When the cold temperatures first set in, most anglers will find themselves thinking its fishing or something else. But really what that means for them, is that once fishing is finished for “their” season, then they have to find something else to occupy themselves.
Well, for passionate anglers there are plenty of duties and chores to do way before they put their gear away for the next season.
The first chore is to remove all the old fishing line from each reel. We hear it all the time. They only caught small fish with that rod, or they only used this rod several times the entire year, or even better yet, this rod was the back up and it never left their truck or even garage. All good excuses but all the same results. Still, all lines were exposed to something whether usage, dirt, environment or other conditions. Any of which can and will affect performance.
In addition, most fishing line companies recommend replacing your line several times per year but at a minimum annually. The elements including salt, sun and impact or stress regardless how strong weakens your line. And at the price of new line verses failure, that compromise is not worth paying.
Next, inspect your rod. Look closely at you guides. If you treated your guides with a cleaner lubricant after each use throughout the year, they should be in good shape. But if you find corrosion or a defect, it needs to be addressed at this time.
While the line is off the reels, is a good time to check the condition of your reels. I usually partially dis-assemble the reels, clean all the parts, and lubricate all the moving parts.
If I find something that is binding or just doesn’t feel or sound right, I schedule an appointment with a local reel repair technician.
The worst time to find out that your gear is now up to the job is when reeling in your first fish of the season.
This is the first of many chores we will need to do before next fishing season. So there is no time like the present to start preparing for next year.
Until Next Time – Tightlines – Capt. Tony