[Graham Coles]

Hi everybody I have taken delivery of a wf7 mallard line (my first Barrio line, and I have a funny feeling not my last).
I was going to put it on a cassette today but my wife had other plans for me. I intend doing it tomorrow , Im pretty new to fly fishing and it's going to be the first time I put a line on myself.
I'm okay with attaching it to the backing  and I have bought a fly line winder. Are there any tips and tricks in putting a fly line on and do I need to stretch it.
Thanks in advance.
Graham

[Mike Barrio]

Hi Graham ....... welcome to the forum

No need to stretch the line,  it is just a case of making sure that your reel and the packaging spool are 'in-line' in a straight line when you load your reel, best to have something like a pencil through the packaging spool to help with this and either ask somebody to hold the spool by the pencil in front of your reel, or you can support the pencil between your knees and reel in.

If the packaging spool is laid on the floor and the line then reeled in while it coils over the edge of the stationary spool then this will result in line twist and you don't want that to happen.

Best wishes
Mike

[Graham Coles]

Mike, thanks for the reply and thank you for the prompt delivery of my new line.
I'm looking forward to using it , as stated before I'm  pretty new to fly fishing and have heard good things about your lines. I've bought a fly winder in the hope that it will make the job easier.
Going off topic slightly I have a sinking and intermediate line on spare cassettes. I don't really like fishing with them as I can't seem to get them off the water to recast properly. I see you do a sink tip what would you recommend that be used for. I was thinking of using it for buzzers.
Sorry one more question. Does it make any difference how it comes off the fly winder. Ie from the top or bottom, I thought I read somewhere its best to put it on the reel the way is coiled round the packaging if that makes sense.

[Mike Barrio]

Hi Graham,

Sinking lines can be a bit tricky when you're learning the ropes, it's best to roll cast them to the surface first and then lift into a back cast before they get a chance to sink again. Next time you're out, keep an eye on how other anglers do this.

Yes, a sink tip would be handy for fishing buzzers and perhaps easier to get to grips with than a sinking line ..... and yes, the line will sit better if you can load it in the same direction as it comes off the packaging spool.

Best wishes
Mike

[Jeff Donovan]

Hi Graham & welcome,
as Mike said originally, use a pencil or something similar & wind your line straight onto your fly reel from the packaging spool. To transfer it firstly onto a line winder & then onto your reel is duplicating what you need to be doing in the first place & increasing the chances of line twist.

(edit: line winders are great at the end of the season for taking lines off reels, cleaning & storage.  )

[Mike Barrio]

If it is one like this, you can just put the packaging spool on here instead of using a pencil.

[Mike Barrio]

If it is one like this, then as Jeff said, this would just be a wasted duplication.

[Allan Liddle]

If it is one like this, you can just put the packaging spool on here instead of using a pencil.

Is that not just a photo of your toilet roll holder?