Oldbritguy

For many years I've been casting the baitcaster outfit with my index finger hooking the trigger on the rod handle. Last weekend, for some weird reason, I tried holding the rod with the middle finger hooked around the trigger when casting, and it worked fine. And it saves moving the hand to "palm" the reel. Needs some practice though, with different thumbing. . . Not sure if I'll use it much, but just wondered how many of you guys out there might have used the index or middle finger on the trigger when casting??? And what - if any - advantages/disadvantages did you find???

I'm trying to teach myself pitching with a casting reel. But keep seeing these references to 'flip 'n pitch' reels. Just what are these, and how do they differ from regular casting reels. Just what makes a good 'pitching reel???

I'm thinking of getting a lightweight casting reel for throwing or pitching light crankbaits or plastics. Looking at the new 2010 Revo Premier or maybe the Shimano CORE 51 MG,( for maybe an extra $150??? more money). What do you guys think of these two reels? Anybody have both of them? Is the extra cost really worth it?

Recently began switching over my casting reels from mono to braid. Have experienced an increase in backlashes, not sure why. But it seems that I may be spooling too much line on the reels that is causing an increase in backlash problems? I spool the line to about 1/32 inch from the edge of the spool. What do you guys spool to??? And is this really a factor in avoiding backlashes?

I also wanted to know just how you guys hook this lure?

Recently bought a packet of Yamamoto "Kreatures" with dreams of pitching to the big bass in the sunken island weedpatches out in front of my place. But. . . have no idea how to rig this acclaimed plastic lure, and also should I use a scent attractant. Any advice anybody?

Recently converted some of my old reels to braid from mono. But now find I need a flourocarbon "leader" (at least thats what I seem to be hearing on this forum). I looked at some Seaguar flourocarbon leader and Seaguar flourocarbon line, and it seems I have to pay about three times the price for the "leader" material. Is it really so different? What's wrong with using the regular flourocarbon line as a leader? Why the premium price for the "leader" stuff??? Or am I just being naiive here?

I'm new to using braid. Recently I spooled up three of my old baitcasters with 30lb and 50lb 'InvisBraid', and I'm getting a high percentage of backlashes! I'm a reasonably-experienced baitcaster, and with these same reels using mono I rarely had a backlash in hours of casting, even into the wind. But the same reels with this InviBraid seem to 'catch' a backlash every third cast or so, despite carefull thumbing. Only by cranking the spool and brake settings right down can I get consistent casts, but with reduced distance. Has anybody else had this problem? Are all braids more 'backlash-prone' than mono? Or are some braids just more prone than others?

When you guys talk about the great prices you got on EBay, are you actually "bidding" for the reels, or going the "Buy It NOw" route? Just curious. Do you generally get a better deal by "bidding" or is that a phoney way for the seller to get what they can? Some of the "Buy it NOw" prices seem about the same as Cabelas, Bass Pro, etc. etc. Or am I just not looking in the right places. . .

I really wanted to know if you guys soaked the plastic lures in the bag, and let them absorb the scent - or just sprayed it on before casting. I'm sure I read some guy's post recently where he sprayed the whole bunch of lures in the bag and let them absorb the stuff. Cant remember what it was though?

I'm looking around for a Revo Premier baitcaster reel. There seem to be a number of them on EBay, advertised as 'brand new, in box' etc. And several of them seem to be from the same guy (in Alabama). I've never bought anything on EBay so am very wary of doing so. Are these guys for real? Is it safe to buy reels on EBay, what precautions should one take? Any advice, experiences, anybody???

I read somewhere in here that some guys spray liquid attractants in the bag where they keep their plastic lures. Does this really work, and what do you use?

O.K. so it looks like a Cronarch MG51 might be the one I need. But I cant seem to find one listed anywhere. Anybody know where I can get a new one, or an 'almost' new one in perfect condition?

I built a nice 5' med/light casting rod this winter, and am looking for a suitable lightweight reel to throw up to 1/2 oz crankbaits at least 100 feet, mainly for smallmouth bass in the rocks and shoals in very clear water. There seem to be so many baitcasting reels out there these days, and such a variety of features, I'm just totally confused how to evaluate them. I'd just like to find a nice lightweight ( 7 ozs or less) casting reel that casts and retreives smoothly, 7.0:1 or so retreive ratio, left hand crank, and (hopefully) less than $200. Any recommendations anybody??? I'm not partial to any manufacturer, but my other reels are Shimano and ABU, and qualitywise I like them both. Any thoughts welcome. . .

O.K. but if it was reassembled I'd probably be happy to use it, MINUS that d**n twitchin bar abomination. I bought it because $65 seemed a good buy for 7.3:1 ratio reel. I figured I would never use tdhe twitchin feature anyway. . . Never thought the bar would foul up the casts! Question becomes; 'how much am I likely to have to pay for reassembling' ; and will it be worth it? What does it cost to have a baitcaster reel re-assembled? I've no idea what these guys charge for this. The main assemblies are still intact, but there are lots of little discs and springs and stuff that fell out.

Bought a cheap($65) Diawa Megaforce 100TSH/TSHL reel recently. Has a "twitchin' bar" feature. Unfortunately the line (30lb braid) frequently wraps around the twitching bar when casting, and fouls up the cast. So, decided to be brave and try to remove the twitchin' bar. Eventually got the thing apart and removed the bar and its gearing O.K. BUT, when trying to put the whole thing back together again half the other parts started dropping out all over the place; discs, bearings, springs, more discs, etc. etc. and had no idea where they all came from or what order to reassemble them. Now I have a bag of parts and an 'exploded view' diagram, which I cant really follow very clearly. I doubt my abilities to correctly reassemble this reel. Question now is: Do I pay a local service guy ($$$$'s ???) to reassemble it, or put the whole thing down to a bad experience and just get a better quality reel with NO #$%^& TWITCHIN' BAR sticking up to foul the line!!! Any alternative thoughts, anybody??? :-[ (No smartass jokes please.. .)

I'm just trying to learn to pitch, and having backlash problems using my existing reels and rods. (Older Curado's, older Citica, old Abu 5501C). Can anybody recommend a good reel/rod combo for easy pitching? I want to throw plastic craws about 30 - 40 feet into weeds? How long a rod, what kind of action, etc. Does the reel need to have a special spool, braking system, etc. ? Or maybe I just need more practice???

I want to use 30 - 50 lb braid with a 20 lb flouro leader on a baitcaster reel for fairly clear water crankbaits and plastic craws in the weeds. How long ( or short?) should the leader(s) be? And is it really stupid to use a flouro leader if there are pike in the area?

Have spent some time recently practicing knots to join 30-50lb braid to 20 lb flourocarbon or mono leaders. Mainly using the (usually recommended) Albright Special knot. Seems to me that whenever I tighten the knots really hard, the braid cuts into the mono or flouro line, and inevitably when I give it a hard test pull, it breaks exactly at the point the mono joins the braid, due I'm sure to the cutting effect of the braid. I am using the thicker mono/flouro line as the "loop" part of the Albright. Am I doing something wrong here? Are there better knots for joining braid to flourocarbon line that do not cut into the softer mono/flouro line when tightened really hard? Any recommendations or suggestions very welcome. . . Oldbritguy

I was thinking specifically of braid to mono leader knots. What's a San Diego jam?

What's the bottom line on this? I keep seeing references to guys using glue on baid/mono knots. Some say to help smooth the flow through the rings, others that it holds the knot better, etc. Anybody done any definitive tests, with different types of glue? Lets hear it. Glue; or no glue. . .

A few years back I bought some DAM Tectan Premium mono line from Cabelas. It was thinner than regular mono and really nice to use. But now it seems to have completely disappeared from the US market. Cabelas sales guy had no explanation why they were no longer stocking it. And the DAM website is all in German. Anybody know if this line is still available anywhere? And why it disappeared from the US?

Can anyone give me a good secure loop knot for flourocarbon line. I've been using a half UNI, but it slips most of the time.

Thanks TBird, great schematic. Any idea where I can find an owner's manual with instructions, etc?

Need a manual/parts list for a Shimano Curado 101D. Saw one on sale at Sports Authority for $119, but no box or documentation. Haggling with the manager brought the price down to $89.95, so I took it? Good deal, maybe??? But now I need the manual and parts list, where can I find?