BajaNomad

left hand vs. right hand reels

tripledigitken - 9-5-2010 at 04:06 PM

Question.............................

If you are right handed do you cast with your right hand, and crank with your left hand or do you switch hands and also crank with your right hand???????? Lefties how do you roll?

My conventional reels are all right handed models which I cast with my right and also crank with my right. Yet, my spinning reels are lefties which I cast with my right and crank with my left.

Ken

dtbushpilot - 9-5-2010 at 04:18 PM

Mine too. I recently used a left handed baitcaster for a few minutes and wondered why I've been casting with my right hand and changing hands to reel all these years. It felt natural on the second cast....dt

maspacifico - 9-5-2010 at 04:22 PM

Last baitcaster I got was discounted because it was left handed....I thought about it for a minute and bought it. Actually makes more sense. I have a lot less problems reeling with my left than making those teeny tiny little circles!

Santiago - 9-5-2010 at 04:46 PM

Is kinda weird, isn't it?
fly reels: cast right, reel left
Spin: cast right, reel left
Conventional: right/right.

Once I fished all day with a left hand casting reel in the Delta and within a few minutes it was second nature.

Russ - 9-5-2010 at 06:57 PM

I've also had the lefty conventional & baitcasters while I lived in the NW but I feel I have better power & control with a righty.
Unlike fishabductor I really enjoy my spinning outfits and use them about 50% of the time. Of course I'm fishing inshore now and seldom get into a big fish. The "coffee grinders", even the cheap ones, are so much better than they use to be.

backninedan - 9-5-2010 at 07:47 PM

Shimano bait runners are also left or right handed, so at least one spinner is optional.

Santiago - 9-6-2010 at 07:24 AM

RE: spinners: For years my dad, may god rest his soul, bottom fished with cut bait in San Carlos in the winter and Brookings in the summer using a Diawa 7000 spinner with 30# mono on a Bigwater Uglystik. I kid you not. He said he liked using the big spinners because he could bring up the shrimp flies with 1 pound balls much faster that the old Penn conventional reels to check bait. If I never fish with salted anchovies again, it will be too soon.......:no:

ncampion - 9-6-2010 at 07:28 AM

Recently returned from a trip to Australia and New Zealand. All the spinners there are right hand crank. Maybe it's because everything is upside-down there.

Iflyfish - 9-6-2010 at 07:35 AM

All of my reels, fly and conventional are lefties. My power arm is my right. I live in the Pacific Northwest. Don't know why more are not made that way.

Iflyfish

msawin - 9-6-2010 at 08:01 AM

I got into tournament bass fishing years ago and started fish'in left handed. It is amazing how many tournament bass anglers use "Lefty's"...

Now the problem. Very few "lefty" salt water reals are available. Almost all my saltwater reals are "righty's" and I have the hardest time with them.

My son had a Jeeping accident years back and basically lost his left hand. He has done well fishing with the "righty's" but I got a Shimano Calcuta lefty that is working great. I'll get a couple more and use 20 lb line.

marty

tripledigitken - 9-6-2010 at 08:23 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by fishabductor
Quote:
Originally posted by msawin
I got into tournament bass fishing years ago and started fish'in left handed. It is amazing how many tournament bass anglers use "Lefty's"...

Now the problem. Very few "lefty" salt water reals are available. Almost all my saltwater reals are "righty's" and I have the hardest time with them.

My son had a Jeeping accident years back and basically lost his left hand. He has done well fishing with the "righty's" but I got a Shimano Calcuta lefty that is working great. I'll get a couple more and use 20 lb line.

marty


The calcutta is another fine reel....However mine is a righty. I fought a marlin this summer on a calcutta 100 with 30lb braid for about 10 minutes before the leader material snapped. I was actually able to control the fish with that reel and make line. I caught it casting Ranger surface lures 5 miles out. I was going for tuna.



What rod are you using on that set-up?

woody with a view - 9-6-2010 at 09:03 AM

i'm a leftie. cast left and reel right which seems normal-hold the rod in left hand and reel with right..... you other guys are weird, all switching hands!:lol:

bkbend - 9-6-2010 at 10:06 AM

I'm with Woody. Never realized you righties had so many issues...

dominant arm!

bajadave1 - 9-8-2010 at 08:14 AM

I'm right handed also, and.......
I have to agree with you about the stronger arm. That is why most of my reels are "lefties" It is much easier to put pressure on a fish for a long period of time with my right arm.
I only wish I could have bought my international's as lefties.
I just picked up a couple of new lefties from Ambassadeur. Small and medium baitcasters. nice. never have to worry about line twist either.

Dave

:light::light::light:

tripledigitken - 9-8-2010 at 12:42 PM

I think I may have to try a lefty baitcaster, based on the comments here.

Thanks for all the feedback!

Ken

bajabass - 9-8-2010 at 12:55 PM

I started fishing with a very old spinning reel, Shakespear I believe, that was a leftie. As I started chasing bass all over California and Mexico, I was buying left hand retrieve Abu Garcia 5500 and 6500 serires baitcasters in leftie models. You can stop and retrieve mid mis-cast, instantly. I've saved hundreds of lures, spinnerbaits, plastics ect., doing this. Salt or fresh water I fish artificial lures 90% of the time, and it just works better making hundreds of casts a day to stumps, brush, boilers, or kelp. Avet has limited availability of almost all their excellent saltwater reels in leftie! My leftie Avet MXL W/Magicast is the bomb. Great freespool, 2speed, anti- screw up magnetic over run assist!

msawin - 9-8-2010 at 07:32 PM

Most of us are right handed, and so we cast with the right hand real and pass the rod to the left to real in with our right hand. Thats a waist of time and effort. With the lefty's you cast right handed and start to real with you left. Very comfortable and no wasted time for the retrieve delay passing the rod back and forth.

marty

fishabductor check your U2U

bajadave1 - 9-9-2010 at 06:48 AM