To Baitcaster or not to Baitcaster???

I have used a spinning setup my whole life but now I see more and more people using baitcasters.

I am interested in getting a baitcaster now.

Should I start by buying the cheapest one I can find and learning or should I spend the ammount of money as I would on a spinning reel and just force myself to learn it?

What do you guys run?

Short Answer: Don't buy cheap, you'll have a bad experience and will probably not like the reel.

I would recommend trying a friend's baitcaster or if you are committed to getting one, buying something middle of the road.

Do some message board searches, you should be able to find a bunch of good replies to posts just like this.

Thanks, That's kinda what I was thinking.

Son, you have no idea of the can of worms you just opened, ha ha ha!!! Prepare yourself for an avalanche of opinions that will be all over the map. My advice is to go to BassPro and spend around $100 on a combo, put 20lb Power Pro Super 8 Slick braid on it. Then go to Youtube and watch videos on how to properly adjust the brake on your reel. Then practice, practice, practice.

I'll have to go out fishing with my buddy. He has a baitcaster that i'll have to take a few casts with.

It took me a while to feel really confident with my baitcaster, but now it is my favorite method to fish, aside from fly fishing. DO NOT go on the cheap, you will regret it. I would agree that a combo for $100 is probably a respectable start. Some reels will set you back $250 or more if you go top of the line, but not necessary. Quantum, Shimano & Abu Garcia are amongst the leaders in reels and all make quality equipment. Don't force your casting, let the rod and reel tell you the way. Practice is what you'll need and learning is well worth it. Tight lines!

Going to take me some time to get used to letting the reel doing the work.

I feel it should resemble a good drive when golfing.

going to be strange going from surfcasting for stripers and humming spinning rod crankbaits into the middle of a pond to side casts.

Like golfing, casting is rhythm. Once you get the timing and touch it becomes much easier.

Short Answer: Don't buy cheap, you'll have a bad experience and will probably not like the reel.

I would recommend trying a friend's baitcaster or if you are committed to getting one, buying something middle of the road.

Do some message board searches, you should be able to find a bunch of good replies to posts just like this.

Not necessarily true. My first bait cast set up was a Bill Dance Select made by Quantum. 60$ for rod and reel. I've had both for about 4 years now, and it outperforms most of my other gear. I have BPS reels that cost $90 alone and work like crap. The BD reel casts about a mile, it feels cheap, but works awesome.

When you start to learn it, I found a good trick to avoid total backlash and aggravation: pull as much line as you think you would use in a normal cast and put a piece of tape over the rest of the line at that point. Reel the line in, and then start casting, when you backlash (not if you backlash), it will only go back to that point, and it will be much easier to pick out, instead of spooling the line all the way to arbor.

Short Answer: Don't buy cheap, you'll have a bad experience and will probably not like the reel.

I would recommend trying a friend's baitcaster or if you are committed to getting one, buying something middle of the road.

Do some message board searches, you should be able to find a bunch of good replies to posts just like this.

Not necessarily true. My first bait cast set up was a Bill Dance Select made by Quantum. 60$ for rod and reel. I've had both for about 4 years now, and it outperforms most of my other gear. I have BPS reels that cost $90 alone and work like crap. The BD reel casts about a mile, it feels cheap, but works awesome.

When you start to learn it, I found a good trick to avoid total backlash and aggravation: pull as much line as you think you would use in a normal cast and put a piece of tape over the rest of the line at that point. Reel the line in, and then start casting, when you backlash (not if you backlash), it will only go back to that point, and it will be much easier to pick out, instead of spooling the line all the way to arbor.

The model you found $60 is more the exception than the rule, the chances of finding something similar could be quite slim. I bought cheap my first time with a baitcaster, gave it to a friend and didnt pick another one up for 3 years. Once I committed to learning I went and got a ~$130 or so rod and reel. I learned on that and havent looked back since.

i say yes to baitcasters. like bloomagoo said dont buy cheap youll have a bad experience for sure. id suggest one of the basspro pro qualifiers they might have the combo for them, youd have to look. that are very simple non-complicated reels that you can easily learn on. they way i taught myself was id only bring my baitcaster fishing and if i wanted to catch fish then i had to use it and of course i wanted to catch fish so backlash after backlash i figured it out got that hang of it and now i have enough for the wife to say i have issues.

for line i used tuff line braid which sucks i would never suggest that to anyone...

but for a beginner i wouldnt go with light test way to easy to nest up, use 14-17lb floro in my oppinion. cheap line will result in nests just to keep in mind. i like the trilene 100% floro very smooth stuff.

The first rule when casting a baitcaster is don't ever never throw into the wind..Even the best of fishermen will get a birds nest..I been throwing them over 45 years now and i still haven't learned my lesson..

i prefer baitcasters over spinning reels. i use abu garcia and shimano. i feel comfortable doing both

i use both baitcasters and spinning. in my opinion it is more about the rod. i think people like the baitcasters for 2 reasons. first is that they like the power most baitcasting rods have. it is easier to set hooks with them. the second is people just like the fact that it is harder than spinning and they feal cool doing it, being like the guys on the bassmasters. (i know i feal cool doin it.)
however, i think it is much easier to cast undertrees, i think the spinning real takes in more line faster with less effort( do to the fact that the spool is bigger and one full rotation of the handle has a bigger circumference than a baitcaster. and i know they have high speed bait casters now but i still dont think they are as fast as a spinning reel.) i think spinning reels cast just as far. and i think one can be more accurate with a spinning reel. So, i think one can get a good stiff spinning rod and achieve the same hook setting ability.
The 2 things i would definatly recomend a baitcaster for is throwing larger baits and for throwing floro.

o yea and you can throw spinning outfits into the wind easier.