baitcasters

[njbassman]

you will be happy about not having any twist in your line... cuts down on the respooling for sure...

[Moz]

Originally Posted by Lard Almighty

1. DON'T GO CHEAP: You can get away with a $50 spinning reel. A $50 baitcast reel will break faster than you can get it out of the package (I learned this the hard way). I do not buy baitcast reels that have a retail price of less than $100 (sales notwithstanding). With baitcasters you get what you pay for. That being said, most people do not need a $300+ model unless they use it almost every day.

Great advice in all your post Lard but this one I can't agree with enough.

I got my feet wet with baitcasters on an inexpensive Daiwa and it served me well but the reel itself caused so many problems with the wormgear constantly skipping and worse jamming. I felt like I spent more time cleaning the wormgear and oiling it than I did fishing with it and I had zero confidence in using that rod/reel when out on the water.

Last spring I upgraded to a more serious baitcaster reel and rod and it's been pure joy. After the Sands gave me some money (for once!) this past July I replaced the Daiwa on the rod with a Curado as well. I use both those rod set-ups and cast weightless finesse worms with ease.

There's a learning curve with them for sure but an inexpensive reel will make it significantly higher.

[beezer]

I bought a baitcaster after years of being scared of them. I bought a left-handed Curado and put 30 pound braid on it.

I love it and wouldn't use anything else. You get tangles but 98% of them can be pulled out if you are patient. The Curado has an adjustable backlash preventer. You can adjust it up high when you are starting out and then eliminate it once you get some time on it.

I can cast farther and much more accurately with the BC. You control the reel by thumb pressure on the spool. When you see your lure about to hit the water you just apply pressure to the spool and no backlash.

Sometimes when casting off a kayak into a river bank if you see your lure is going into the trees you can just hit the brakes.

[Ol Pedro]

I Inherited my first conventional reel some 50 years ago . It was a Pfleuger knucklebuster on a Kingfisher Octagon Bamboo rod . It had dacron and could cast heavier plugs and bait rigs . I graduated to Penn conventionals for most of my Saltwater applications . As a Teenager I started Worm/jig fishing for Bass and got a Shimano Bantum 1000 used at a Fishing Flea Market and used it for years . When it comes to feel there is nothing like palming a baitcaster with your trigger finger feeling the line under the levelwind . I also line and tip watch but feeling that tap tap is addictive . When accuracy is required the baitcaster wins hands down . The control you have on a hooked fish is also better than spinning .

[tycomps]

I hit the practice pond today to test tackle and the new frog bait caster setup worked great. I set the reel tension via the drop test, cranked up the mag drive so the reel speed never exceeded that of the lure in flight, and always thumbed the spool right before the lure touched down. I can cast my frog 50' further on a frozen rope now with pinpoint accuracy and land it soft which is exactly what I was hoping for. The left hand crank is great for staggering the rate of retrieve along with twitching the rod to create a more natural presentation as well. This was only valid for unrestricted casts and flipping though any situation where my casting arc was limited required the spinning reel.