How long does it take for memory to set in when the line is on the reel?
I’ve been rather a minimalist on line care but now paying more attention so I’m wondering if I stretch a line how long before the line develops memory again…no sense wasting a stretch :roll:
I am not sure how long it takes to set in but I do find that a good stretch in the morning will remove the line memory all day, so I tend to do just that, One good line stretch per fishing day.
All the best.
Mike.
Trying a bump…
Duck - maybe the reason no one replied yet is that there is a lot of variation for lines coiling up and kinking.
I use, literally, a couple hundred different lines, mostly plastic and internally braided. Some, like Cortland’s SYLK and the 444 Peach (and Hook & Hackle’s olive) are pretty limp and stay that way. Even in cold weather, which is when many plastic lines get all squirrely.
A generality, despite the big variations in polymer and plasticizers, is that the stiffer the line, the more it will coil up. Another rule is that winding a line tightly and on a small arbor will make a lot of lines get the kinks over a winter or less of disuse. As you might imagine, the tighter you wind the line, the more it will kink - I think if you wind tightly while the line is warm, such as sitting in a hot car, and then store it in cooler temps, such as in a basement, you amplify the coiling.
Some lines, like very early AirFlos and some Masterlines, are so coily I use them mainly in warm weather. Early versions of Cortland 555 and one of the Monic models seem intrinsically prone to kinking.
Sometimes, I get the feeling occasional batches of an otherwise ok line might be more coily. Some lines, like some Masterlines, get limper after a break-in period. On the other hand, some lines (early Corltland 333’s) get stiffer and more coily with age, probably due to plasticizer migration.
Someone else suggested a good stretch each day takes care of the coiling, and that I’ve found generally true.
Then there are situations where your line is developing a spiral kink from a chronic parachuting of your leader-fly setup and repeated false casting.
tl
les
Great read lesyoung, thank you. I have a 555 ghost tip that someone loaned me to try. It’s been spooled wrong…twice, has twists in both directions and when it’s cold I can’t really work with it. Stretching helps but I’m told the mono-core won’t take an over amount of that. I’m serious when I ask, do you think a few seconds in the micro will ‘unset’ this otherwise nearly useless fly line?
Cheers,
MontanaMoose
I bought a Cortland 555 Ghost tip 2 yrs ago. I fought with the coiling for half a season and finally gave up and went back to a 444 Peach. I guess newer is not necessarily better and if something is working fine don’t mess with it.
Regards Mike
Mike,
I tried the Ghost Tip line too and now it is on my weed eater and works great! 
Warren
Ha Ha, I have thought of taking a weedeater to it but not using it in one!! Thanks
Regards Mike
I love Cortland, but I read all sorts of bad things about the 555 clear float and the ghost that I said NEVER MIND! The Clear Camo Intermediate however (though still pig tails) is some of the better out there. And putting it on a Large Arbor helped
I got a Ghost tip early on and memory was terrible.
Somehow I found out that Cortland recognized the problem and would exchange for any of their lines I wanted…send it to them or go through the shop from which I bought it.
My understanding is they have improved…I didn’t get another one though…
MtMoose - if you apply heat, I would do it with something gentle and topical - maybe a hairdryer at a discrete distance, or a low wattage light bulb.
Never tried either, since I believe in having my fish stretch my lines for me. :lol:
However, I guess some lines might be amenable to a little heat and stretching to de-kink themselves.
tl
les
Thanks lesyoung, well, this 555 Ghost has been stretched by some nice lmb’s but it always returns to it’s ‘kinky’ self. I may take the suggestion and install it on a string trimmer. Short of that though I don’t have anything to lose by heating it discretely so I’ll give that a try and will let everyone know ‘what luck’. Thanks sir.
Cheers,
MontanaMoose
MontanaMoose …what I’ve been doing lately is stretching my lines between the railings of my deck…trying to do it on a hot day …and leaving them stretched for a long time…won’t be able to do it much longer here in the NW. 
…guess one could walk along the line with a hair dryer… :idea:
Greetings Duckster…I too am located in the PNW and it’s finally raining here…yes, I tried everything except your and lesyoung’s ideas but I’ll try anything to save the line from the trash bin. Only now I have a nice Royal Wulff Products Triangle Taper Mono Tip and I’m lovin’ it ! It’s low memory and shootability are really impressing me. Thankfully the Cortland 555 Ghost tip was on a ‘try’ basis. The Wulff TTMT is a keeper ! Thanks for the idea, which I will try along with les’ hairdryer suggestion and hey, do you ever get down around Roseburg Duckster? There are a few streams here.
Cheers,
MontanaMoose