Depends on the iteration really. My scorpion DC requires zero thumbing at all, even at the end of the cast. The downside is that it doesn't cast that far. My Exsence DC has an SP mode that was designed for night fishing and requires zero thumbing either, amazing really.. You can hear the brakes activate right when the lure hits the water. Now on the longer casting modes I have to thumb when the lure hits the water or if the bait was too light and caught some wind it can backlash.