Old timer told me to stop fighting the seams and I wish I listened sooner

Been installing for about 4 years now and always thought I could stretch away seam peaking if I just pulled harder. Last month a 60 year old guy named Frank watched me fight a bedroom seam for 20 minutes and said "you're making it worse, heat it and backroll instead." I didn't believe him at first but tried it on a lousy olefin carpet and it laid flat perfect on the first try. Has anyone else had someone prove them wrong about seams?

3 comments

3 Comments

mark_price16d ago

I used to think pulling harder fixed everything, but Frank was dead right about that backroll trick.

stellachen16d ago

Whoa wait, backroll trick? Are you telling me I've been white-knuckling it through every single cast for nothing? That's wild. I'm honestly sitting here trying to remember if Frank ever mentioned that to me, because I feel like my whole technique just got exposed. I mean, I always assumed more muscle meant more distance, not that I was fighting the damn line. You're telling me letting the rod do the work actually works better? That's almost too easy to believe, but I guess Frank's got the track record to back it up.

shane_fisher3716d ago

You said "that's almost too easy to believe" and I think that's exactly right. I've seen a lot of guys buy into this "let the rod do the work" stuff and they end up with less control, not more. Frank's a good fisherman, sure, but he's got his way and it isn't the only way. I've been muscling casts my whole life and I outcast most people I know, so I'm not convinced you have to switch. Sometimes putting some real force behind it gives you that extra zip when you need to punch through wind or reach a far bank. The backroll trick sounds like a nice party trick, but if it ain't broke, don't fix it, you know?