What is a Baitcasting Reel?

For the many anglers who head out to the lake or river and put a line in the water, they might be wondering about the different reels like the baitcasting reel. You have many great things about this reel like pinpoint accuracy and working well with casting heavier lures.

What is a baitcasting reel? To the amateur fisherman, baitcasting reels look and feel complex, but someone knowledgeable of them can especially use them well. In particular, baitcasting reels work well for trophy bass because of how it increases accuracy with casting.

The Parts of a Baitcasting Reel

Unlike spinning reels, baitcasting reels have fewer components, but understanding the different parts can help you to troubleshoot problems and tweak your reel for your own personal tastes. If you haven’t seen the earlier article in this series, I covered spinning reels as well in the article What is a Spinning Reel? Check this article out if you’d also like to learn about spinning reels as well. With that said, let’s talk about the baitcasting reel.

You have three main components of the baitcasting reel that include:

• Spool tension knob
• Braking system
• Drag

Spool Tension Knob

Through the spool tension knob, you can adjust your spool speed with this knob. What specific advantages does that have? The spool tension knob hands the advantage of how much line comes off the spool. You get the advantage of even more fine tuning than what you would get with the braking system of this reel.

Many times, you will see fishermen use this part of the reel to adjust the spool tension for the different lures that they might use. Anglers do this because of how they want to get the perfect cast ratio. As you adjust the knob, you will usually get much better distance. In addition, you can tweak it to fit with the bait of that day.

Braking System

How does the braking system play to the advantage of anglers? Manufacturers put the braking system on the baitcasting reel with the intention of regulating the rotation of your spool. For those wondering, the spool houses the fishing line.

You might look at the braking system of the baitcasting reel as something that provides you with extra resistance for the spool. While it keeps you from having to worry about your line tangling up, it also contributes to a greater casting distance.

When you first get acquainted with the baitcasting reel, you usually want the brakes on more because of how this gives you a feel for it. Once you get more comfortable with the equipment, you can let up on the brakes, which will let you cast for greater distances.

Drag

On a baitcasting reel, you will usually find the drag near the side of your handle. The handle reels in the fish once you have them on the hook. Like with spinning reels, you use the drag on a baitcasting reel to regulate the amount of tension.

When the tension between you and the fish is tight, you lighten up the drag to give him more time to play with the line. This does, however, give him more control. You tighten the drag of your reel when you want greater control over the reel to crank him in. In particular, this works well when you have light tension on the reel, and it will hand you greater control over the fish.

The more that you tighten up on the drag, the harder that it will prove for the fish to peel away with your line. At the same time, you want a lighter drag if the tension gets too stiff. It can relieve tension on your end and tire out the fish.

Advantages of the Baitcasting Reel

What specific advantages do you get from a baitcasting reel? With a baitcasting reel, you have pinpoint accuracy because of how you can stop your line at any moment. You just tap your thumb on the reel and the hook will stop. This type of reel gives you the specific advantage of excellent accuracy.

For the fishermen who prefer the heavier lures, you will find it advantageous to use a baitcasting reel. These reels work better for it than if you were to choose a spinning reel. As far as catching the big fish goes, the baitcasting reel makes it much easier for you to crank in the big fish because of how it doesn’t stop.

Especially if you plan to troll a lot, you can catch bigger fish without the worry that the baitcaster will ever become a problem. With that said, you do have some disadvantages that you should keep in mind.

The Disadvantages of Baitcasting Reels

You do have a few disadvantages that come with baitcasting reels. The first and most obvious one comes from the steep learning curve. You could spend a whole summer using the baitcasting reel, and you still haven’t gotten used to it by the end of the summer. That’s because of how, for a lot of people, the baitcasting reel doesn’t feel as natural as what spinning reels feel.

For someone who only goes fishing several times a year, the baitcasting reel might be too heavy duty for you. Unless you’re trolling, you have so much that you have to get used to. This isn’t the best choice for those who have lighter lures.

You also probably don’t want this reel if you will have to cast all day because I’ve always felt that this reel feels more awkward for casting. The spinning reel does a much better job at casting. Baitcasting reels were built for the more experienced anglers who have a passion for the sport. You have to have a strong enough passion to push past some of the bad things about it, however.

How Does the Baitcasting Reel Compare to the Spinning Reel?

Baitcasting reels tend to work better with heavier line than a spinning reel. The spinning reel has a smaller and more narrow spool, which means that it will have a more difficult time with the larger lines. Spinning reels especially work well in the spring of the year, and they work well when you have to cast it into the wind.

If you need heavy line for some of the larger fish, go with the baitcaster reel. You will find it far more agreeable. For lighter lines, spinning reels tend to work better.

The baitcasting reel can typically do some more complicated fishing techniques, but that doesn’t mean that someone just starting with it will pull them off. Even for a lot of fishermen, they don’t find these things necessary, which is why they choose spinning reels.

When Does the Baitcasting Reel Become the Ideal Choice?

For those who will fish around heavy cover, be near the topwater, reel the bait fast, crank it back in or need a heavy fishing line will most likely get more out of the baitcasting reel. It also works better when you tend to target some of the larger fish. You don’t experence as much for trouble when you go to crank in a bigger fish with a baitcasting reel.

The spinning reel can cast a bit farther, but that doesn’t mean that it will take home the fish at the end of the day. Every cast matters, and in truth, keeping your line in the water for longer will help you to succeed.

Why I Choose the Baitcaster

I choose the baitcaster reel for my own fishing because of how I like the precision and accuracy of my casts. I can’t cast quite as far as what I could with a spinning reel, but I feel it a sacrifice worth my time. That said, it took me most of a summer to get completely used to the system from the baitcaster, and I still do think that the spinning reel has a far more agreeable system.

I don’t blame anyone for choosing the spinning reel. At the end of the day, it isn’t what kind of fancy techniques you use with fishing, but what matters the most is how you catch the fish. That’s one of the best things about fishing is how it doesn’t require any type of skill. A lot of it comes down to looking and having your line in the right place at the right time. The techniques can help, but it isn’t necessary to go fishing. In most cases, baitcasting reels tend to last longer than a spinning reel. If you buy a decent one, many baitcasters will last for many years.

For those who want a good balanced and all-around baitcasting reel, the Piscifun Torrent Baitcasting Reel comes at a great price, and it can handle the water and last for years without a problem.

When it comes to reel choice, you will notice a definite polarization between those who prefer the baitcaster and those who prefer spinning reels. The baitcaster has specific advantages in certain situations, and if you like that type of fishing more, you could find it more advantageous to have this type of reel. A lot of more casual fishermen prefer the spinning reels, but every person will be different. For sure, the baitcasting reel takes a lot more time to get used to it.