Looking To Step Up To A Baitcaster, Advice?

[Al Agnew]

The Citica is definitely a good reel, and I agree with others that Shimano casting reels in general are more trouble free than most other brands (except for those old style Ambassadeurs).

Some things about rod length and characteristics...no one rod does it all well. If you're stream fishing out of a canoe or kayak, short rods work best for me for two reasons. One, when using walking topwaters, as was discussed in the "line for Sammy" thread, a short rod makes walking them easier. Two, short rods fit inside the canoe better, and are probably more manageable in a kayak as well. But there are trade-offs. Longer rods give you more leverage and better control when sitting down in a kayak, especially. And longer rods work better for hooksets when using soft plastics, and have a little better line management on long casts with lots of lures. On the other other hand, short rods are more efficient and accurate when making a lot of short casts to pinpoint spots as you drift along a bank. A short, medium action rod just doesn't work well for setting hooks with jigs and soft plastics. A fast action rod doesn't work nearly as well for crankbaits.

All that and more is why there are so many casting rods out there, a lot of them "specialty" rods.

But if you like shorter rods, you can make a lot of them work for most everything, they just won't be the optimum choice for a given technique or lure. I think you're still on the right track with a medium power 5.5 ft. to 6 ft. rod.

[Wayne SW/MO]

I wouldn't overlook the Curado's. The 200 had a long run and my four 100's are going strong. The Diawa Z's are also excellent reels. I would keep an eye on E-bay for the best value.

The thing about short rods for me is in working a lure where I want to keep the tip near the surface. For the most part I like 6' rods, but action is more important to me. I work with a 5 1/2' BPS for top water and jerks with a pair of Falcons chopped to 6'3" and a Cabelas TRX factory 6'3".

[Al Agnew]

Just want to mention that so far I'm quite happy with the Bass Pro 5.5 ft. medium light Tourney Special for a canoe crankbait rod...$49.99. I don't like the "Power Hump" handle and I'm probably going to grind it down, but the rod works well for crankbaits. It says it's a fast action rod, but I'd call it moderate-fast at most. I wouldn't want it for an all-around rod, though.

[drew03cmc]

You all have been more than generous with advice for a baitcasting newbie. Thank you so much and I will keep you abreast of how it is going.

[stlfisher]

I too recommend the Citica hand's down. Ming is going on 3 years and it flat our works great. Best reel you can buy in that price range IMO.

[Mitch f]

Hey Drew,

http://ebm.basspronews.com/c/tag/hBN76hfASgjEJB8bmDLNsf2KM.ASgjEJ3H/doc.html?t_params=EMAIL%3Dtvent%2540att.net&om_rid=Nsf2KM&om_mid=_BN76hfB8bmDLP1

[drew03cmc]

Thanks Mitch. I saw that, but the funds aren't readily available at the moment. I am more apt to pick up a lightly used combo off eBay or something first, then get a new, top of the line combo later. That reel looks like a hell of a deal at that price though.

[ness]

May I suggest you downgrade back to a spinning reel?

I've got no time for hassles, and I don't see any significant pickup from a baitcaster over a spinning rig, so I have given them to my children. I told them they must suffer the backlashes in order to become a real fisherman. It's just part of the deal. Grandpa Clyde got my uncles up at 4 AM, deprived them of their much-needed slumber and made them untangle every ####### birds nest he created, just to toughen them up. So, I have passed this ######### down to them so that they can experience the suffering a real fisherman must endure in order to respect the ####### #######! I mean, #####!

[fishinSWMO]

If you haven't used one before just be patient and don't give up.

I have some bass pro models that are close to 10 years old and

still working fine.

[OzarkFishman]

Ness, I am with you. With modern technology, spinning reels can catch just as big of fish. Heck, look at the ocean fishing shows on TV ... a lot are spinning reels catching huge fish.

Buy a baitcaster if you like, but I don't see how a baitcaster could outperform a spinning reel when getting under trees and making those tough river casts that need to be made (while sitting down most of the time).

Of course, the only opinion that matters is yours and Ness and I kind of took this thing off track.

Back to baitcasting ...