A spool of nylon string can be used for many things — general crafting, fishing and hunting, and laying mason lines.

When used for masonry, it’s one of the simplest quickest and most accurate ways to create a perfectly straight line.

That’s why a spool of nylon string is often sold as mason’s line — because brick masons use it to get nice straight brick walls. 

The string is easy to unwind off the spool, but it’s not as easy to get back on after you’ve used it.

Winding it by hand back onto the spool can lead to tangles and uneven distribution. And eventually, you’ve got an unusable mess that you have to cut up.

Drill holding a spool of mason line/nylon string by a screw inserted into the handle
Using a power drill to wrap nylon string around a spool will speed up the process and lessen the likelihood of tangles. (3 Echoes Content Studio)

Here’s a much better, and faster, solution:

Take a screw and drive it through the end of the plastic housing that the spool is on. Then, chuck it into a drill. 

Turn on the drill to the lowest setting, and just like that, you can now use the power of the drill to put the line back on the spool. 

It only takes a few seconds to wind the nylon string back onto the spool!

As you’re winding up the nylon string, slowly move it back and forth along the spool.

This way, you don’t overload one side or the other, and the string winds up neatly every time.

Watch the video above to find out more.


Further Reading

Editorial Contributors
avatar for Joe Truini

Joe Truini

Radio Show Co-Host

Joe Truini is a contractor, author, and the host of “Simple Solutions” on Today’s Homeowner TV and the weekly Today’s Homeowner radio show. He has worked on both large commercial projects and residential remodeling, and has written for national publications such as This Old House and Popular Mechanics. He has also written eight books, including three best-selling shed-building books. Joe lives in Connecticut with his family and enjoys hiking, traveling, and baseball in his spare time.

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