Baitcasting Tips for a Newbie?

[SigFan07]

I bought my first baitcaster reel and a rod today at Walmart. Yeah, the reel was only $40 but I'm a newbie to fishing. Iv'e not been fishing since I was a kid. I have bought a couple of books on fishing and one says baitcasting takes a lot of practice.

So, do any of you use baitcasting reels and do you have any tips for a newbie? I was practicing this evening and I had on a practice plug that weighs 3/8oz. I can cast it out and use my thumb to keep from getting any backlashes half the time. But half the time I do get small backlashes. I'm up for the challenge. I like to fly R.C. planes and gliders so I like using my fingers.

Anyway, it sure is fun going outside practicing with my new rod and reel!

 

[Shadow8088]

I ran into my first baitcaster giving me bird's nests almost every single cast.. I've kinda put it on the shelf until I can convince myself to go buy the braided stuff... monofilament and me just don't mix.

 

[bmbutch]

Adjust the brake until the lure you are using just barely drops when you release the reel.

Hold rod @ 45, release reel (button, not the actual reel), adjust brake until lure starts slowly dropping, or until it almost stops (if it drops @ button release). You might even adjust a bit more until you get better.

Hope that makes sense.

 

[Fishersjohn48]

I ran into my first baitcaster giving me bird's nests almost every single cast.. I've kinda put it on the shelf until I can convince myself to go buy the braided stuff... monofilament and me just don't mix.

You think mono is bad and you want to switch to braid? No NO NO. Save your money and learn on the mono. You get a birdsnest in braid and it's scissors time.

 

[rjc2rjc]

The one thing that does help is to make sure the reel dosent back spin. ( thats what i call it) what i mean by this is. Does the crank go backwards some befor it catches.
the other thing to do is set the reel so that if you point the rod tip at say 1 o'clock and hit the release button. what ever wieght lure you are using when it hits the floor the spool should stop.
the other thing that helps is to watch your lure when you cast. when it hits the water i press my thumb on the spool and stop it.
the last thing you should do is keep fishing lin with you and be prepaird to cut and respool untill you get it down. it takes practice. even the pros get birds nests. its going to happen no matter what.

 

[Shadow8088]

I've been an ultra-light spincast trout fisherman since I was around 11 (26 years.. yikes) however, I'm also used to fast moving streams (I'm from Northeast Pennsylvania originally) so the sluggish water Indiana calls trout streams are completely lost on me. I switched to the braided spiderwire about 8 years ago, and never looked back... figured switching to it on the baitcast would solve my problem... I also fly fish, but have had NO luck in Indiana with it... Haven't given up.. just have to find the right place to do it.. (I'm up in NWI)

sorry for the

 

[kludge]

change species. fly fishing for bluegills is serious fun.

 

[rgrimm01]

change species. Fly fishing for bluegills and bass is serious fun.

The bluegill, warmouth, crappie and red ear are indeed a lot of fun. Then there are the times when you catch the hogs, with their quarter sized eyes, in the bushes...

I have never been bitten by the bait caster bug. They seem to be the perfect tool to winch the big boys from the deep waters. I remember watching dad fight the old ambassadors. It seems like there was something of a correlation between the cost of the b-caster and serenity.

 

[MML]

For starters adjust your spool speed to match your lure weight, after depressing the cast button the lure should drop very slowly. When you cast keep your thumb on the spool but do not apply any pressure as the lure gets closer to your target area apply a small amount of pressure on the spool just before the lure hits the water stop the spool with your thumb. With a little practice accuracy will improve and you find yourself using nothing but bait casters.

Good luck

 

[voodoo304]

Tip of the day- tie on a 1oz weight and cast as far as you possibly can without a birdsnest. Then take a 1"x1" square of duct tape and put it on your spool then reel back in and you're good to go. That way a birdsnest can never get very deep into your spool and it will never interfere with distance casting.
Or you can have your kid run down the block with the weight attached so you don't have to cast in your neighborhood. 150yds was adequate for me.
Good luck and happy fishing.

 

[Fishersjohn48]

Tip of the day- tie on a 1oz weight and cast as far as you possibly can without a birdsnest. Then take a 1"x1" square of duct tape and put it on your spool then reel back in and you're good to go. That way a birdsnest can never get very deep into your spool and it will never interfere with distance casting.
Or you can have your kid run down the block with the weight attached so you don't have to cast in your neighborhood. 150yds was adequate for me.
Good luck and happy fishing.

Sounds like this might work but none of my baitcasters even hold 150 yards of line??? Shimano Curado ± 120 yards??

 

[voodoo304]

Sorry, the only baitcaster I use is an Abu Garcia C3 for catfishing and it holds a TON of line. You can use whatever length suits your needs. I was taught to use my longest cast and double that distance to account for the fish pulling out line during the fight. However, what I fish for isn't big enough to pull out that much so I just have my kids run to a distance that looks like a super long cast.

 

[1911Shooter]

The baitcaster is the ultimate fishing reel but it does take practice. Your going to have to be patient and practice, practice, practice. You will always want to check your brake and make sure that your not allowing the reel to unspool to quick. When first learning don't try and muscle your cast. Just a gentle flip of the wrist will get the job done. As you become more comfortable slowly turn down the magnets and spool tension. Once you learn how to cast it, you will love it.

It really is the best thing to fish with but you have to be patient. You wont learn it overnight. Best of luck!

 

[woodsie57]

I'm learning on a baitcaster myself-have found it helpful to adjust magnets as stated,but start with a heavy weight,I started with a 1/2",3/8" drive socket-takes alot of magnet to hold it,cutting down on backlash-reduce weight as you get more confident.

 

[Fishersjohn48]

Hang in there guys and keep practicing. It took quite a while for me to "master" a bait caster but once you do you can throw unweighted senkos 80' and land them softly under the edge of a pier. Still haven't figured out how to skip them far under a pier with a bait caster so I still use a spinning reel for that.

 

[kickbacked]

what do you guys think about this combo? I've never used abu garcia but have heard good things.
Abu Garcia Black Max/Vengeance Baitcast Combo - Dick's Sporting Goods

20 dollar rebate plus i have a 10% off coupon for dicks screwing my order up.

I've messed with a baitcaster once but i had zero idea how to use it so it was a terrible time. Im using to reeling with my left hand, should i get a left hand baitcaster? Is there any advantage to going to right hand?

 

[leakywaders]

Had the same problems years ago with a cheap ryobi. Bought a Quantum pt tour for 149.00 1 small birdsnest in every 1000 casts very big difference in quality.

 

[halfmileharry]

There's a couple of very easy tricks/technics that anyone can learn in about 30 seconds that will let you "master" a bait caster. I've taught at least 20 people.
Glad to help out anyone needing a quick lesson on the southside of indy any weekday. No charge or obligation.
It's simple as can be. I even taught my girlfriend that was a non-fishing person in less than 5 minutes. She'd never picked up a rod and reel before.

 

[patricktjms]

Or go buy a Shimano spinning reel and know that you have a reel to use for the rest of your life and it will function flawlessly from the first cast.

 

[WebSnyper]

I ran into my first baitcaster giving me bird's nests almost every single cast.. I've kinda put it on the shelf until I can convince myself to go buy the braided stuff... monofilament and me just don't mix.

You think mono is bad and you want to switch to braid? No NO NO. Save your money and learn on the mono. You get a birdsnest in braid and it's scissors time.

Yep, and that braid birds nest will cost you more as well. As John stated, braid won't fix your issue.


Some good info here: Baitcasting 101

I've fished a bait caster for the last 30 years. Once you get it down, there is no better type of fishing reel. I've never looked back once I started with a bait caster.