i was given a reel, and it doesnt say on it what the gear ratio is. how can i find this out? then which fishing application is best suitable for this reel..

it a BPS pro qualifyer round reel. gold in color if that matters.

Have you checked the BPS website ? not only they inform the gear ratio but also the IPT.

i tried looking it up, but i couldnt even find the right reel. my guess its a season or two old.

IMO, the reel's IPT is more important than its ratio.

First, spool it up with a few yards of cheap line. Loosen the drag, pull off about 3-4 ft of line, and mark the line at the level wind with a black marker. Turn the crank one full revolution and mark the line again at the level wind. Measure the distance betwen the two marks and you've got your IPT.

My old Pro Qualifier is a 6.3, it's not the LTD version that yours is, but like other said, the IPT is more important to know. Just pull some line out, mark it with a sharpie, turn the hand one full crank, then mark it again, pull out to the first mark, and measure between the two...there's your IPT, just like stasher said

Like the others have said IPT is more important but you can get the ratio by putting a piece of tape on the spool, marking it and counting the revolutions in one full rotation of the handle.

I have one that is 5:1.1 ratio. Mark a spot on the line and count it as you make a full turn on the reel handle. this will get you close.

Like Stasher said but with one change, your reel should be full or close to full.  The IPT of a reel changes the closer your get to the spool, I have a C3 that has 24 IPT, I stripped fifty yards of line to get the IPT down to 21.  The reel holds 175 yds of line, so I still have 125 yds or so.  Anyway fill the reel and check the marks.  

If you are good at math then you can use the formula I did on ths website. This is how to calculate IPT

http://2coolfishing.com/ttmbforum/showthread.php?t=227920

I have a older PQ1000XPS round reel and it is 5.1... it makes a hella slop reel.. I used to use my AE74 for that but started using it because I dont care about that reel.