When purchasing equipment for fishing, newcomers to the hobby often wonder whether fishing line comes with their reel or not. If you haven’t fished before, how the line even gets on the reel isn’t readily apparent until you’ve set up a fishing rod yourself.
So do fishing rods come with line? The answer is no, fishing reels, even if sold with an accompanying rod, do not usually come with line. Line is purchased separately and spooled onto the reel and rod prior to fishing. This is because there are many different kinds of line for different kinds of fishing.
If fishing rods don’t come with line, what kind of line should you buy, and how do you get it on the reel? Keep reading to find out the answers to these questions and more.
Fishing Line Comes in Individual Spools
Fishing line has a history that goes back literally thousands of years (there are records of the ancient Egyptians using fishing lines), and it has been made out of all sorts of natural materials in the past, from silk thread to braided horsehair.
However, since the 1950s, fishing line has primarily been manufactured out of synthetic materials such as fluorocarbon or nylon. This has led to the development of super-strong fishing lines capable of handling strikes from large game fish as well as smaller varieties.
Instead of being packaged alongside rod and reels, most fishing line comes packaged in individual spools.
Types of Fishing Line
Because the needs of fishermen vary a lot depending on the kind of fish they’re trying to catch, the location they’re fishing, and the type of rod and reel they’re using, there are three major types of fishing line available:
- Monofilament: Monofilament fishing line (link to Amazon) is easy to see on the water and bends easily, but is the least strong and retains the shape of the spool, which can cause issues with bad tangling.
- Fluorocarbon: Fluorocarbon (click to see on Amazon) is a popular fishing line type because it resists abrasion, making it resistant to damage from being dragged through surf or over rocks in shallow riverbeds. However, its stiff nature makes it difficult to knot properly.
- Braided: Braided fishing line (opens to Amazon) is durable and takes up less room on a spool than other varieties, and it also has little stretch. This fishing line is strong, but easy to see in clear waters, which can spook the fish.
Each of these kinds of fishing line have advantages and disadvantages, depending on the kind of fishing you’re trying to do. A surf fisherman who is fishing from the beach in clear surf waters will be looking for a different kind of fishing line than someone hunting large catfish in a murky pond or river channel.
Choosing What Fishing Line to Buy
You should choose what kind of fishing line you buy to go with your rod and reel based on the kind of fishing you want to do. Here are a few different examples of fishing types and which fishing line would be most appropriate for each:
- Topwater presentations: For fishing with lures that are made to float on the top of the water, monofilament line is the best option because it does not sink and because you see fish strike from the water’s surface, the dampened sensitivity of the fishing line isn’t a problem with detecting a strike.
- Line sensitive fish: For fish that are sensitive to being spooked by seeing fishing lines, such as saltwater game fish that live in clear waters, fluorocarbon lines are a good choice because they are practically invisible in the water.
- Bottom trawling: For bottom trawling larger fish in murky waters such as ponds and lakes, braided line is a good choice because it is strong enough to cut through weeds and other debris in the bottom of the water column.
- Surf fishing: Because surf fishing line has to suffer from a lot of friction due to being tumbled in rough surf on every cast, braided line is best suited for surf fishing because it is durable and can handle the wear and tear associated with this fishing type.
The best way to determine which type of fishing line is the best line to purchase to go with your fishing rod is to determine what kind of fishing you’re going to be doing, and then research what type of fishing line is best for that fish or location.
As most of my fishing is in clear high altitude lakes, my favorite is actually a combination – I prefer spooling the reel with braid and, using a double uni-knot, tag on a fluorocarbon leader.
Fishing line is also categorized by weight, and what weight of fishing line you buy will determine how many pounds of pressure the line can take from a fighting fish without snapping. The larger the fish you’re targeting, the heavier weight of fishing line you’re going to need to successfully bring them in.
A heavier weighted line will also be necessary to fish in areas with heavy cover or vegetation that is likely to snag, as this will prevent the line from being broken in attempts to pull it free.
How to Equip Fishing Line on a Reel
After purchasing a spool of fishing line to go with your rod and reel, you’ll need to load it on the reel before you are able to fish with it. Some outfitters/sporting goods shops will do this for you if you’re purchasing the line from them, but here is a basic procedure for how you go about running line onto a new spinning reel if you want to do it yourself:
- Get your rod and reel together and unpackage your fishing line spool. Make sure you’re working in an area with plenty of light so you can see what you’re doing easily, as it is important to make sure your knots are tight to avoid bird nests and other problems.
- Once you’ve got your spool of fishing line ready to go, run the end of the fishing line through all the guides on the rod and then wrap the tag end around the spool twice to
secure it. - Using an arbor knot, tie a knot in the tag end and wrap the knot around the mainline, then knot it again and pull the knot tight. After fastening the second knot, cut away the line at the tag end until only a fourth of an inch remains above the second knot.
- Close the spinner reel’s bail to engage the reel and start steadily turning the handle to wind fishing line onto the reel. If possible, have another person hold the spool with the front of the spool facing the rod as you reel it in so that you can keep plenty of tension on the line.
Spooling a fishing reel is one of those skills that is a bit more complicated than it seems at first to pull off successfully. It can be difficult to visualize how to do it without actually seeing it done in front of you. If you’re still uncertain about how to spool a reel correctly, here are a few videos with hands-on demonstrations on how to tackle this important fishing skill:
Learning to Use Fishing Line
You’re not likely to find many fishing rods available that already have the line included since there are so many different types and weights of fishing line to choose from, so it’s important to learn how to tie your own fishing rods so that you can tightly spool a reel.
Without learning how to perform this task correctly, you can end up with your line getting either badly tangled up or coming undone from the reel entirely during a cast, so practice this skill until it becomes second nature, and you’ll be able to set up fishing rods anywhere.