn't sufficient.

[Hammer 4]

1 minute ago, Gray Hill said:

Gotcha, I think I'll give 10lb a try, anything has to be better than my current situation. I'll look into the Yo-Zuri Hybrid, ya'll have another other suggestions for line?

Try some Sufix Elite mono..very soft and virtually no memory, and it's not expensive. TW carries it.. 

[Gray Hill]

6 minutes ago, Hammer 4 said:

Try some Sufix Elite mono..very soft and virtually no memory, and it's not expensive. TW carries it.. 

Have any tips for color? 

[MN Fisher]

3 minutes ago, Gray Hill said:

Have any tips for color? 

I use lo-vis green for general use.

[Hammer 4]

3 minutes ago, Gray Hill said:

Have any tips for color? 

I use the camo, cuz it blends well with our stained water..

[Gray Hill]

Awesome, thank you guys. This was so helpful. Have a good rest of y'alls weekend!

[papajoe222]

before you go wasting money on new line try two things.  First go outside and walk off about 150ft of line in the grass.  Now, with your rod tip pointed down, walk away while dragging the line thru the grass for about 150ft. Stop, and with your rod tip down slowly reel holding the line between your fingers about a foot in front of the reel.  This will take out the majority of twist. You can do it again if needed.  Second check your drag setting. Reeling and not taking up any line either means your line isn't secured to the reel spool, or your drag setting is too loose. 

[scaleface]

 

9 hours ago, papajoe222 said:

First go outside and walk off about 150ft of line in the grass.  Now, with your rod tip pointed down, walk away while dragging the line thru the grass for about 150ft. Stop, and with your rod tip down slowly reel holding the line between your fingers about a foot in front of the reel.  This will take out the majority of twist. You can do it again if needed. 

  I do it with a freshly wound spool and walk it all off   in the grass ..

[MGF]

It sounds like the drag was just slipping. If the drag is set too, you won't get the fish in.

 

Also, if you put too much line on the spool it will tend to come off on it's own 

[dodgeguy]

i agree your drag is loose. get sufix elite in 8lb or use braid.

[NHBull]

Talking through  the grass is good, getting on a boat is better.

 

A couple times a year I drag all my spinning rigs on my way back to the dock.

 

[Glenn]

3 hours ago, MGF said:

It sounds like the drag was just slipping. If the drag is set too, you won't get the fish in.

 

Also, if you put too much line on the spool it will tend to come off on it's own 

^^ This!^^