morecowbell001

Choporaz-Thanks for the words of encouragement - I think you're likely right about maybe not being a big issue... I'm still trying to figure out if that may be specific to the type of fishing or not (although it really clearly isn't screaming at me that it is an inconvenience or results in lots of lost fish). A-Jay- Thanks as well. That's an impressive video. Thank your for sharing. In cases like that, I can see why my question seems idiotic. You barely touched the reel. I do think that anchored or trolling fishing that I've done a lot of may actually require more attention to the reel, as you usually have either a lot of line out (and hence a good opportunity for lots of slack), or you're stationary (and can't move the boat to keep tension), or both. Lots of good insights here for me.

Great feedback. Maybe a better way to ask a followup question is- So when a fish is "on" how long are you typically able to take your hand off the reel before you might expect slack to occur? I realize that this could be very specific to the situation, but I'm asking about the most typical case for catching bass. Thx, Kevin

Thanks for all of the great, constructive feedback guys. I'm learning a lot. I am definitely trying to figure out if I'm coming up with a solution to a problem that doesn't really exist (so as not to waste a lot of time and money).... so no offense taken. My terminology may not be clear/correct regarding "landing" a fish. The time range I'm trying to explore is from the time you set the hook to the time you net the fish (basically when it is fighting you). In that time- must you keep your hands on your reel, do you take it off, and if so, is that ok? Adjusting drag was just one example that I've experienced myself, and I think I've learned from above that I shouldn't have to even do that. I'm actually trying to address other reasons to take hands off of the reel, but I don't want to "lead the witness" so to say. That said, it sounds like so far that as long as you're able to keep tension on the line, it seems fine to take your hand off the reel momentarily, as long as the fish doesn't turn towards you. In my experience it's tough to predict when the fish might turn and leave slack, so I was nervous to take my hands off of the reel at all.

Hi A-Jay- My apologies for being so vague. That was somewhat on purpose to allow an open ended respond, but I'm likely too vague. I've been fishing most of my life, but would still consider myself a novice. I usually fish for walleye, crappie, northern, and panfish here in MN. I've only fished with a spinning reel. Adjusting the drag was one of the things that caused me to take my hands off the reel long enough in some cases where I lost tension on the line... ultimately loosing the fish. Since I'm no where near as familiar with bass fishing, I'm asking to learn whether taking your hands off of the reel handle for any reason (drag or other) are a problem when you're landing a fish, or if you typically don't need to or can overcome any issue that comes up if you do take your hands off the reel. I hope that is less murky. Thx for your time, Kevin

Thanks Darren- yes, I should have been more specific. I did mean the reel handle. This question may not apply so much for Bass fishing, as I'm thinking about it more. Kevin

Hi guys- I'm an independant inventor doing some product research and I'm wondering if you might be able to answer a few stupid questions for me. My questions for you.... 1. When you've hooked a fish (Bass or otherwise semi-large fish), are there times you've lost it directly because you took your hands off of your reel momentarily? - if so, how often has that happened? 2. If you do take your hands off while trying to land a fish, are there any reasons other than netting the fish yourself that you do this? 3. Any other thoughts on this topic that might be helpful for me to know? When it's o.k., when not, why shouldn't I care, what type of feature you'd like someone to invent, etc... I'm asking because I came across a few challenging situations and thouht I might be able to improve upon it. Thanks, Kevin