Many fly reels will reel in your shooting line while you are false casting, casting and retrieving. This is more of a problem with heavier tackle making long cast and retrieving energetically. As you cast and rotate the rod, the friction free one way bearing will allow the reel to turn both as you accelerate the back cast and stop the forward cast.
With this simple reel restraint, you can false cast, cast and retrieve all day and your reel will not take in an inch of shooting line. You can quickly lifted it off the reel handle when you need more shooting line out or to reel in line or to yield line to a fish. Then reengage it as needed.
I cast for half a day off the pier, the Lake Trout were not in while I was there. The Reel Leash worked great. Every cast I had just enough shooting line available. When I needed more or wanted less I could flip it off the handle and make the adjustment then lock that back into place.
This was made from the elastic ear loop on a face mask. Plan A:
- Use each tag end to tie an overhand knot over the other tag end.
- Tighten each in turn while pushing the knots towards the tag ends to get the circle as wide as possible.
- Widen the circle so each knot is pulled up against the other.
- Tie an overhand knot in the middle, actually about 60-40 so the wider loop can go around the reel seat stem between the seat feet and the reel frame. You will have to take the reel off the rod and stretch the loop to get two turns over the reel feet.
- Plan B is to use a fly tying bobbin to tie it all together in one operation.
- Form the big circle then grip it around the middle (60-40). Grip it so both tag ends are together parallel at that 60-40 point.
- Now pinch it hard and wrap right against the pinch. Wrap it all together and whip finish it.
