So most reels will automatically cause a little Line twist. But over time, this line twist gets worse on every retrieve
until the dreaded Wind knot occurs. It is important to recognize the causes of this excessive line twist before it
causes a catastrophe!
Visual inspection of a spool from time to time will tell a story...
Twisted line, loose wraps and uneven laying of the line are sure signs of a disaster waiting to happen!
By pulling some line off the spool and allowing it to lie slack, will also give important pointers of how twisted the
line already is...
Equipment Quality
The quality of the reel plays a large part in preventing these tangles in braid.
Newer, better quality reels have a few features that are designed to minimize the problem.
* The spool is slightly tapered towards the front, causing a cone angle that allows line to flow freely off the spool
when casting.
* Many of the better reels now come with additional washers than can be added underneath the spool, to the
spool drive shaft - these can vary the angle of laying down line on the spool. A cone taper is optimal.
* A long distance spool with a Tapered cone, showing correct line lay and the criss cross wrap of the Shimano
Aero Wrap system.
* The lip of the spool also has a taper on it, so that the line can run smoothly off the spool without being
hindered by the lip.
* Most of the good reels have the Auto-bail reset function removed from it.
The auto bail reset function is the mechanism that causes the reel's bail arm to engage or click back over once the
reel handle is turned.
What happens with this mechanism, is that once a cast is made, there is a certain amount of slack line that
develops once the lure hits the water. If the handle is now turned, the bail arm snaps over closed, and the loose
loop of line is now wound onto the reel diagonally across the spool.
On the next cast, this loose loop of line causes a snag and a tangle will result.
It is advisable to have this function removed from your reel to stop this from happening.
Get into the habit of manually clicking over the bail arm as your lure hits the water. This ensures that the line is
always kept under tension and that no loose loops are made on the reel - these loose loops are a disaster waiting
to happen!.
In some of the cheaper reels, the force of the cast will cause the reel handle to move slightly forward, causing the
bail arm to snap closed in mid-cast... when this happens you can say good bye to your lure, your leader and a
portion of your expensive braid! This is called a snap off.
This slack line can get snagged. If this happens, the cone angle of the line being laid down on the reel will be
altered.
The line will most often not be laid all the way to the top (under the lip) and will overlay too much on the bottom of
the spool, leaving a bulge of line at the bottom of the spool - this overlaying will result in line slipping off the curve
created and a tangle will result on the next cast.
After every cast and retrieve, visually inspect the spool for line piling up in the wrong place, for diagonal loops and
that the line is laying properly in the trough of the Line roller.
Swivels
Some anglers swear by swivels, maintaining that it helps prevent line twist - the swivel twists rather than the line.
This is all good and well, however one needs to be very careful with the quality of the swivel and the size.
The lighter line braids will not put enough torque onto an oversized swivel and therefore it will not turn.
Rule of thumb is that the swivel wire should be a similar thickness to your braid diameter... ie: small!
Because the swivels that will work properly with light braid are therefore very small, they need to be high quality to
prevent breakage under strain.
Barrel swivels in this instance are not good enough. One needs to invest in good quality power swivels.
Fish taking line on drag
The quickest way to mess your entire spool up with Line twist is to turn the handle while the reel is going
backwards in reverse. ie: if a fish is taking line, DO NOT reel while the spool is moving. Each wind of the handle will
put on average 5 twists into the line!
Lures
Not all lures swim the way they are supposed to. Some, like spoons, will turn round and round in the water causing
Line twist. This is where a decent swivel will help to minimize the problem.
I am told that trolling a lure at the incorrect speed will cause the same problem in an offshore setting.
It is always a good idea to inspect the action of a lure at different speeds of retrieve to see how the speed affects
the action.
Removing line twist
On a boat, this is easy... just lay the line out behind the boat (without any lure or weight attached) and let it unwrap
itself as the boat moves forward.
In a Rock and Surf situation, it becomes more difficult.
You need to lay the line out into water, while walking along the beach, dragging it along as if it were being trolled.
Keep laying the line out until the line twist is removed.
Make sure that on retrieval, that the line line is reeled back under a little tension between your thumb and
forefinger.
Another method that is fairly successful Tie a swivel to a tree and then attach the line, walk backwards letting line off the reel.
Every 5 metres or so, take hold of the line and let it form a loop below the reel with no tension. If there is twist keep
walking back (with a bit of tension on the line, so that the swivel will unspin the line twist) until the line does not
form a twist when tested.
Then using a cloth, pinch the line between your thumb and forefinger, and wind it back on the reel, keeping the line
under tension as you move forward. This method works best if you use a good quality ball-bearing swivel.
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Re: LINE TWIST - Taking control of line twist and Wind knots.
Reply #1 on: January 24, 2011, 04:46:46 pm
Quote
In conclusion, Line-twist is one of those problems that usually arises when some attention to the details of using a
Spinning reel is ignored.
Hopefully, this article will help someone out there to have a more hassle free fishing experience, and to beat the
dreaded curse of the Wind Knot!
Best fishes!