long casting

[Gfish]

Real emphasis on "limp" for me Dave. Mono coils really get me sometimes. Really doesn't seem to me that my line is that old, either. Could a thorough FW rinse be affecting it?

Still looking for a good Alvey reel—-oriented rod, Don. Suggestions? So, they did go out of business, shame...

I got the "Artfully Tattooed Lady" email, Don, COOOOOL, she's perfect. I will NOT be trashing that one! She stays there right along with my son n' daughter's wedding pictures, as well as grandkid pictures for quick n' easy reference...

[Shellbelly]

I love casting for distance. However it has little place for the actual fishing I do... Jeff

I lean this way as well.  My conditions are the bar and gut bottom surf.  The 2nd gut may be as close as 75 yards or as far as 150.  If you want to go 3rd-bar, you get wet or yak it.  All that distance can be moot if you can read the surf and work the holes.

On the other hand, when you see fish working at 150+ yards, you need the ability to get there..with the right fish-catching stuff on the far end.  That IMO is the 1st variable factor of long casting in actual conditions. 

Casting as far as you can with accuracy is a great skill to have and the equipment always has to be ready for this, but it isn't the primary objective in most of my surf fishing adventures.  I'm targeting the lurkers and prowlers of structure. 

[jurelometer]

Real emphasis on "limp" for me Dave. Mono coils really get me sometimes. Really doesn't seem to me that my line is that old, either. Could a thorough FW rinse be affecting

Water is a plasticizer for nylon.  Getting it wet will make it limper, but only temporarily.  Hence the old timer practice of getting the spool wet before fishing. Nylon absorbs/releases water based on environmental humidity, but the water is not like a solvent or something.

UV damage is what kills mono, but can't remember if it  makes it stiffer/more memory.  Seems possible, as UV susceptible plastics usually lose elasticity with UV degradation.

There is also creep/memory.  Nylon packed on a spool tightly can creep and take a set, which will give you some tight coils.

If you are looking for extra limp mono, Suffix used to make a ridiculously limp product.  It was limp enough to use for shooting lines for fly fishing. You could strip off 70 ft of the stuff and most of it would shoot right through the guides without tangling

If I see a spool of it lying around, I'll post the name.

-J 

[Donnyboat]

Thanks J, very interesting,  from what I understand about nylon, or mono line, it is okay to wind it on tight, when the conditions are cold, as it will stretch as is warms up, now reverse the conditions, wind it on when its warm, it will srink as it gets cold, then it will crush your spool, I could be wrong, cheers Don.

[Cor]

I have used this stuff for many many years and still very happy with it.
Don't know if its the limpest they manufacture.

[Shellbelly]

Hence the old timer practice of getting the spool wet before fishing

I was taught to do this.  The primary reason given to me back then was to prevent thumb smoke....a good motivator for a youngster.

About UV.  I agree it degrades many products.  If you rinse and cover your reels it's minimized.  Given that most reels get hours of exposure (vs months) and don't live outside, it seems that it doesn't take much exposure to degrade mono.  Also, what is the shelf life of new mono?  I haven't looked at a new spool for an expiration date.

[Cor]

Hence the old timer practice of getting the spool wet before fishing

I was taught to do this.  The primary reason given to me back then was to prevent thumb smoke....a good motivator for a youngster.

About UV.  I agree it degrades many products.  If you rinse and cover your reels it's minimized.  Given that most reels get hours of exposure (vs months) and don't live outside, it seems that it doesn't take much exposure to degrade mono.  Also, what is the shelf life of new mono?  I haven't looked at a new spool for an expiration date.

That it burns fingers is very much so and wetting the line reduces that.

I am still using some mono i purchased 15 years ago and have not noticed any degrading.   I do store it in a dark cupboard.

[jurelometer]

I have used this stuff for many many years and still very happy with it.
Don't know if its the limpest they manufacture.

Suffix Elite.  I think it is supposed to be limper than the XL.  Looks like they still make the stuff.  Never fished it on a conventional or spinner, but might be worth a try.

https://www.rapala.com/sufix/monofilament/elite/elite/Elite.html

Thanks J, very interesting,  from what I understand about nylon, or mono line, it is okay to wind it on tight, when the conditions are cold, as it will stretch as is warms up, now reverse the conditions, wind it on when its warm, it will srink as it gets cold, then it will crush your spool, I could be wrong, cheers Don.

I have only experienced spools blowing out on the sides from the line expanding.  Shrinking will pull the line away from the walls, andthe arbor is pretty difficult to crush on a typical conventional.

The problem that I have seen is from the line being wound tightly on a plastic or thin wall stamped metal spool.  The line is elastic, which means that it was stretched, making it thinner, and storing energy in the line like a spring. It will  try to contract back to the original length,  and therefore increase in diameter which  causes the force on the sides of the spool.

Heat makes nylon expand, and cold makes it contract, so the diameter would actually increase  as the reel warmed up.  On the other hand, cold probably temporarily decreases the elasticity, so the line would not stretch as much for the same amount of tension when loading cold.  I would be kind of surprised if normal range of temperature would have a significant effect compared to the line tension, but I have been wrong plenty of times

-J

[jurelometer]

Hence the old timer practice of getting the spool wet before fishing

I was taught to do this.  The primary reason given to me back then was to prevent thumb smoke....a good motivator for a youngster.

Oops.  Forgot all about that.  Must be repressed memories   You are right!  Preventing thumb burn is the major reason for anybody that does not thumb on the spool wall, which is most of us.  Improving casting is a secondary benefit.

About UV.  I agree it degrades many products.  If you rinse and cover your reels it's minimized.  Given that most reels get hours of exposure (vs months) and don't live outside, it seems that it doesn't take much exposure to degrade mono.  Also, what is the shelf life of new mono?  I haven't looked at a new spool for an expiration date.

Discussed here:
https://alantani.com/index.php?msg=423655

[nelz]

Speaking of tournament casters, here's one I had never seen before. Wacky looking thing! One just sold for $900 on ebay.

[Donnyboat]

Sorry nelz, cant tell you much about that mitchell, we may have to lean of Freds knowledge, cheers Don.

[nelz]

Sorry nelz, cant tell you much about that mitchell, we may have to lean of Freds knowledge, cheers Don.

Thanks, not looking for any info, just sharing an interesting find.

[jurelometer]

Sorry nelz, cant tell you much about that mitchell, we may have to lean of Freds knowledge, cheers Don.

Thanks, not looking for any info, just sharing an interesting find.

Definitely interesting.   Had to look this up.

https://www.mitchell-collectors-international.org/articles_mitchell_tournament_1.html

https://www.mitchell-collectors-international.org/articles_mitchell_tournament_2.html

-J

[nelz]

Wow, they have a three-tier one! 

[Gfish]

I have used this stuff for many many years and still very happy with it.
Don't know if its the limpest they manufacture.

Suffix Elite.  I think it is supposed to be limper than the XL.  Looks like they still make the stuff.  Never fished it on a conventional or spinner, but might be worth a try.

https://www.rapala.com/sufix/monofilament/elite/elite/Elite.html

Thanks J, very interesting,  from what I understand about nylon, or mono line, it is okay to wind it on tight, when the conditions are cold, as it will stretch as is warms up, now reverse the conditions, wind it on when its warm, it will srink as it gets cold, then it will crush your spool, I could be wrong, cheers Don.

I have only experienced spools blowing out on the sides from the line expanding.  Shrinking will pull the line away from the walls, andthe arbor is pretty difficult to crush on a typical conventional.

The problem that I have seen is from the line being wound tightly on a plastic or thin wall stamped metal spool.  The line is elastic, which means that it was stretched, making it thinner, and storing energy in the line like a spring. It will  try to contract, and therefore increase in diameter which  causes the force on the sides of the spool.

Heat makes nylon expand, and cold makes it contract, so the diameter would actually increase  as the reel warmed up.  On the other hand, cold probably temporarily decreases the elasticity, so the line would not stretch as much for the same amount of tension when loading cold.  I would be kind of surprised if normal range of temperature would have a significant effect compared to the line tension, but I have been wrong plenty of times

-J

Here's a picture of an unidentified spool that came to me on a used 309. Mystic stated that the 309 did come with a "chromed Bronze" spool as well as others. Maybe this is one of those.  Wonder how it happened. The flanges were fine. It had too much of a frame to flange gap, making me think it might be from a different reel. All the others I've seen on 309's had 29-309 stamped on 'em. Look closely(or enlarge the photo), there's crack all the way across the arbor and on those little flange to arbor parts;