Going to start spoiling my own line. Any tips or tools you would reccomend? I was going to attach the reel to the rod and have my 8 year old hold the spool with a pencil lol.

That'll work fine you can make some setups to do it as well. I made one my junior year of high school on my shop class. A few pieces of scrap wood a carriage bolt and a nut cheap and effective. If anythung you can just run the line through your fingers to keep tension.

For baitcasters, I normally just sit in a chair and hold the spool on a pencil or similar between my feet. I run the line through the first rod guide before tying it to the spool, then reel with one hand and keep line tension with my other hand in front of the reel.

And remember to pull the line from the top side of the spool for a baitcaster.

I actually just bought a container for holding spools of line from Walmart the other day after all this time. It has a hole for each slot the line comes out. I think it cost me $3 or something and actually worked good. The only thing is lots of spools I have are not full size and dont for perfectly in there. Like a spool of power pro for example is smaller but a spool of CXX is the right size. I just put spools in all the slots and it's fine.

A trick is putting the filler spool in a bucket of water or your livewell, run the line between a wet folded terry cloth wash rag for tension...easy for one person to do.

Tom

Going to start spoiling my own line. Any tips or tools you would reccomend? I was going to attach the reel to the rod and have my 8 year old hold the spool with a pencil lol.

Thats how I do it. With braid I like to get it on very tight so go outside and have son hold the spool. I'll walk off 100' and then tell him to grap the spool and dont let go. Start reeling in at tight tension, get to him walk off another 100' repeat process. About 30' in on the second round he lets go and line spews off spool :mad5:  I say a few choice words he says his hand got tired then we continue on. His hand doesnt get tired playing video games 8hrs at a time

I buy filler spools. I open the box and pull the line to the back side coner of the flap. I close the flaps and put the box between my knees while sitting and reel the line on. Kind of like how the power pro easy spool box used to be.

For baitcaasters, I run a pole barn nail through the center hole in the filler spool, clamp the pointed end of the nail in my bench vise, and run the line through a damp rag for tension. Be sure not to overfill the reel. Leave about 1/8" of spool flange showing. 

 

For spinning reels, tie the line from the filler spool to the reel spool with the bail open, close the bail, stand the filler spool on its end and turn a few rounds on the reel. If the line is twisting as you put it on, just turn the filler spool over and staand it on the opposite end. Fill to within 1/16" on the lip of the reel spool. 

 

Tom

Tip....

If you're spooling flouro, or any line for that matter, and you plan on useing a line conditioner product, soak an old nylon sock and run the line through that.

Don't use cotton, you'll use too much and waste it.

Mike

The simplest way is just as you're doin it remembering: to fill a baitacster, line comes off the top of the filler spool and for spinning line comes off the bottom of the filler spool. The other way of doing spinning reels is to be sure the line comes off the fill in the same direction it is wrapped onto the reel spool. In other words, don't wing against the coils coming off the filler.