How Often Do You Change Line? 2024

tugsandpulls reply :

how often do you change your mono i fish a lot and beat mine up prettty bad so i change mine like every 2 weeks

nvhsaccel reply :

I wouldn't change every two weeks unless you want to spend a lot of money on line a year. What line are you using?

tomustang reply :

I change when I run down too low, If I had better spots to fish where I would be able to un-snag easier I'd say like 6 months. I use P-Line CX though, not mono

Bassn Blvd reply :

every 2-4 weeks, depends how much fishing i get in during that time.

Elk River reply :

Just when it gets low on the spool. That always happens before it goes bad but I fish snag infested water.

deep reply :

Braid: At the end of each season, I "turn it over". At the end of the second season, I trash it, and respool.

Mono/ copoly: After every three trips or so, earlier if I get a backlash and the line gets kinked up. I do throw some expensive (and heavy) baits, so breaking off on a fish, or casting a bait off is something I want to avoid.

Fluoro: Don't use it.

tugsandpulls reply :

On 3/14/2012 at 12:52 PM, deep said:

Braid: At the end of each season, I "turn it over". At the end of the second season, I trash it, and respool.

Mono/ copoly: After every three trips or so, earlier if I get a backlash and the line gets kinked up. I do throw some expensive (and heavy) baits, so breaking off on a fish, or casting a bait off is something I want to avoid.

Fluoro: Don't use it.

curious why dont you use fluoro i dont either i just dont like the feel

LgMouthGambler reply :

I fish alot, and only change my line when its low, or maybe once a year.

J Francho reply :

KVD Line & Lure Conditioner really helps extend the life of any line type. Depends on the line and what I'm doing. Braid might get reversed or changed out entirely 2-3 times a season. CXX gets changed pretty frequently, maybe every 3 weeks, mostly form getting low from retying. Fluorocarbon usually gets changed once per season, or when it gets low. I am running a little test on one reel: It's been almost three years since I spooled up with 6# Seaguar InvisX, and cannot tell the diffeence between that line and barely used (broken in) line. Seems like fluorocarbon should be the obvious choice for the casual fisherman that might leave his gear sitting weeks at a time.

Goose52 reply :

No set period - it depends upon how much use any one particular reel has had. I'm not one to believe that nylon mono, copolymer, or flouro "goes bad" just being on the reel. Braid never "goes bad" either - it just gets worn out or used up.

I trim back 6" to a foot of line at every retie (sometimes more if I feel abrasion on the line), and may retie multiple times a day. On the reels that I use the most (I fish every day), I might have trimmed-back 20 to 30 yards of line after a month or so and will have to add new line often. Otherwise, I'll only change line if I've had a backlash or other problems that makes the line suspect. I use backing on all reels so I'm only changing the top 70-80 yards of line. Now, if line has been on a reel for a couple years or more (I keep a written record of when the line was installed), I might change the line just for grins, or perhaps to avoid manageability problems related to coiling, but not because I think it's suddenly "gone bad."

roadwarrior reply :

Only "as needed". I generally "tie on" rather than replace. I always like my reels full with

+/- 80 yards of fresh line so I never feel the connecting knot.

deep reply :

On 3/14/2012 at 8:15 PM, tugsandpulls said:

curious why dont you use fluoro i dont either i just dont like the feel

Too expensive, if I factor in the changing out of line every few trips. Plus, the three setups I have mono/ copoly on are all mutipurpose, meaning I fish both sinking and floating baits on them.

J Francho reply :

Deep, read my post. THREE YEARS. That's a cheap spool of quality line, if you look at it that way. Consider too, that is my PRIMARY drop shot rig. Yes, it's been miserably twisted after a long days. Yes, I've caught my personal best smallie, and many others, on that spool of line. Hundreds and hundreds of hours spent fishing that line. Yes, the spool is getting low, but not enough that I'm worried yet. $17 for three years worth of line!

deep reply :

I'm not disagreeing with you J. When I used to run fluoro on my plastics spinning rod, it served me well, and lasted a season before I got tired of it. With baitcasters though, I'm not going to take the risk of fishing with a kinked up line, and I do backlash once every two trips or so. Anyway, I fish both floating and sinking baits on my rods.

Siebert Outdoors reply :

I changed once I start getting to the backing knot, or once every year. Except braid. I havent changed that in 3 yrs.

B@ssCrzy reply :

Mono gets changed every spring...braid only when it gets low.

Hooligan reply :

with most monofilament nylon, I change after each trip, or tournament, typically. With fluorocarbon, rarely, unless it's heavy diameter Abrazx, in which case it will be a couple times a month. Most other fluorocarbons, I don't typically worry about, I generally add backing to fill the spool. Braid, change at least four to five times a year on those rods that I fish it, it's usually due more to fray and abrasion than anything; I'll reverse it every month, usually, and then change it thereafter.

Catt reply :

Right now I'm throwing spinner baits 5-6 hours a day on Berkley Big Game so I'm changing line twice a week on two reels.

flipin4bass reply :

I'm always cutting and retying my baits, so when I see the reel getting low (seeing the spool through the line) then I respool. I think I'm one of TW's prefered customers when it comes to line.

tholmes reply :

On 3/14/2012 at 9:32 PM, roadwarrior said:

Only "as needed". I generally "tie on" rather than replace. I always like my reels full with

+/- 80 yards of fresh line so I never feel the connecting knot.

Same here. The lake that I fish the most is full of rip-rap and brush, so my line takes a pretty good beating. I re-tie often and add new line when I start to see the connecting knot. I want around 80 - 100 yards of new line when the spool is full.

Tom

brushhoggin reply :

glad youre back catt

Diablos reply :

Mono(2x/year)

Floro(1x/year)

Braid(every other year)

I am also an avid saltwater fisherman so changing line can get pretty annoying after doing 18-25 reels.

Bigbarge50 reply :

Have to agree with JFrancho, his times are about the same as mine, except I fish mono now for only topwater, so I do not have to change it that often because right now I have it only on one set up. I do not fish in tournaments, so I can not relate to those who feel to change a

I have been impressed with how a little KVD line conditioner has effected the memory and longevity of my line. It is really a great product.

Fat-G reply :

Usually after every two trips, whether I have caught anything or not.

craww reply :

Mono is 2-3 times a season. Unless a proffesional overun says otherwise lol. I've had braid on a curado for 3 years now and have no need to change. I use 6-8' leaders so I rarely lose line. I'm giving flouro another shot this year, in the past I've never kept it on my reels for very long for a few reasons. Trying a new brand.

FWIW, I've noticed another benefit to KVD L+L, it really seems to help braid keep its color. The line looks the same as when it was spooled 3 years ago.

J Francho reply :

Quote
FWIW, I've noticed another benefit to KVD L+L, it really seems to help braid keep its color.

I've touted this for years, but it seems to fall on deaf ears. Good point!

Hyrule Bass reply :

Wow, some of you really seem to love to WASTE line, then probably complain about the price of it later on. Ive had mono on some of my reels for 4 years and its still as good as new. Line doesnt just all of a sudden go bad the minute you spool it up. it doesnt go bad because its been used a few times. i refuse to respool a reel because a few feet of line got ran over some rocks, or just because it got wet. cut off the abrased portion of line and keep on moving. when the spool gets low then i change line, or if a certain line isnt working too great on a reel, ill change the line. or if i just really want to try some new line ive never tried before. yeah then i will waste a bit of line. i've never had my line dry rot or fade from use or even being spooled up over several years(stored inside). i just think its ridiculous to change lines every two trips, even if youve caught nothing or caught something. But hey, its your money. As for me, most sizes of mono i have, ive had spools of for 3-5 years and there is nothing wrong with them, ive rarely bought line in the last 3 years. and havent had a fish break my line since i hooked a 40+lb flathead on 8lb mono 5-6 years ago

B@ssCrzy reply :

On 3/17/2012 at 12:52 AM, Red Earth said:

Wow, some of you really seem to love to WASTE line, then probably complain about the price of it later on. Ive had mono on some of my reels for 4 years and its still as good as new. Line doesnt just all of a sudden go bad the minute you spool it up. it doesnt go bad because its been used a few times. i refuse to respool a reel because a few feet of line got ran over some rocks, or just because it got wet. cut off the abrased portion of line and keep on moving. when the spool gets low then i change line, or if a certain line isnt working too great on a reel, ill change the line. or if i just really want to try some new line ive never tried before. yeah then i will waste a bit of line. i've never had my line dry rot or fade from use or even being spooled up over several years(stored inside). i just think its ridiculous to change lines every two trips, even if youve caught nothing or caught something. But hey, its your money. As for me, most sizes of mono i have, ive had spools of for 3-5 years and there is nothing wrong with them, ive rarely bought line in the last 3 years. and havent had a fish break my line since i hooked a 40+lb flathead on 8lb mono 5-6 years ago

I agree with you that I don't see a need to change mono line every two weeks, but I have also seen line that is 3-4 years old be much weaker than newer line. 8-9 years ago my wife and I were fishing on a sunken island when we came into a school of 3-4 lb smallmouth. I hooked 3 with no breakoffs, and she hooked 3 but only brought in 1 and had two break-offs. The only difference was that I had just re-spooled. Drag was set light after the first breakoff and still broke another one off. After that I make sure every spring to re-spool. To me it's not worth risking a fish of a life time for $10-$20 per year.

POPRG reply :

And you don't have to strip off the entire spool..leave it 1/3-1/2 full and just re-spool when it gets low.

NCLifetimer reply :

I use backer and about 50-60 yards of flouro on top on most of my rigs. The top line gets changed whenever it gets low to the point where casting is affected, or i start casting out the backer. Usually about 2 months with the occassion backlash/hang factored in.

SirSnookalot reply :

Quote
but I have also seen line that is 3-4 years old be much weaker than newer line.

I needed to respool a convention offshore reel, all I had at home was a 595 yd spool of 25# big game, sitting in my hot Florida garage for 5-6 years. I was hesitant, but the line has been just fine, many cobia caught.

No set pattern to my everyday reels, they all have braid and I never use backing. I've added a bit of line to my freshwater reels every 3-4 months, my saltwater reels get a complete respool when needed. Some combos require a respool much more often, those would be ones where I'm using spoons, fishing over rocks and coral and beaches, certain species are rougher on line too. The combos that are fished in more open water last a good deal time. Offshore, you never know, the line holds up, but I've been spooled about 5 times in the last 2 months.

BASS-Master01 reply :

I change it to much. In tournaments I changed it every time I went out. Most of the time if I'm fishing a lot I change about every 3 to 4 weeks.

Triton21 reply :

When I was tournament fishing I re-spooled the night before the tournament, if it was a 2 or 3 day tournament I re-spooled the night before every day fishing. New line is cheap compared to losing a lunker that would put in me in 1st place. If fun fishing or pre-fishing I don't re-spool until necessary.

Kelley

POPRG reply :

On 3/21/2012 at 2:21 AM, SirSnookalot said:

No set pattern to my everyday reels, they all have braid and I never use backing.

Hey SirSnookalot,

How do you keep the all braid reels from not spinning around the spool arbor? Just wondering because i did that once in my "early braid days" and thought i bought a defective reel!

The line would keep spinning on the spool every time i set up on a fish, and i thought i had a busted drag..i always run at least a few turns of backing/mono on my fresh & saltwater reels.

SirSnookalot reply :

I have never experienced braided line from spinning around the spool, when I read that other people do I'm in bewilderment, it just shouldn't happen. This is the wrong way but I'm mentioning it because I had no problem. I have $30 shakespere for my grandson, I was using it myself the other day and I noticed I just tied the braid to the spool with zero problems, I may have been lucky but the line has been on there a long time and it's fine.

The right way is either using backing or tape on the spool, then tie your knot over the tape, it will not slip. If it does slip you need a better tied knot or a different kind of knot as it is not cinching tight. I use masking tape, some use electrical tape, electrical tape is easier than masking to remove from the spool. I posted a video on how to spool up a spinning reel a few days ago, I'll post it again. This is a very easy video to follow, I think it is explained well too. I use braid all the way, but really for most freshwater fishing it really isn't needed, you aren't using that much line.

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