There's More Than One Way To Skin a Cat

In at least some cases, however, there's nothing like the old-school method your dad may have showed you when you were a kid. That's the way it is for Walker Smith of Wired2Fish when it comes to removing the memory from line on a spinning reel.

"It's easy, and it works like a charm," he said.

"First, you remove the spool from the reel. Yes, you'll have to cut your lure off for this one, but it'll be worth it. Cut your line, wind any slack line onto your spool, and use the line clip on the side of the spool to secure your tag end. Once all of the line is secured, unscrew the spool from the body of the reel.

"Take the spool you just removed into your kitchen and run some very warm water over the line for a minute or two. Rotate the spool to make sure all of the line is getting some direct contact with the water. Heating the line like this will remove nearly all of your memory. This means a drastic reduction in wind knots, kinks, line twist, and any other type of line-management issue. In addition, you'll enjoy much longer casts than before. Whether you're casting overhead or skipping a bait underneath overhanging cover, the difference is certainly noticeable.

"Now, this part wasn't in my dad's original lesson over 20 years ago. But, heck, technology and research has come a long way since then. After you're done running water over the spool, I strongly suggest spraying some type of line conditioner on your line before re-rigging everything. In my opinion, this helps your line stay limp longer. It's important to note, however, that I do not use aerosol line conditioners. I've had some bad experiences with it over the years, in regards to line failure. My two personal favorites are Reelsnot and Kevin VanDam's Line and Lure Conditioner. Both are very good, but Reelsnot is certainly slicker.

"When I was young, I fished as a co-angler in a few tournament trails, and I would carry several extra spools of line with me becuase I never could trust the line on my spinning reels. I was terrified of being down a reel or two in the middle of a tournament just because of a random blowup or wind knot. It happened twice, and I vowed never to let it happen again.

This trick I described is the cure to all of those worries. But if you're going on a long fishing trip, and spinning gear is expected to be a part of your arsenal, take a few minutes and do this the night before you hit the water. It will put your mind at ease and result in much longer and more accurate casts. Hope this helps.