New rod!!

18 minutes ago, Saavedra9 said:

Wow lots of great info here from everyone, will definitely watch some YouTube but feel like thumb control is gonna be super important and useful.

Wow lots of great info here from everyone, will definitely watch some YouTube but feel like thumb control is gonna be super important and useful.

Very much so...the other thing is sticking with it. Baitcasting isn’t quite as difficult as you might think, it just has its own little set of challenges. 
 

Casting around the yard will help you get used to the setup as well (a casting plug, lead weight or an old, beat up, retired jig works nicely). I always pick out 4 or 5 little spots to aim at then shoot for them at random. It won’t take long at all to gain a feel for what the reel “likes to do” and “doesn’t like to do”. 

Great choice with the black max, too. I’ve always loved those little reels.