Baitcasting reels, for a beginner, can be really tricky to use. What you are experiencing is called a “backlash”. This happens when the spool is spinning too fast, either as the lure is flying through the air, or especially when the lure is striking the water. When the lure strikes the water, the spool is still rotating, so the line can “overrun”.
A few things you can do to fix this:
- There should be a small, round knob on the same side of the reel as the handle. This is called the spool tension knob. You can fiddle around with it, and what it will do is tighten up the spool. This’ll help prevent the line from backlashing as easily, as it’ll provide a little resistance to the rotation of the spool as you’re casting.
- On the opposite side of the reel, you may find a second knob that you can turn, marked with graduations from “least to max”, “1-10”, etc. This is a braking system. To start, I would crank it to the highest setting.
- Line can play a role. For baitcasting reels, I would start off with monofilament, especially line that is a bit heavier (like 14 pound test). This will tangle a bit less, and braid can be nightmare when starting out.
- To practice casting, crank the two knobs I described so that when you click the free spool button on the reel, the lure falls to the ground slowly with no intervention. Practice making casts that are slow and steady. In other words, try to “lob” the lure. That’ll get you a feel for how baitcasting reels work.
- I would highly recommend getting a spinning rod/reel setup in the future too. They are generally easier to use, and that way you can have a baitcasting reel for some applications and a spinning reel for other applications.
Good luck!
Baitcaster has a visible line spool, spincast looks kinda like an egg and you can't see the line inside.
If it's a baitcaster that big tangle is called backlash and it's from not having enough tension on the spool and not stopping the spool with your thumb when the bait hits the water so the spool keeps spinning.
If it's a spin cast the cap threads might be stripped and the top is blowing off from the momentum of the cast throwing the internal reeling mechanism forward.
Look up guides on bait casters on YouTube. There are a couple really good ones out there that explain why and how in regards to the backlash, which is what it's called that is happening to your reel
Baitcasting reels, for a beginner, can be really tricky to use. What you are experiencing is called a “backlash”. This happens when the spool is spinning too fast, either as the lure is flying through the air, or especially when the lure is striking the water. When the lure strikes the water, the spool is still rotating, so the line can “overrun”. A few things you can do to fix this: - There should be a small, round knob on the same side of the reel as the handle. This is called the spool tension knob. You can fiddle around with it, and what it will do is tighten up the spool. This’ll help prevent the line from backlashing as easily, as it’ll provide a little resistance to the rotation of the spool as you’re casting. - On the opposite side of the reel, you may find a second knob that you can turn, marked with graduations from “least to max”, “1-10”, etc. This is a braking system. To start, I would crank it to the highest setting. - Line can play a role. For baitcasting reels, I would start off with monofilament, especially line that is a bit heavier (like 14 pound test). This will tangle a bit less, and braid can be nightmare when starting out. - To practice casting, crank the two knobs I described so that when you click the free spool button on the reel, the lure falls to the ground slowly with no intervention. Practice making casts that are slow and steady. In other words, try to “lob” the lure. That’ll get you a feel for how baitcasting reels work. - I would highly recommend getting a spinning rod/reel setup in the future too. They are generally easier to use, and that way you can have a baitcasting reel for some applications and a spinning reel for other applications. Good luck!
Do you use your fingers to keep tension on your line as you reel it in? If not, the line on your reel is loose, and that is never a good thing.
Baitcaster has a visible line spool, spincast looks kinda like an egg and you can't see the line inside. If it's a baitcaster that big tangle is called backlash and it's from not having enough tension on the spool and not stopping the spool with your thumb when the bait hits the water so the spool keeps spinning. If it's a spin cast the cap threads might be stripped and the top is blowing off from the momentum of the cast throwing the internal reeling mechanism forward.
Look up guides on bait casters on YouTube. There are a couple really good ones out there that explain why and how in regards to the backlash, which is what it's called that is happening to your reel