How i quit worrying and learned to love the baitcaster

[JonM]

I've been crawling down deeper into this rabbit hole and I decided to mix things up a bit. Spinning reels are great, but I've really been intrigued by baitcasters lately. I decided to bite the bullet and pick one up despite the horror stories and learning curve people kept warning me about. Yeah, the dreaded birdsnest reared its head the first few times I tried it and I had to cut out one really bad knot at one point. However, after learning the reel and figuring out how to dial it in and cast it properly, I can say that I'm not likely to go back to spinners unless I'm casting light. These things are just so comfortable and accurate to cast. It's official. I'm a convert.
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[Spec]

Love them for all those reasons. Accuracy, distance, pleasure of use. But up here it's a little reversed. You go to a spinning reel for heavy stuff. Ie horsing salmon out of rivers and creeks, the brutish work of fishing. Bait casters for joyous light tackle.

[JonM]

Yeah, there isn’t much of that around my neck of the woods. It’s mostly bass, trout, bluegill, and such. I have some ultralight lures that would take some dialing in to cast, but I might be able to send them if I take the brakes off and really dial back the reel tension.

[glaman5266]

I decided to bite the bullet and pick one up despite the horror stories and learning curve people kept warning me about.

I don't think they're that bad. I think it takes some time to get REALLY good with one and I didn't have anything fine-tuned with my first one, but I got casting down pretty quick.

As much as I like my baitcaster I'll always prefer spincasters. I don't usually go for big stuff though.

[JonM]

Most of my initial hesitation was more from people telling horror stories about them than anything. Even the salesman at Bass Pro was asking if I really wanted one as he told me how he wanted to chuck his in the trash at first. What really lowered the learning curve for me was actually a bunch of YouTube videos covering everything from the basics up to more advanced techniques. Instead of heading right out to the lake, I started practicing in the backyard until I got it down.

[Knuckle Dragger]

I gave up on my baitcaster. It’s really smooth and well made, but for the learning curve and just getting out to fish I stuck with spinners. Maybe I should dedicate more time with it.

[JonM]

I took it on as another challenge that would hopefully up my game. Kind of like playing stock class to get better at other styles. I’ve taken to setting up targets in my yard to work on my accuracy while avoiding backlash.

[autococker04]

Great, now I feel like my cheap hobby needs more gear.

[JonM]

Tell me about it. I started out saying I didn’t want to go down another rabbit hole, but here I am.

[zenmic]

This will probably open another can of worms, but this works for me. When I first started with a baitcaster birdnest/backlashing was a pain in the rear for me. The usual cutting the line and tangles from hell. I discovered that if I spool with braid, then it is much easier to untangle the backlash. I have gotten better with my baitcaster, but I still get the occasional backlashes. However, untangling with braid seems to be easier than it was with mono or fluoro and it appears to me that the backlash is not near as bad with braid than with mono or fluoro. I tie in a mono or fluoro leader and lob my bait.

*tosses 0.02 into the kitty*

[JonM]

Oh believe me when I say that I'm already looking down that rabbit hole. I wanted to start with braid, but the guy at Bass Pro convinced me to at least start out with mono until I got the backlash issue down. I figure I'll soon swap the mono out for some 30 lb. braid and see how that goes. The leader is debatable since I seldom fish in crystal clear water. If I use a simple hook, it's typically on a snell and swivel anyway, which should help with shock absorption.

[Junglepeanut]

There is a time and place for both types of reels. If I am freshwater fishing I use baitcasters for swimbaits/heavy jigs/ top water etc and spinners for finesse type stuff or for trout/panfish. As far as braid vs fluoro/mono it really depends on what your using it for. As you get further into that "rabbit hole" you will find you will want at least a setup of each. There are applications where each type of line is preferable. On that note whether it's the top shot on braid or if it's the entire spool go with a good quality fluoro line if your using anything 20 pound or less. It does help and the way I look at it is your spending enough time and money to get a nice setup and fish why try to save a few bucks on one of the most important parts of your rig and buy mono. Just go with the fluoro

[JonM]

There is a time and place for both types of reels. If I am freshwater fishing I use baitcasters for swimbaits/heavy jigs/ top water etc and spinners for finesse type stuff or for trout/panfish. As far as braid vs fluoro/mono it really depends on what your using it for. As you get further into that "rabbit hole" you will find you will want at least a setup of each. There are applications where each type of line is preferable. On that note whether it's the top shot on braid or if it's the entire spool go with a good quality fluoro line if your using anything 20 pound or less. It does help and the way I look at it is your spending enough time and money to get a nice setup and fish why try to save a few bucks on one of the most important parts of your rig and buy mono. Just go with the fluoro

When I hit the water, I actually take two rods with me if my son isn't using one of them. One is a spinner and the other is a casting rod. The spinner has 12 lb. mono and the baitcaster currently has 10 lb. mono on it, but I do have 30 lb. braid on order. I'll be using the 10 lb. mono as backing for the braid to keep the line from spinning on the spool and to take up space since I only ordered 125 yards to start. My spool can hold 150 yards of 30 lb. braid, so by backing it with mono I'll be able to add about 30 yards of mono to fill up the entire spool (if my math and the diameters are reported correctly).

I've tried throwing some ultralight crankbaits with the baitcaster and it didn't perform as well with those. The spinner does just fine with the really light stuff. When fishing the baitcaster, if I'm not throwing crankbaits, I'm at least throwing a hook with a bullet weight. It does just fine on those even with the brakes on a good bit.

[Junglepeanut]

This time of year topwater is by far my favorite thing for bass. Either frogging or poppers is a blast. If I want numbers dropshotting is my most successful technique (spinning rod) and for big fish I love wakebait style swimbaits.

[zenmic]

When I started learning on a baitcaster I spooled it with cheap mono and learned that I HAVE A LOT to learn. Many outtings later being out fished by everybody else of my family and friends, and me discovering new ways to conjugate the f-word, I more or less got it down without backlashing every time. Then life got in the way, and I stopped fishing for years. Fast forward to me being an adult, and getting back into fishing. I knew I wanted to get a baitcaster again, so I decided to buy a cheap one that if I screw it up...I will not cry, not a big lost at all. I got a cheap Abu Garcia Black Max combo, and quite honestly I really like it. It is REALLY forgiving. I had my kayak slip down a hill with the Black Max combo rod in the holder, the damn kayak flip which stopped the bloody thing. I could see the rod take the bend, and I thought for sure the rod snapped. Nope, it was fine. I had read somewhere that braid on a baitcaster was more forgiving. You can use mono for a backing, or the electrical tape method to prevent line slipping. I decided to go with a mono or flouro leader (depending on the conditions) so could have the best of both worlds. Turns out to be a pretty good setup for the way I fish. Nowadays, I do not get hours on the water. I am lucky to get a single hour on the water, so my typical carry is an ultralight spinning/fly rod 6-piece, and I have it paired with a cheap plastic 5wt float fly reel, or a size 50/500 spool ultralight spinning loaded up with cheap 10lbs braid and a cheap 10lbs mono leader. It has worked for me for the last few years.


I love cheap Spiderwire braid paired with cheap Zebco (Walmart special) mono. Easy on the pocketbook when you screw up.

[JonM]

I hear that. I've been spending more time when I'm not on the water practicing different types of casts. I'll still get the occasional backlash if I try something stupid, but for the most part, I'm now at the point where I'm practicing on accuracy rather than basic mechanics.

[Junglepeanut]

Next you gotta get a fly rod....

[JonM]

I typically fish from a sit inside kayak. Trying to fly fish from one of those might be a challenge.

[un2xs]

A trucker friend of mine used to fly fish floating backwards down small streams in an inflatable kayak. It can be done. (Please note that I am not claiming to have done it myself.)

[zenmic]

Quite honestly I have done WAY more fly fishing in Texas than I ever did in California. Horsing in a largemouth on traditional fishing gear is more or less expected. Catching and working a largemouth bass in on a 3wt~5wt fly rod is a whole different story and feeling.

Regardless, practice on the baitcaster and if you are up for trying something different...there is always something else.

[JonM]

Oh damn. This rabbit hole turned into a bottomless pit. I just bought myself a Bonafide fishing boat. 😎