I was out sun. on a new to me lake and caught a whole bunch of bass but I realized my do everything medium light spinning rods don't have the backbone to set hooks good on bass. today I dug around the garage to find the baitcaster my parents bought me for my birthday a couple years ago. The problem is I am left handed so the handle is on the wrong side for me, can any of you make recommendations for a quality yet reasonably priced lefty reel? The reel I have is a Team Diawa 103hi is it worth anything used I might have casted it 12 times. The rod I have is a St Croix TRC70MHF its 7' med-heavy fast action. Is this a good rod to throw jigs and tube baits? sorry for the long winded post. I've been pretty hardcore fishing since I was a kid but never very serious into bass. Thanks for any help.
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Don't know much about your reel, but that is plenty of rod for you.
FYI, and contrary to most conventional thinking....If you are left handed, the reel handle should be on the right with the logic being that once you cast, you never have to switch hands to reel in.
I wish I would have started that way, because it's hard to change once you've been doing it the other way for so long.
I would stick with lures that weigh at least 3/8 oz to start with, and it would be good to practice with 1/2oz if you have a place you can. I would stick with spinning for tube baits and any jigs less than 3/8 oz.
Good luck!
FYI, and contrary to most conventional thinking....If you are left handed, the reel handle should be on the right with the logic being that once you cast, you never have to switch hands to reel in.
I wish I would have started that way, because it's hard to change once you've been doing it the other way for so long.
I would stick with lures that weigh at least 3/8 oz to start with, and it would be good to practice with 1/2oz if you have a place you can. I would stick with spinning for tube baits and any jigs less than 3/8 oz.
Good luck!
BaitCaster
Well-known member
I cast right handed and all my baitcast reels (and spinning reels for that mater) are left hand retrieve, i.e., I my right hand is always on the rod and I crank with my left hand. I never understood the logic of casting and then changing hands to reel in. I guess it is so you are reeling with your strong hand. I prefer to have my strong hand on the rod.
BaitCaster said:
From what I've been told......Yes with a baitcaster. Reason being that the baitcaster is meant to "winch" in a fish thus using your dominant hand to do the work and with most spinning setups, the fight is in the rod and so used in the dominant hand.
Doesn't mean much to me the reasoning, all I know is that when I started flipping, it made switching hands a real pain in the neck and have since vowed to only buy left handed models from now on.
cyberflexx
Well-known member
Brine said:
I am a lefty.. I reel with my right hand cast with my left hand. I can start cranking as soon as the lure hits the water, no switching hands or anything. One good thing for me though is I can cast with both hands so if 2 guys are on the front of the boat ( both leftys like me and my buddy ) I can switch off and cast with my right and we do not bump each other or anything. I do cast more accurate with my left hand. I'm not to bad roll casting with my right and getting better at skipping the lure under branches and docks..
Troutman3000
Well-known member
Im interested with the rest of the baitcasters guys on this.
Troutman3000
Well-known member
Fromw wikapedia
Early reels were often operated by inverting the reel and using back winding to retrieve line. For this reason, the reel crank handle was positioned on the right side of the reel.[6] As a result, the right-hand crank position for bait casting reels has become customary over the years, though models with left-hand retrieve are now gaining in popularity.
Early reels were often operated by inverting the reel and using back winding to retrieve line. For this reason, the reel crank handle was positioned on the right side of the reel.[6] As a result, the right-hand crank position for bait casting reels has become customary over the years, though models with left-hand retrieve are now gaining in popularity.
russ010
Well-known member
I cast with my right, and reel with my right - but I put the reel back in my left hand to start reeling before the lure ever touches the water... like Brine said - old habits are hard to break.
As far as that reel you have.. If I remember right (and I might be wrong) I think it's a Daiwa V-103hi.. 6.3:1 ratio with 4 ball bearings. I had one a few years ago someone gave me as a gift, and I flipped it on eBay for $75. I don't know how much they are new now, but if you are looking to sell it and it's still in good shape, you might be $50-60 for it if you are looking to sell it.
The rod you have is definitely strong enough for anything you want to throw - and one of the best rods for jigs and tubes
As far as that reel you have.. If I remember right (and I might be wrong) I think it's a Daiwa V-103hi.. 6.3:1 ratio with 4 ball bearings. I had one a few years ago someone gave me as a gift, and I flipped it on eBay for $75. I don't know how much they are new now, but if you are looking to sell it and it's still in good shape, you might be $50-60 for it if you are looking to sell it.
The rod you have is definitely strong enough for anything you want to throw - and one of the best rods for jigs and tubes
Just to echo everyone else, the rod you have is a nice one and plenty for throwing jigs and soft plastics. As Russ mentioned you could probably get rid of the reel on eBay and pick up a left-hand Shimano Citica for around a $100.
