baitcaster right or left cranking

[cookieman]

Went to look at baitcasters the other day at bass pro. the guy at the reels suggested i get a left handed reel that way idont have to switch hands to crank. I use  a left crank spinning reel that works great but not sure about the left hand baitcaster. What do some of you guys use?

[zippyduck]

Smart salesman. If you have never used a baitcaster before then get the left handed so you won't have to switch hands.

I was so happy I started that way years ago and would never go the other way.

If you already use a right handed baitcaster then keep doing the wrong way. 

Answer these and you will have your answer.

Which hand do you have a better hook set with?  = casting hand

Which hand is less agile?   = cranking hand

Which hand casts better? = casting hand

[bucketmouth 87]

Went to look at baitcasters the other day at bass pro. the guy at the reels suggested i get a left handed reel that way idont have to switch hands to crank. I use  a left crank spinning reel that works great but not sure about the left hand baitcaster. What do some of you guys use?

All left hand. I never understood right handed baitcaster and left handed spinning reels. 

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[TNDiver]

LOL, I realized this after Guntersville and it came up.  Now wish I had done left handed cranking because it does make a big difference.  Plus the rod movement is important for a lot of techniques, which if you are right hand dominant, would be better.  On the other hand, a lot (not all) of techniques are better if you let the lure pause once it hits the water, which gives you plenty of time to switch hands.

[coldfront]

as a lefty, one of the very few 'advantages' I have in life was/is using right-handed cranking reels.

cast left.  crank right.  no hand changes.

now are there reasons to try and develop abilities/capabilities to switch back and forth?  yes.

[Capt. BassinLou]

as a lefty, one of the very few 'advantages' I have in life was/is using right-handed cranking reels.

cast left.  crank right.  no hand changes.

now are there reasons to try and develop abilities/capabilities to switch back and forth?  yes.

I'm also a natural lefty, so a right hand reel works perfect for me.

[LgMouthGambler]

Use what you are comfortable with. Im right handed, and I use right handed BCs. Spinning reels, the handle is on the left side. (But I dont use them sissy sticks anymore anyways. )

[Capt. BassinLou]

Use what you are comfortable with. Im right handed, and I use right handed BCs. Spinning reels, the handle is on the left side. (But I dont use them sissy sticks anymore anyways. )

No... you just use sissy bait casting rods now ...

[LgMouthGambler]

No... you just use sissy bait casting rods now ...

Still a baitcaster. 

[caddyjoe77]

IMO -- and you know what they say about those    Bottom line, Use whatever is comfortable to you.  There isnt really a "right or wrong".   

I personally have been teaching myself to use the left hand to pitch and punch because on something like that I think you do want a quick set of the hook.  Cranking and swimbaits?  meh that's negligible IMO.  Sometimes I even make a cast left handed on a swimbait. 

If this is your first baitcaster, and you commit to left handed then i would buy them all that way.  One thing to keep in mind if you do go that route -- you might have a harder time finding a LH reel later and you may pay a bit more whereas with a right handed, they will most likely be more readily available. 

again, use what is most comfortable. 

[Smallie_Stalker]

I think it's the best advice to use whatever you're comfortable with.

When I started out with baitcasters I'm not even sure if left-hand retrieve reels were available. All our local sporting goods stores carried were round right handers. So that's what I stated on. Keep in mind this was LONG before the internet and even before I ever saw a low profile reel.

As soon as I discovered a left hander and tried it I knew it was right for me. So now all my baitcasters are lefties.

It just makes more sense for me to use my dominant hand to cast and control a hooked fish. It's far more natural for me and I don't miss any fish while switching hands, which, although rarely, did happen to me a few times when I was fishing the right handers.

I'll never know if those missed fish could have been the fish of a lifetime!   

[DonM]

Grew up fishing spinning reels and always have used left-hand baitcasters.  It's not natural for me the other way.  First BC was Ambassadeur 5001.  The "1" means left hand.  Had to special order it and it cost a ton at the time.  Still have it but no longer use it.

[apenland01]

I'm right handed and use right handed spinning and baitcasters.  I think it's however you grew up fishing and are comfortable doing....

[SteveTX]

I'm RH dominant and all my baitcasters are RH.

Its just like any other technique that makes fishing so good. Everyone can do it the way that works for them. What is comfortable, works, and what the person has confidence in is the key.

I pitch a lot, see my bass fishing reports for evidence. I just don't see this "switching" problem. My rod is in my left hand I pitch with my left hand, and my right hand is on the reel before my jig ever hits the water.

[Captsteve]

I'm right handed and use Lh reals only.

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[Pacific NW Ron]

I use right hand on all my baitcasters.  Spinning reels are left hand.  I tried a left hand baitcaster and it just wasn't comfortable to me.  I used it for several trips and got rid of it.  I have no problem changing hands.     In 60 years of fishing I've never missed a fish on a hand switch that I can remember.

[Princeton_Man]

I guess it's all about what we become accustomed to. Most of us as kids started out with Zebco reels and I don't remember ever seeing a left handed 202. I had no idea at the time that my 33 could be a left or right crank.
I've tried fishing a left crank baitcaster and it just feels awkward to me while fishing a left crank spinning reel feels completely natural.

[Sandman7925]

I'm RH hand dominate but use LH reels. Switched a few years ago.  Took one fishing outing to get used to it.


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[Donald Garner]

I'm RH and all my bait casting reels are RH.  My lone spinning reel is LH. 

A few years ago I spent the entire fishing season experimenting using LH reels for flipping and pitching.  I even rigged up a couple for casting crankbaits and spinnerbaits.  The issue I found was my hook set was awkward and I wound up missing the hook sets.

I got rid of all the LH reels at the end of the season and went back to RH reels.   

[Dink Dawg]

use what feels natural and fluid for you.  When I started, there were no left handed baitcast reels. reeling a baitcaster with my left feels awkward now and switching hands is not an issue.  I reel my spinning reels with my left hand and that feels natural. I fish spinning reels a lot. This is comfortable to me. If you are just starting out with bait casting, lefty is the efficient way to go. Build your muscle memory early. I'm way past that. Just don't drive on the left side of the road.

[FishaHallic]

Went to look at baitcasters the other day at bass pro. the guy at the reels suggested i get a left handed reel that way idont have to switch hands to crank. I use  a left crank spinning reel that works great but not sure about the left hand baitcaster. What do some of you guys use?

After I healed up from a slight rotator cuff tear and found I lost some strength in my left arm so I had a hard time setting hook, I switched to left handed bc's and I am glad I did.  Did not take long to get accustomed to the left handed bc and not switching hands after the cast is great and luckily this happened before I starting upgrading and adding to my bc reels.  Go with left handed reel and you won't look back.

[Oldfart9999]

I've used RH baitcasters for so long that a lefty just feels wrong, wished I started using them when I started using baitcasters. Spinning reels, at least all the ones I've seen are ambidextrous, they go both ways, I rig them lefty.
Rodney

[Eric-Maine]

my 7' 11" rods all have left handed baitcasters for short line presentations. Took a while to get used to fighting fish with the "wrong" hand. Much more efficient  not having to swap.

The rest are right handed. More comfortable retrieving with my dominate hand on the handle and free to land fish. Hands are swapped before bait hits the water.

Use the left hand on the handle with spinning

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[edwonbass]

I'm another right handler that uses left hand reels. First bait caster I ever bought was a lefty so that's what I learned on. Turned out the next one I bought was a little hard to find since they didn't make as many back then. Now it's much easier to get left hand reels.
Last summer I was checking out my sons new rig. He uses right hand reels. I really didn't have that much difficulty using that set up. I don't think I could walk a spook with it but just casting and winding wasn't that bad.

[TWBryan]

Thinking of trying to cast left-handed,too many rh reels for me to replace.