Looking for a Baitcaster

[melrich]

I need some help.

I have never fished with a baitcaster and no next to nothing about them but as I get into more of the finesse style fishing I am thinking maybe I should give one a go, at least learn to use one and see what advantages it would have over a spin reel.

I am happy to buy second hand up to 5 years old - can anyone let me know what are the quality baitcasters around that I should look at - preferably something that is easy for a beginner to pick up. Willing to pay up to $200, around that mark.

Thanks

[scott1987]

For $200 id just buy a daiwa tatula. Would be a good starting point for you to learn on

[bargeass]

I wouldn't bother with it if you're going to be mostly bream fishing. But if you're looking at bass fishing and stuff the requires accurate casting and slightly larger lures then its the best move you'll ever make. Any reels from the shimano and daiwa stable are a good place to start, rod wise daiwa and shimano again do some nice sticks but my favorite casting rods are from dobyns, but just about every rod manufacturer has something that'll do the job

[chris268]

Will you be using it for bass? What sort of lure weights are you looking to throw? Finesse baitcaster setups tend to cost a fair bit. Usually the lighter the reel can throw, the more it costs.

[melrich]

Originally Posted by chris268

Will you be using it for bass? What sort of lure weights are you looking to throw? Finesse baitcaster setups tend to cost a fair bit. Usually the lighter the reel can throw, the more it costs.

Yes main use would be bass and bream and I would like to be able to throw down to 3-5 gms. As I said I have no idea about these reels and it sounds from the responses I have got that some casters will not throw light - so I would be looking at casters that will throw light.

[chris268]

Hmm the cheapest one i can think of is the Abu Garcia Revo LT from Japan. Upgrade it with finesse bearings from ZPI or Hedgehog Studios and you should be able to cast that weight pretty easy. I just don't know how easily you'll be able to find that reel used and for the price. You also need to take into account the rod. This will have as much to do with casting the light weight lures as the reel. Volkey BFS rods are a good place to start and again would need to be purchased from Japan.
My Revo LT, bearings and Volkey BFS was probably around the $500 mark from japan. It throws the weight range you're after well.
Another alternative would be to get something like a Shimano Scorpion XT reel which are about $199 US. Out of the box they're not really finesse but you can upgrade the spool to an Avail one and get some bearings but that might cost just as much, if not more than the Revo LT.

Edit -
to give you an idea on costs, check this site out: http://www.japantackle.com/
browse the products and it'll give you an idea of which reels are suited to throwing lighter lures. they also sell upgrades such as finesse bearings, lighter spools etc. Unfortunately you'll see that its not cheap

[Cheyne_jones]

If you want to cast 3 - 5g lures stick to spin, they are just so much more suited to the light stuff. Bait finesse had a huge ground swell over the past few years, but I can see it dying off as a fad already.

If you are casting 1/4 ounce upwards, then the benefits of a casting setup really shine, once you master it they are far more accurate, you can get out many more casts over a period of time compared to spin (look up machineguncast on youtube and you will see what can be done). There are far more types of casts with casting reels, pitches, flips, overhead etc etc, they all serve a purpose and are very underused in our styles of fishing.

But getting a casting rod for breaming, probably an exercise in frustration to be honest....

[melrich]

Thanks for all the responses, this a great place for expert information.

Think I will just grab a cheapie off eBay and practice with it. Will sit on an ABU Revo LT coming up. Probably don't have an immediate need at the moment but would like to learn how to use one.