Why Does My Fishing Line Keep Getting Tangled?
You barely find any angler who hasn’t ever faced tangling issues while fishing. This incident is one of the most frustrating things that can happen anytime. So, after encountering such an event, have you ever asked yourself why does my fishing line keep getting tangled?
There are a few reasons why your fishing line might be twisting up. You are using the wrong line type for your reel, and other causes can lie behind your spooling, casting, and reeling methods and line size.
Anyway, below, we have briefly discussed these causes, added additional reasons, and discussed how you can prevent your line from getting tangled. So, without any more delay, let’s read.
Related Blog: Why Are Fishermen Called Anglers? Read now
The Causes For Line Twisting: Explore All The Possible Reasons
As you know, fishing lines can get twisted due to varied reasons, and we tried to reveal the possible causes below. Let’s read them thoroughly.
01. How You Spool:
The way you spool can be one of the most significant tangling causes. For example, beginner anglers often make the mistake of overfilling their reel’s spool.
Thus, the fishing lines tend to uncoil themselves like a foam, making them more likely to get tangled. Hence, you shouldn’t overfill your spool with fishing lines if you don’t wanna encounter any line-tangling issues.
Instead, you should leave at least a ¼-inch area of your spool empty and try to spool fewer fishing lines. Once you develop your fishing skills, you can fill your spool with as many fishing lines as you need.
02. Line’s Memory:
As an angler, you may know that all fishing lines have some memory, which prevents them from forming new shapes.
For instance, if your fishing line remains coiled for an extended duration, it will maintain its shape when you cast. Hence, the line becomes more likely to get tangled even though you spool your reel and line correctly.
Thus, to avert this problem, we recommend you spool your fishing line a few days before you go fishing rather than spooling the line at night or in the morning of your trip.
Also, before spooling the line, try to keep it in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes. In this way, you will help the fishing line relieve its stress and forget its memory.
03. Using The Wrong Fishing Line:
Indeed, using the wrong fishing line can create havoc during fishing on the shore. Alongside the fishing line, low-quality reels and swivels can also be causes for your line to twist.
Thus, we recommend you keep a reasonable budget and pick the best quality fishing line, reels, rods, spool, etc. We aren’t saying you need to go expensive, but you should avoid picking the cheap and faulty fishing gear.
Anyway, to help you, we found some best items at a reasonable price, and you may check them on Amazon.
So, that’s all the possible reasons for your fishing line to get twisted; now, let’s discuss what precautions you can take to avoid such chaos on the water.
How To Prevent Your Fishing Line From Getting Tangled: The Ultimate Guide
Below, we have shared some of the most well-known and timeless methods to help you resist your fishing line from getting tangled.
01. Stay Away From Casting Into The Wind:
You should avoid casting into the wind if you don’t want your fishing line to get twisted. That said, before launching, try to position yourself in a way so that wind blows on your back instead of your chest.
In short, try to cast with the wind instead of throwing against it. If you can’t launch with the wind, try to cast low to the water’s surface.
02. Be Wise In Casting:
Many anglers believe casting harder is better as they can send the lure as far as possible. But in reality, it’s not a good practice.
Avid anglers cast further using a technique, not by utilizing brute force. Anyway, while casting with exerting such a force, your line becomes prone to be twisted. How?
Well, your fishing line leaves from your spool too quickly and without transferring the required energy to the rod tip. Consequently, the line speed becomes inconsistent, and the line overlaps and twists.
03. Stop Casting Your Leader Line Through The Guides:
You should avoid casting the mainline-connecting knot through the guides on your rod, as it can make contact with the guides.
If you do, it will slow down the speed of your line while casting and can make your fishing line overlap and tangle.
Hence, keep the knot a bit ahead of the rod tip before making any casts. In this way, you can avoid this problem.
04. Shouldn’t Pick Flexible Rod:
If you cast using a flexible rod, its tip may bounce up and down while the fishing line leaves the rod. As a result, it will cause the line to bounce, overlap, and twist.
Hence, try to choose a stiff fishing rod if you want to avert this fishing rod problem.
05. Maintain The Fishing Line’s Tension:
Keeping your line straight and maintaining it while spooling and reeling in is essential to avoid tangling issues.
If you fail to keep the line straight, your fishing line will create a lot of slacks on the water, and when you try to retrieve the line, it will get tangled.
Hence, you can keep the line tension by using your fingers while reeling in to solve the problem. You just need to hold the line along with the rod while reeling in.
However, ensure that you have a cloth or band-aids wrapped with your fingers before holding and reeling in the fishing line.
06. Stop Overfilling The Spool:
Many anglers often overfill their spools with fishing lines, which is why their fishing lines get twisted.
When they overfill their spools and cast their lines, those lines overlap and get tangled. So, the rule of thumb here is to leave at least ¼ inch area empty of your spool.
07. Monitor How Well Your Line Lays On The Spool:
After spooling up your fishing line, you need to check whether it sits correctly in the spool or not. FYI, the fishing line should lay evenly on your spool from top to bottom.
Otherwise, there is a high chance of overlapping and creating slacks when you release the line. And if it overlaps, it will get tangled.
08. Close Your Bail On Time:
You should close your bail when the lure is about to hit the water. Indeed, after casting your fishing line, you need to close the bail using your thumb.
If you don’t, the fishing line will continue to keep coming out of the spool and overlap and, in the end, will get twisted.
09. Avoid Rainbow Cast:
Rainbow casting is one of the reasons for your fishing lines to get tangled. If you don’t know what rainbow cast is, here you go.
A rainbow cast refers to your line form like a rainbow when you cast. Usually, it happens when you cast against the wind.
Anyway, when you apply this casting method, your fishing line may create so many slacks while flying through the air, and in the end, it will get twisted. Hence, it will be better to avoid such kind of casting.
10. Use The Appropriate Lure And Leader Combination:
Many novice anglers make a mistake by not using the right combination of lure and leader. For instance, they choose a heavy lure with a thin leader or use a thick leader with a light lure or bait.
As a result, whenever they cast the fishing line, it tends to have either less resistance or more resistance in the air than needed. Hence, the line overlaps and twists.
That stated you should choose a thick leader, try to choose a heavy lure, and if you use a thin leader, you should pick a light bait. By doing this, you won’t face any tangling issues.
11. Rig The Lure Accurately:
Many lures, especially plastic ones, tend to spin around in the water and make the fishing lines get tangled. So, avid anglers rig their baits accurately to address this issue.
And you should also follow them if you don’t want any mess while fishing. However, if you don’t know how to rig up a plastic lure correctly, you may read this article.
12. Apply The Fishing Line Lubricant:
The last step to follow to prevent your fishing line from getting tangled is to lubricate it correctly with the best-quality fishing line lubricant.
By doing this, you will help the line minimize friction when leaving the spool while you are casting. Another benefit the lubrication will provide you with is that it will help you untie knots effortlessly if somehow your fishing line gets twisted.
Speaking of untying knots, below, we have shared how you can easily untangle a fishing line. Hence, let’s read.
How To Untangle A Fishing Line: Apply The Most Effective Method
Getting your fishing line tangled is an easy process but untangling it isn’t as easy as it seems to be. So, let’s find out how difficult it is and discover the easiest ways to untangle a fishing line.
First of all, you need to figure out the knot area of the line. You need to detach the spool from the fishing rod and gently pull out the fishing line if it’s in the spool.
After reaching the knot on the line, you need to pull out the tangled part slowly and carefully, and it’s more like a start-and-stop technique.
After a couple of pulling, you need to let the line rest for some seconds. By doing this, you will help the fishing lines loosen the knot.
Finally, pull out the line again until you untie the knot entirely. If there are more knots on the line, you need to repeat this untying process for every knot.
However, many tangles tend to be stubborn, and no matter what you do, you can’t just get rid of them. Unfortunately, you need to cut the tangled area in such a case. So, that’s all for how you untie a tangled fishing line.
FAQs:
01. Why Does My Fishing Line Keep Twisting Up?
Your fishing line keeps twisting up due to several reasons. The most significant causes can be the wrong type of fishing line, the way you spool and reel in, your fishing line’s memory, and lastly, the fishing line’s size.
02. What Fishing Line Doesn’t Tangle?
Braided and fluorocarbon fishing lines are less likely to get tangled than monofilament fishing lines. It’s because braided lines consist of multiple strands of material, enabling them to resist twisting. Again, fluorocarbons can prevent tangling because of their high density.
Final Words:
Getting your fishing line tangled while casting or reeling in can be annoying. And untangling the line can be even more of a hassle if you don’t have the patience and required knowledge to untie knots on your line.
However, we have shared everything you need to know about why your fishing line gets tangled, how you can prevent it from twisting, and also how to untangle it effectively. We hope the information will facilitate your fishing journey. For more information about fishing, stay connected and follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Pinterest.
