Synchronize a levelwind?

[Rancanfish]

Ok is there another way to sync up the line lay with the level wind mechanism, without pulling off the side plate to manually turn the gear?

Just wondering what to if it was to happen and you don't have tools with you.  Or do I have to carry tools?

[Robert Janssen]

Yes. Just keep cranking.

Presuming you unintentionally wound up the tag end on the spool, just keep cranking... the levelwind will keep traversing, turn around, traverse and turn around once more. keep cranking until.... now, when the levelwind and tag end once again meet up.

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[Reel 224]

I'm sure I am missing something here, but just what are you saying....as far as I was concerned the level wind was always synchronized for the line lay on the spool. Are you saying if you have spooled the tag end threw the level wind and want it to match it's position?

[Keta]

Strip off the line and put it back on.

[Rancanfish]

Robert, Ok, that seems really obvious to me now.  I have a tendency to over think things sometimes.

Up late and left my mind behind, lol.   Thanks.

[harryk3616]

if your talking about a penn 9, 109, 209  take the bearing cap off, slide the worm gear out of the gear on the left side, rotate the worm gear with your finger allowing the line guide to move into the position you want it to be, hope were on the same page, good luck

[Reel 224]

There are two types of level wind systems. One that is always engaged whether in free spool or in gear, the other is disengaged when it is in free spool and doesn't align itself with the position of line that has been spooled off when cast. I really don't see the need for this alignment or sync. Pleas enlighten me. I'm confused   

[Robert Janssen]

Robert, Ok, that seems really obvious to me now.  I have a tendency to over think things sometimes.

Up late and left my mind behind, lol.   Thanks.

You're welcome. Its okay; you aren't the first one to wonder.

Everyone else, just try it and see.

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[Keta]

It works until someone winds the reel a few hundred times and gets the bobo deep in the spool.

[alantani]

if it's near the top, i pull the line out until it's on one side or the other, then cut.  then i crank the reel until the leveler is on that side, find the tag end, poke it through the leveler and i'm back in sync!

if it's too far down, then just wind it onto a large plastic spool or another reel, then crank it on. 

and along the same lines, if you don't mind setting things up ahead of time, set up two plastic spools with rod down the middle so you can attach a drill, go through the process twice and you can reverse the line. 

[Rancanfish]

I ended up doing it the way of your first example Alan.  The second reel I had to remove quite a bit more line before I got everything moving the way I wanted.

It's been too many years without fishing all my different systems. I've forgotten a lot. But there's a reason for all this prep......

Ran-Will-fish

[foakes]

On these LWs --

The experts are right -- just pull off the line -- then respool.

The LW will work -- but if the mechanism guide is not lined up with how the line comes on and off of the spool -- the sideways angle will tend to offer more resistance.  And wear will occur due to the sharp angle of the line pressure on the guide.

Best,

Fred

[Rancanfish]

That's right Fred.  I was desperate to avoid that at all costs.  I don't want any problems when I do find time to hit the water.

[Robert Janssen]

...and this is precisely why Alan and myself described the methods outlined above: because they re-synchronize the levelwind with the line on the spool and avoid having the line come off at an angle.

Levelwind reels have been popular since the 1800s. This is not a new question.

Pulling off hundreds of yards of line from a spool is not a very attractive alternative when on the water or at the beach.

I've been using the method above for twentyfive years. It works. That is how it is done.

Admittedly, it wasn't the first thing that came to mind.  It came as the result of standing there in the cold, peeling off line and fussing about,  and thinking that there has to be a better way. And there is.

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