In today’s video, Casey breaks down the essential components of a baitcaster reel, perfect for beginners.
Whether you’re new to fishing or upgrading your gear, understanding the key features of a baitcaster can make a big difference. From setting the drag to mastering the cast control, these simple adjustments are crucial for successful fishing. Casey explains everything you need to know for a smooth, tangle-free experience. Let’s dive into the basics and get you casting like a pro!
Good day, guys. It’s Casey here from L&F Fishing. Today, I would like to break down the very simple components of a baitcaster reel for someone who may not have used one before. These are really cool-looking, low-profile reels, but there are a few things you must know that differ from a spinning reel.
Number 1: Baitcaster reels are quite small and usually have that double handle. When setting this up, the first thing we like to look at is the drag. Most baitcaster reels will have a star drag, which is located just here, as part of the handle configuration. By turning that forward or back, we can loosen or tighten our drag. On left-handed baitcaster reels, it’s the same; we’re turning away from us for more drag or towards us for less drag. So, setting our drag is number one.
Number 2: Understanding the free spool. Rather than flipping open a bail arm like we would on a spinning reel, we’re actually pressing in this button at the back of the reel here. By pressing that in, it disengages the spool, and now we can cast, and our line will come off. To re-engage it, all we have to do is turn the handle, and you’ll see that it clicks back up. So, the free spool is now re-engaged, which puts the reel back into gear, and it won’t come off unless it’s under the tension of our drag.
Number 3 and 4: The next two things I’ll show you are really important when setting up a baitcaster for casting lures. These are something called the cast control—this little dial or knob here, as well as this one on the side here. Now, this little one on the side isn’t on every reel—it’s on some baitcasters, but not all. What they all feature, however, is this particular one here, which is our main cast control.
What this does is, by tightening it, the same way as the drag, by turning it away from us, it actually slows down how fast the spool can spin. So, when we free spool the reel, by tightening this up, the spool will spin slower. What that does is, when we put a heavy lure or a heavy sinker on this and cast it out, it’s not going to keep spinning really fast, which would cause an overrun if you don’t adjust it properly. So, setting our brakes is absolutely essential to casting lures accurately and not getting tangles or bird’s nests when using a baitcaster reel.
Another way to adjust it is if we’re casting light, small lures, we might want to loosen that off so the lure and the line come off more freely. A good general rule of thumb when setting up your baitcaster reel’s braking system is: if you tie your lure on, have it coming out the tip of your rod, and free spool the reel, when it falls to the ground, you want the spool to stop spinning. If the brakes are too tight, the lure won’t fall, and if the brakes are too loose, the spool will continue spinning after the lure hits the ground, possibly resulting in a small bird’s nest. You can then tighten it up a bit to get it spot on, and you’ll be ready to go.
The second cast control on this particular reel is another dial, which ranges from numbers 1 to 20. Some reels are more simplistic, with a range from 1 to 5, or 1 to 10, or just have 3 or 4 settings. This is essentially used once you’ve got the major braking system tuned in. You can adjust this secondary dial to get the maximum casting distance without an overrun.
A general rule of thumb for this is to put it all the way up, play with the main cast control, get it almost spot on, and then back it off slightly to get that extra distance. Some reels don’t have this type of secondary braking system, and some may have an internal braking system, which, as a beginner, I wouldn’t recommend adjusting too much. But with some reels, you can flick a lever under the reel to open up the side plate. Inside, there might be a magnetic control or small Teflon pieces that can be adjusted. However, I wouldn’t recommend playing with that too much as a beginner. Just focus mainly on the main and fine-tuned cast control.
These are the main four components of a baitcasting reel. Of course, the reel itself speaks for itself. That’s your handle, which you wind, and you also have a little level wind here that lays the line nicely. When rigging it up, make sure to put the line through that, but remember: free spool, drag, major cast control, and minor cast control.