You have to use this a few times to get it to loosen up for casting. The best part is that it has a clip at the end like a real fishing pole so you can attach and other toy with a loop. If you want the cast to work, use a heaver weight toy and make sure it is loosened up. Even if you don’t cast with this, it is nice to have an easily adjustable variable length cat toy. Short for zooming around the living room, longer it I am throwing it down the stairs.