Right or Left

[bassman588]

I'm right-handed and only use LH baitcasters. Working lures, setting the hook, and fighting fish are the main reasons I want the rod in my stronger, more dexterous hand. Not having to switch hands is also a plus.

I agree, moving your rod from one hand to the other after you cast is a waste of time. go left

[river_rogue]

Wow! A big thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences and opinions. I think I might give a LH reel a try. I can always switch back.

[grab the net]

I believe the whole right handers using left handed reels came about as a matter of efficiency with some pro's several years ago. The thought process being that switching hands wasted time. The time not wasted equated to more casts/flips/pitches per day on the water, meaning more opportunities to catch a fish.

I tried to switch, have a partner that did make the switch and had gear available to try. Could not do it, felt that my accuracy suffered and since I was never going to be fishing for $100,000 I could forego the few extra casts I would get in a tournament day or just a fun day of fishing. I fish a spinning rod right handed and reel left, which I suspect most do.

I am not sure I miss fish when switching hands on a flip or pitch if the fish takes it immediately apon hitting the water. It is such an automatic thing for me after thousands and thousand of repetitions, that it is truly done without thought. I also use a Castaic which allows me to be ready without the turn of the reel handle to set the hook when pitching and flipping.

If you are fairly new to baitcasters I would say go for it, give it a try, but it is a learning process that comes easy for some and not so easy for others, or not at all as in my case.

[BTL]

Switching hands is the least important aspect of it IMO. It's working lures, setting the hook, and fighting a fish that matter the most to me. I can't even fathom doing those things with my weaker, less coordinated arm.

It's really surprising to me how many right-handed people say they couldn't learn to hold a rod with their right hand, especially when they have no problem doing it with spinning gear. I think this is just something I'll never understand.

[RickyBobby]

Can't say that I understand it either but its a reality, for me at least..... a spinning rod in my right hand feels natural, normal. Setting the hook with a baitcaster in my right hand just feels un-natural and weaker. Its bizarre, must be a mental thing.....

[gritsnham]

I think whatever is going to be the most comfortable is the best route to go but being ambidextrious is a nice skill to have when fishing a whole day especially when cranking. I didnt give LH baitcasters enough of a go this year and never really got comfortable but was getting a little better towards the end of the year.

I think a big factor is that people get accustomed to feeling natural with how they learned it...doing things in the opposite motion is hard just trying hitting a baseball or golf ball with your non dominant its that kind of awkwardness but is definately a skill that can be learned with a little time and patience!

[Bobby Bass]

Count me in as a right hand reeling left handed. Been doing it for years and years one of the reasons I keep my lure in the water longer then my fishing partners who have to change hands after or during a cast. Not only is it an advantage when flipping it is also nice to be able to toss buzz baits and be reeling as soon as they touch the water. Many a bass has had it's eyes crossed when fishing topwater and the lure gets smack on the landing and you are ready to set. Only bad thing I can see about it is hard to find left handed baitcasting reels unless you order. Seems like for every left handed reel on display you will find ten right handed ones.

[Vallejo]

I only own right handed reels. However when I visit my brother in California, I use his left handed reels. It is a bit awkward for the first 10 minutes and then it becomes second nature. Weird!

[slipperybob]

The time thought lost due to switching hands has been statistically proven a misnomer years ago in BASS magazine. That is to say, it's based on efficient pro's. Now for the average guy...who can be clumsy at times, it's very likely to lose time due to the (clumsy) hand switch. Some people are just more ambidexterous than others, while others are just that much more dexterous.

[lookincalifornia]

i switched the crank on my very first spinning reel as a kid, but just made the B/C switch five years ago. i still keep a righty with to help reduce fatigue. really helps get my buzzbaits and toad on plane quicker. still feels weird palming the reel with my right hand.

[FutbolGuru]

My take:

As a natural righty, it only makes sense to use my dominant right hand on the rod with my left hand reeling. So when I started baticasting I chose not to conform with the standard right handed reeling practices of the baitcasting world and instead learned on the lefty baitcasters.

For fishing purposes, I feel I made the right decision. Financially however, I definitely made the wrong decision. Whenever there is a blowout sale on baitcasters I get hosed - they're always righty's!!

[HandGunner]

Im right handed thats my power hand so yes I have to have a left hand retrieve. Guy at VADOS bait shop in Blaine/Spring Lake Park said the reason being is a spinning reel has a wider circle when you turn the reel, baitcasters have shorter handles there fore smaller circle motion being made. Theres more right handers than left if Im not mistaken, its easier to make a big circle motion with an off hand and easier to make a smaller circle with a dominant hand. Thus the reason so many baitcasters come in right hand and right hand only in most cases. Its easier and smoother to make small circle motions with a dominant hand than the off hand, but in the end its personal prefrance.

Does that sound about right to you guys?

[BTL]

Im right handed thats my power hand so yes I have to have a left hand retrieve. Guy at VADOS bait shop in Blaine/Spring Lake Park said the reason being is a spinning reel has a wider circle when you turn the reel, baitcasters have shorter handles there fore smaller circle motion being made. Theres more right handers than left if Im not mistaken, its easier to make a big circle motion with an off hand and easier to make a smaller circle with a dominant hand. Thus the reason so many baitcasters come in right hand and right hand only in most cases. Its easier and smoother to make small circle motions with a dominant hand than the off hand, but in the end its personal prefrance.

Does that sound about right to you guys?

No, there really isn't any practical reason for it from an efficiency standpoint. It's just the way they've always been made so people are used to it.

Early fishing reels were used more as a winch. They weren't much good for casting or the intricate techniques that we use today. That being the case, the handle was put on the "strong" side since all anyone did was troll or drop straight down, and crank back up. The rod hand didn't do much of anything.

Builders kept making conventional reels that way because it's how it was always done and people were used to it. Everyone learned to reel that way and didn't really question if there might be a better way to do it.

In the last 15 years or so, there has been a vast increase in the popularity of left-hand retrieve. It still isn't as popular as right-hand, because that's what most fishermen today grew up with and are reluctant to change. But as more and more LH reels become available, and more and more beginning anglers start out with them, I expect LH to become the norm, as it already is with spinning gear.

[HandGunner]

flip the handle from the left to the right on a spinning reel to someone and watch them become dumbfounded on themselves. LOL!!! I did this to my step brother all the time kekekekeke