Pro Lessons
The Inside Line To Less Twist
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
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Photo: BassFan
Mike Iaconelli said manually closing your bail can help tremendously with line twist.
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It's every angler's nightmare: The bite's red-hot, you cast out your finesse worm, and blammo! – a web of tangled line spills off your spinning reel.
If you claim it's never happened to you, you're either lying, or not a fisherman.
Line twist is something you have to live with when fishing a spinning reel. Modern technology has come a long way in reducing line twist, but it'll still happen.
Former Bassmaster Classic champion and BASS Angler of the Year Mike Iaconelli is widely regarded as one of the best light-line anglers at the tour level. Here are four tips he uses to minimize, and nearly eliminate, line twist.
Tip 1: Bigger Reel
When choosing a spinning reel, Iaconelli always opts for a reel that's one size bigger than the one recommended by the rod manufacturer. Reel sizes are somewhat standard across the major brands, so that simplifies the formula.
Iaconelli said: "You'll do most finesse fishing with a 6 1/2- to 7-foot rod, and most times those rods call for a 2000-size spinning reel. I go one size bigger to a 2500. For a 6 1/2- to 7-foot-plus rod, I'll use a 3000 reel. That really helps with line coil and memory."
Tip 2: Underfill
"On a spinning reel, never fill it to maximum capacity," Iaconelli advised. "I always want to leave an 1/8-inch of the spool empty. And with the oversize reel, you can underfill and get away with it."
Tip 3: Wind Correctly
Don't make the mistake of simply winding the line on a spinning reel as you would with a casting reel, Iaconelli noted. Instead, the line should coil off the face of the line spool, and it should come off the line spool in the opposite direction of how it'll wind onto the spinning reel.
"Most reels put line on clockwise, so you'll want the line spool to be stationary, with the line coming off counterclockwise. Also, as I'm bringing line onto the spool, I bring it through a soft cloth sprayed with either store-bought silicone spray or a specialty fishing-line treatment."
Tip 4: A Good Habit
The above tips are important, Iaconelli said, but he thinks the biggest aid in eliminating line twist is a small, but essential habit he's picked up over the years.
"It's unbelievable how many people don't do it, but I believe the biggest thing you can do to stop line twist is to manually close the bail. If you watch, every time you engage the bail with the reel handle, it throws just a little bit of slack into the spool. That builds up until one time you go to cast and it all comes spilling out of there.
"I not only do that – manually close the bail – but now I've started doing one other small thing, where before I reel I make sure the line's right on the line roller. Just make sure you put your finger there and push the line under the line roller before you reel, and soon it'll become second-nature."
Additional Tips
Here are a few other tips about line choice and care from Iaconelli.
"Try to keep your stored line at room temperature, and out of the direct sun. Don't leave it in the truck all summer, or in the garage all winter."
"If I respool line, I leave about 40 or 50 yards of the previous line on the spool, and tie it to itself with a few overhand knots, then clip the knot as close as I can. This will save you a bunch of line, and money, over time."
"Don't be afraid of fluorocarbon. I can honestly say that for 90% of my spinning, I use Berkley Trilene 100% fluorocarbon. The biggest reason to use fluorocarbon is that it's denser and sinks faster than mono, so it makes finesse baits come alive."
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