Lake Muskoka/Baitcaster/Bass Opener

[Kasim Baluch]

OK... a couple things.

'm heading off to lake Muskoka for a few nights. I went to le Baron a few days ago and this guy pulled me in hard for my first baitcaster. I'm not sure what make/model it is but its a combo and he told me its a great for a first bait caster and semi-noob-ish bass fisher like me.

I plan on going back to the store and getting another employees advice and seeing where it leads me too. Its only a $70 combo but yah.

This is what I want advice on from you boys... I've googled a ton of it but nothing seems to stick.

I'm Right handed and apparently with a baitcaster you have more of a feel twitching and flipping with your right hand so its better to retrieve with your left.... The things I've had to read so far say it might feel weird at the start but a left handed baitcaster for a right hander is the best way to go.

I feel like I'm ridiculously useless with my left hand with my spinning gear lol but I mean if there was a way to get good with my left hand, fishing is where I should probably start!

Lemme know what you guys think.

Edit: I usually like to fish crankbaits, spinner baits, senkos and topwater from frog to poppers. And bass opener as in the first time i will be out

Thanks in advance!

 

[chalkhorse]

You are going to want to practice a bit in the back yard. The principle is easy. As the spools spinning speed gets to be a little faster than the speed your lure is moving at in a cast, you are going to want to slow it down a bit, so as not to get a bird's nest.

That's the gist of it.

There are two basic mechanical controls on a bait cast reel. Drag and a tension on the spool to control backlash. When adjusted too high, this will drastically shorten your casts. When adjusted too low, you run the risk of your line coming out based on the momentum of your cast. This translates into bird's nests.

Play with this control, starting with the tension set too high and find a balance right for you.

Although counterintuitive to one from a spinning background, in the long run, must people do the left/right switch when bait casting.

When I first took it up, I went almost exclusively to the bait cast, as it is easier to feather your line to make an accurate cast when fishing from a boat or canoe near logs, etc., but you really CAN get similar accuracy faith a spinning reel if it suits feathering from your index finger. I find now that my spinning equipment is my "go to" rig.

Good luck. Its a lot of fun and you get to swear indiscriminately and without consequence for the first month or two.

 

[chalkhorse]

PS. When bait casting, I cast with my right hand, then switch hands, my left holding the rod and my right reeling.

Others may do, well... otherwise.

 

[fishermandan420]

i started "switching" hands when i first got a bc. the next season i decided to learn how to cast without switching. wasnt hard and i never looked back. all the power comes from your bottom hand and the top hand is mostly a fulcrum. even tho i reel a spinning reel and a pin with my left hand, i find it impossible to reel a left-handed bc???

 

[chris f]

i myself like to reel with the left hand and have my right hand holding rod to set the hook, this is what i use for bassin.I also have a baitcaster for chucking hardware for chins and it is the opposite reeling with the right hand and rod in my left hand to set the hook, not what i prefer but the model and size of baitcaster was not available in a lefty model at the time so just have to cast and then switch the rod over to the other hand when reeling back in, bit of a pain but once you get some casts in you adjust to it.

 

[Kasim Baluch]

Thanks for all the responses everyone!

I'll probably look at how I feel with both handles in store, I have no shame haha. In the long run, it seems like switching is a bit of a hassle so probably look to getting a lefty!

Would it matter with senkos and soft plastics? Heard its a lot easy to work them with a spinning set up.