Spinning reels started to become popular when Mitchell introduced the Mitchell 300, which soon became the industry standard for the sports fisherman. Easily cranked, the bail closes automatically as you start to wind in your line. The open-faced reel may be prone to more line twists, either due to the spinning action of the lure, or the loose line that can be let loose by a wayward cast, or a cast caught in a heavy wind. But, when fishing for heavier fish (over 3-5 pounds), the spinning reel is the best option for the recreational as well as the professional fisherman, and is mainly used for lure, and lure and bait fishing (like a pickerel harness with a night crawler set on it). The spinning reel is mounted on the bottom of the fishing rod, and the finger holds the line against the fishing rod while the bail is opened. The rod is cast, and as the rod passes over the shoulder, or if cast sideways as the rod passes by the fisherman's body, the finger lets go of the line, and the released bail allows free un-spooling of the line from the reel's spool.
In order to properly use the spinning reel, you must know how to spool a spinning reel. The following will guide you through the process of reloading fishing line onto your spinning reel;
* Unwind the old fishing line from the reel and dispose of it in a recycling manner covered by your local by-laws or fishing regulations. You can save your used line and return it to a fishing supply store for proper recycling.
* Open the bail, which releases the line from the reel.
* Feed the free end of the new fishing line onto the spinning reel by feeding it through the eyelets on the fishing rod, and freeing about 6 to 8 feet of extra line. Open the bale, and tie the free end of the new fishing line onto the fixed spool using a slip knot. Tighten the knot until there is about inch of line from the free end of the knot still exposed from the knot.
* Manually spool about 10 to 15 revolutions of line onto your spool, using a bit of tension.
* With the new fishing line being held underfoot, or using any other method that applies pressure (not too much pressure, just enough to cause a minor amount of friction on the fishing line), close the bale (closing the bale can be done by simply starting to reel the handle), start reeling the new line onto the fishing reel's fixed spool by cranking the handle.
* Reel the new fishing line onto the spool until the spooled line reaches the full line marked on the inside of the spinning reel's spool. Adding too much line only invites the fishing line to twist, knot up, or become loose and not reload onto the reel's spool properly.
* Once the spool is full, stop reeling, and allow about 6 to 8 feet of new fishing line to be free from the top of the fishing rod. This allows you to tie a swivel or lure onto your line.
* Attach a new swivel to the exposed end of the new fishing line. Attach the swivel to the bale arm, and tighten the reel until the line is taught if you are re-spooling at home, or at camp. If you are in the field and re-spooling while fishing, ignore the attaching the swivel to the bale, and simply attach a lure to the swivel and resume fishing.
* If your reel is a two (or more) piece rod, and you are at home or at base camp, take the rod apart, and hold the two pieces together. Tie a rubber band around the two pieces of the fishing rod to keep it together.
You are now ready to start fishing again. If you are re-spooling your reel in the field, there is no need to attach the swivel to the bale, or to take the rod apart and bundle it together with a rubber band. Simply attach your lure to the new swivel, and fish away. If you do not use swivels, tie the exposed end of the new fishing line onto your lure, and resume fishing. This entire process, when you become more proficient with it, should not take any more than about five minutes. Don't forget, as soon as you have hooked your next fish, yell "fish on!", so that any other fishermen in the immediate area can remove their lures and lines from your area, allowing you to fight the fish without getting tangled up in other people's fishing lines. Fish on!