so, i made a mistake it seems… i stored my fly line on the reel, (loosely) in my shed over winter. when i pulled my rod out for the year, the line just coiled off the reel… whats a good suggestion for stretching the line to remove the memory?
this is my second year fly fishing, and i dont really want to go out and purchase another line... also, late fall last year i was fishing in a quarry behind my house, the water was a bit murky from the leaves.... i then realized they were walnut. i tried cleaning my line countless times, but it seems the walnut juice just wont let go...(running the line through warm water with dawn dish soap, and allowing to soak)
Spoof, try a Magic Eraser to clean the line. If it doesn’t work nothing will. I stretch my line by looping it around my trailer hitch and pulling it a few times before I head to the stream. Seems to help.
I also loop my line around a fence post or a tree with smooth bark, walk back until I’m about 35 feet from the tree and slowly stretch the line, hold it stretched for about 10 seconds and slowly release the tension. For leaders, I simply stretch it between my hands, pull it taunt, again hold it for 10 seconds or so and slowly release it. This seems to work great for me. Jim Smith
Try pulling the line through your hand while holding while holding it tightly enough to generate some heat from friction. This should make the line more pliable and allow you to straighten it.
using dawn probably ruined the line in some way. If you wash a line only use ivory soap, NO DETERGENTS…I would not use the eraser on it unless its one of the newer high end lines where the finish is the same all the way through the line diameter. Walnut is pretty much a permanent stain…
Think of it as a camouflaged line. Some people go out of their way to buy one. The color will make absolutely no difference to the fish.
You may want to lay the line out in the warm sun for a bit before yu try any of the stretching procedures already suggested. n my experience, some lines are more sensitive to cold temperatures than others.I
i dont mind the color, i assumed the line was stained permanently… the issue is the line has debris in the pours, im assuming from the walnut…water… the first 2 1/2 feet sink, and ive noticed significant “lag,” in the casting…
as for camo line… neon yellow… soooo much better now… lol
I wouldn’t go overboard with the strething routine. I have seen lines where the core stretches but the floating sleave eventually retracts to ‘normal’ and the line becomes curly. I have left my lines on the reel at the cottage over winter and they are fine in the spring when I return and the weather is WARM. I would just put the line in some warm water and then lay out or put over a couple of doorknobs in loose loops.
As far as cleaning, I suggest some warm water, soap, and a soft sponge. The sponge should pick off some dirt but not srape off the finish. I guess in the worst case you have a sink-tip line and have learned a lesson to clean after every trip. Cheers.