gear ratio? how im portant are they?

how important are gear ratios?? never really payed any attention to them.

i only payed attention to the line the rod/reel are rated for!
lure size rating and the action/power.

I never did either, but now i try matching up the right setups.


Ex.

I like a 7:0:1 or faster for froggin, jigs, buzzbaits...Pretty much anything that comes down to either retrieving my bait fast, Getting fish outta heavy cover quickly or just those times jig fish burn back to your boat so you gotta reel like hell to retrieve the slack line

When it comes to crankin i just use a 6:4:1 and just slow myself down. I'd recommend a slower reel for crankin.

other than that i really don't pay much attention. I'll just adjust my speeds with whatever lure might be on a certain reel. Like if i got a spinnerbait on my 7:0:1 i will slow down if the fish are holding deep or just not smacking under the surface. Burn it if the fish are active. Some baits it's not a big deal IMO

ill pay more attention to gear ratios next time i buy a rod and reel

i gota take a look and see the ratio on my jig setup

Slow reel for cranking like a 5:1. 7:0 or 7:1 for jigging. Punching. Top waters. Pretty much everything else. I do have a 6:4 on my heavy crank bait rod.

same for me. in general i go with low ratios when i want more torque and to keep the bait going slower. you can always slow down but with a lot of wind, it makes things easier. higher ratio when i want to pick up more line faster.

5.4:1 for cranking for me
6.4:1 for topwater, spinnerbaits
7.1:1 for everything else like pitching / flipping, frogs, punching etc.

a lot of it is personal preference too.

As stated, depends on the type of baits you are using. I prefer a high ratio reel, at least 5.8 or better. With a 5.2 it seems like you are winding away and not getting anywhere

I'm not that particular. I have all 6.4 and 7.0s and use them interchangeably. I know some guys like the slower ratios because it forces them to slow down their retrieves. A lot of us have trouble slow fishing