re: Let's talk gear ratio in baitcasters

Like others have said, high speed for flipping and pitching to reel up slack fast if you get a hit on the fall or the fish heads toward the boat and deeper water.

Old Curado B?

Eta: I think they even made a 3.8:1

Copied off basshogfishing.com

quote:

---

The general rule is that a slower reel is a good choice any time you are going to work a bait with the reel, while faster is preferred for lures that the rod will be working.

With a crankbait or spinnerbait where you are actually cranking, you might want a slower retrieve for a more accurate presentation. When you are slow rolling, you gain more sensitivity with a 5-1-1.

However if you are fishing with a jig or worm, you want a reel that will allow to recover the slack line faster and move the fish out of cover more quickly.

When using a fast gear ratio such as a 6-2-1 Shimano Curado, I can get 25 to 50 more cast a day than if I were using a slow gear ratio reel.

If I am not getting a bite, I can reel it in faster and throw it back out, or if I get a tap and miss the fish, a 6-2-1 will allow me to get it in and back to the same spot.

A lot of folks believe that the higher the gear ratio the more line you haul in, but there is another factor that you do not think about....and that is the spool size. If you have a reel that has a large spool, you will haul in more line than if I have a reel that has a smaller spool.

You might say it is a gimmick to get you to buy the high speed gear ratio and I guess some of that is true, such as you could have a reel that is a 5-1-1, but has a large spool and it will haul in as much line as a 6-2-1.

A lot of folks want to know how much line I am getting in per turn and I have to say that on a lower gear ratio you would bring in 19 to 23 inches of line perturn and the 6-2-1 about 27 inches of line per turn.

I will tell you I have one 5-1-1 gear ratio and the rest are all 6-2-1 gear ratios.

I have done a lot of reading up and have come to what is fact.

If I am on a lake fishing and I decide to tie on a crankbait and all I have with me is a 6-2-1, I can always slow down my bait, but if I have a 5-1-1, I would work myself to death if I had to keep a buzzbait up on top of the water.

---

quote:

---

carry enough setups and you'll never have to worry about this

---

Isn't quite an option yet, but I feel like I know enough to buy now. Going with something in the 6 range and will gauge my next buy on how that one works. Thanks everyone.

I'm limited with my gear, too...for now. So, I made sure I have what I need to fish whatever situation I face.

Make sure you get the best you can afford.