I am new to fishing and need some help.  I fish with spincasting reels and have a problem with the line twisting and causing a rats nest when I reel in my line after casting.  What causes this problem and is there anything to prevent it?

Welcome!

There are several things that can contribute the the line twist.

Reel mechanics.  The way the reel works induces line twist as it's wrapped onto the spool.  It's helpful to ensure proper tension is on line when cranking lure back.

Line memory.  Line develops memory from just sitting on the spool for some time and can induce line twists as it uncoils from the spool.  Sometimes old line will have more adverse effects.  Solution is simply replace with fresh line, especially for lines with less memory coil effects.

Lure induced line twists.  Sometimes it's the lure or bait that spins and twists the line.  Tying a swivel onto the line infront of the lure helps to reduce line twisting.

There are severeal methods that other people will use to help clear the line twists from their reels.  For example just dangling line behind boat and letting it go out for some distance.  The line twists will unravel itself to an extent.  Then crank up line with line pinched between finger and thumb. 

Another thing to avoid with a spinning or spincasting reel is cranking against the drag. If a fish is taking line, stop reeling and let it run. cranking against the drag is a sure fire recipe for a monster twist! Tom

I would also like to add a couple of things. first along the lines of what slippery bob said with line memory. make sure if your reel was one of the pre spooled reels that you re spool. The line could have been sitting all coiled up on the reel in a warehouse somewere for quite a while. also it is probably not of the best quality. also when you re spool make sure that the new line is coming off of the filler spool and going onto the reel spool in the same direction.
BTW.  welcome to the club and the forum.

Brian

Thanks Brian! I should have metioned that considering I see at least 1 kid down at my local pond fishing with line that comes off the reel like a Slinky 3-4 times a week! I have taken to carrying a spool of 6# mono with me and re-spooling thes kids on the spot. A youngster learning to fish does not need to fight the tackle as well as the fish. Tom

I like spincast reels too, but all have a light drag, so are not what I choose for regular bassin'. I like them for really small lures that don't load the line up well, allowing more moments of excess slack. With a load on the reel, say a 3# bass in heavy weeds, the line is bound to slip quite a lot. Let it run. If you reel while the drag slips the line will twist a lot and give problems with the very next cast. Reeling in that situation does no good anyway, right? Let the fish tire itself out, reel when you can actually take up line. If you keep doing that wrong your line will be very short-lived, hopelessly tangling by setting the twist and coils permanently, even after trialing line a mile or two with nothing in the end. Before giving up on that line flip the spool over.
I got my grand daughters started on spincast and can't get them off them, same for my wife and daughter, so we carry extra spools to avoid losing precious time messing with tangled line.

Jim

Did you mean spinning reels? I can't imagine changing the spool on a spincaster in the field! Tom

Yep, I was talking spincast. Changing spools in the field takes as much time as a levelwind spool which for me is a bit trickier getting line back through the line guide eye, and more time than for a spinning reel spool. I carry a bag full of spare spools for all 3 types of reels, in different line tests and line types, saving me untold hours of lost fishing time.

I can go through the kid's Zebco 33 spool change in my mind right now, being very experienced for that, a certified "Pappy" grandpa. Cut the line, remove bait, discard the cut line properly in a zip lock bag.
Use a coin to loosen the outer cover lock screw.
Unscrew the outer cover (that the line passes through). Wipe clean, make sure the hole is smooth (test with tip of your tongue).
Unscrew the rotator disk (or whatever it's called, the part that takes up line). Inspect for dirt.
Remove the spool lock screw and tab, pull the spool off.
Push new spool on.
Reverse the above steps.
Route the line through the guides and you are ready to tie on a bait. I figure all that takes maybe 5 minutes at most. I've done it sitting in a boat with impatient youngsters all around me. I never fuss at them about anything they do wrong while fishing. Eventually they will begin to work at not messing their line up. It's really nothing to change those spools. It's everything to make every outing a pleasure for all, none discouraged.

In the field I might either need a different line test (i.e. switching from bass to bream) or the present spool has too many loops and tangles in it, taking way too much time to fix when wanting to fish. This is for the Zebco, which I do several times for each of 4 rods in any one fishing trip, and will do until they can do their own or stop messing them up. I carry 2 line tests on 6 extra spools for the Zebcos I bought online years ago for about $1 each. Each is wound nearly full under tension (see the arrow on the spool for direction of winding!), none over-filled. I didn't explain an important item well earlier. Flip the supply spool over while feeding new line on the reel spool to prevent a buildup of coils. If the supply spool is a lot larger than the reel spool, flip the supply spool over when quarter full, again when half full, then a third time when 3/4 full. Put a piece of medical cloth tape over the edge of the spool to keep the line. When the spool is mounted on the reel pull the tape off then replace the spool covers. The tape adhesive isn't strong enough to interfere with line.

Jim

I wish I had had a grandfather with your patience! As much as I love my grandkids, I like to fish also! Tom

I suppose I lack the skill of actually fishing with a boat load of little ones wanting to fish too. Maybe I get very impatient when someone hits my nice rod with their rod, which is inevitable with little ones fishing a few feet away. Or maybe I decided to just pass on fishing while they are there, just being a Pappy. This will pass from my life very soon with great regret. They don't come around often. Every minute two or three rods cross and tangle, and/or lines cross in the water, and I have tangles to deal with. It gets tougher when they bring a friend along that has never fished. I get to fish all I want at night through the week, so it isn't really a sacrifice, and I realize they will grow up to do other things like my daughters did.

We did conquer one cause of line twist by slowing the reeling down, and not panicking when a fish gets on. They are learning to feel when making the bait spin by swimming it too fast. For now I teach them they should not want to feel the bait wiggle, which of course is a fun sensation. Later they will figure out when to speed it up, then I'll break them in on crankbaits. For now we use T-rigged worms and small spinnerbaits for bass and hair jigs or live bait for panfish. When the kids get a little bored they are revived when the outboard cranks up and we let all the lines dangle way behind the boat to be untwisted. After a while we crank it all in and take a nice big ride, then go fishing again. Or maybe getting out to pick up pretty rocks or trash.

Jim

a few things you can to to help eliminate line twist with a spinning real

close the bail buy hand it dose make a difference
don't over spool the line
you can soak the spool in watter to relax the coils

if you have twisted line try taking of all the hardware on the line [ swivels, lure what ever is attached to the line ]
let out the line and drag it behind a boat or let the curent carry it down stream it will untwist the line then wind it back up .