Fishing Reels, more in-depth, Part 1:

Spin Cast reels, Spinning reels, Bait Casting reels, Level Wind reels, AHHHHH! It can all be so confusing for some people.

Why so many choices, Which reel is right for me?

I went over the basics of reels in another post now its time to dig a little deeper.

Seeing how I’ll be going considerably more in-depth into reels I’m going to break this up into 2 different posts. I’ll start out talking about the good old spin cast reels.  Chances are this is the type of reel a lot of us first started fishing with. The spin cast reels are very simplistic in design thereby making them very easy to use. Basically you push and hold the push button, bring your arm back, swing it forward, release the button when the rod tip is at about the 2:00 position and out goes the line. That is one of the big reasons kids love spin cast reels, they can be cast a long distance, which kids really enjoy and at the same time they are very easy to use

I know my first reel was a Zebco 202, which I already mentioned. This reel is ok if your doing basic stream type trout fishing or sunfish but it will not stand up to the rigors of big trout or bass fishing but the bottom line is that it was not designed for that. In my opinion, it’s just a great starter reel. There are other spin cast reels that are of a higher quality that will stand up to any fishing situations. Once again, in my opinion the Zebco Platinum 33 falls into that category.

Now let’s move onto the Spinning Reels. Also known as open faced reels because unlike the spin cast reels the spool and line is exposed. With a little practice these reels are quite easy to master and like the spin cast reels you can cast light stuff, lures, baits etc., a long ways.

The only difference in casting between spinning reels and the spin cast reel is your finger. You grab and hold the line with your index finger, flip open the bail, the little metal hoop that holds the line and cast the same way as describer above releasing the line at right about the 2:00 position.

I remember quite a few years back when dad and I went fishing on San Carlos Reservoir, located on the San Carlos Indian Reservation in Arizona. I watched the locals catching fish with line wrapped around a tin can. They would make side armed casts and were able to cast quite the distance and then fight the fish by winding the line back onto the can. Me of course forever seeking knowledge, I questioned him because I was very curious. He explained that he could not afford the fancy rod and reel setup I had but he made due with what he had.

It was then that I discovered that the Spinning reel design is very similar in design to the basic rig he was using. It also made me realize that one does not need the latest and greatest tackle to be a good fisherman, but it sure is nice and makes fighting fish much easier when you at the very least have a rod to assist in fighting the fish.

Spinning reels are available in a wide variety of sizes and actions. Everything from ultra light models designed for 2-4 pound test line to extra large models that are made for deep sea fishing with heavy line.

I prefer to use a spinning reel when trout fishing, finesse bass fishing with small baits and light lines. A couple techniques that fall into this catagory are split shotting and drop shotting, which I discussed in other posts. Spinning reels are also an excellent choice when the crappie bite is on. While I primarily fish with a bait casting reel I do have a few spinning reels in my arsenal.

Whew, I hope I didn’t bore you too much and you actually gained some knowledge concerning the reels I talked about. Be sure to check back soon when I’ll discuss the bait casting type reels.

Thanks for visiting my site. Be sure to tell all of your fishing buddies and come back soon

Until Next Time, Good Luck and Tight Lines To Ya!