Fishing is definitely one of the most exciting things you could do with your time. It is the perfect activity to unwind and relax for a bit and forget your troubles, if momentarily. This is why millions of people around the world enjoy fishing and make it a part of their regular schedule. It is also a great way to get some exposure to nature and sunlight, and it would make you appreciate life a lot more.
While there are many things that you need to know to be good at fishing, the trick is in properly storing and maintaining your gear. These tips will help you do just that.
Storage
The best place for your gear
It is crucial that you never store your fishing rods and tackle boxes in the open, whether that is in your garage or in the trunk of your car. This will cause them to rust as soon as there are temperature drops, because the dampness around your gear will quickly start to react and eventually lead to rust. So, you need to store them inside your house, away from all the cold. It is best that you store them in warm areas around your place like closets or any other closed compartments that would protect your fishing gear from rust.
You should avoid using a basement for storage, because those can get pretty cold, too. You should be very careful not to store your gear in extremely hot places, though. So, don’t exactly put them in a box constantly exposed to the sun, because high temperatures can damage and weaken the graphite or fiberglass rods. Room temperature is optimised for the most part.
How to take care of fishing equipment
Your fishing rods need to be stored vertically to avoid having any bends or other problems. You need to also loosen the tension off all your reels because it doesn’t make sense to leave it tightened for a long time. If you go fishing every other month, for example, leaving the reels tightened puts a lot of pressure on the device and can damage it.
Obviously, the type of spinning reels you have will make a huge difference in how long it will last. So, you definitely need to shop around for the best ones available so you could avoid replacing it too soon. You also need to disassemble your rods so you could properly store them, which you need to do in rod sleeves to protect the parts and avoid mismatching the tip and butt sections—yes, it can easily happen if you are not careful.
Maintenance
Cleaning with fresh water
It is important that you rinse your fishing gear in fresh water to remove any dirt or saltwater that might be there. But before you do that you need to remove any hooks or lures on the fishing rod to avoid getting your lines tangled or the hooks hurting you and latching on to everything. When you’re done fishing and cleaning with water, you need to leave your tackle trays and boxes opened in a dry area that is warm, but without direct exposure to sunlight. This is a very important step to evaporate any water trapped inside your bait or trays. Some people want to get this done with as soon as possible, so they use air dryers and dry cloths. The air drying method is the best approach though, and it ensures that your gear will not have any water in the future, which protects the gear from rust.
Lubrication
You will need to dismantle your rod and reels to lubricate the parts to ensure they will work properly, especially if you plan on storing the gear for a while. So, oil the reel handles and hardware, and lubricate any moving parts on the rod in general to avoid having them suffer from corrosion with varying temperatures. After dismantling the rod for cleaning and oiling, you should replace any damaged and worn out parts or springs.
You will also need to replace rusty hooks or sharpen them if they are still usable, and definitely get rid of broken lures. Generally speaking, inspect all your gear regularly to make sure there isn’t any rust –– filet knives, for instance, can easily get dull beyond usage, and you don’t want to be out on a boat with a dull knife.
It is important that you understand how to properly store and look after your fishing gear so you could go out on trips whenever you feel like it. When they are stored properly after maintenance, they will work just fine on your next fishing trip without any complications.
Featured image: TheDigitalWay/Unsplash
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