Lews Speed Spool Ss1Sh

[new2BC4bass]

I've never used Yo-Zuri. Lots of people on here like it. I would guess that it isn't far behind a full fluorcarbon line when it comes to sensitivity or they would be using something else.

The rod also has a lot to do with sensitivity. I have zero experience with Shakespeare rods (at least in the last 30+ years) so no idea how sensitive your rod may be, but I'm going to take another guess and say if you are looking for the best sensitivity you can get, then a rod upgrade is called for. There is one guy here who says sensitivity is highly over-rated and his Ugly Sticks are as sensitive as any other rod. You won't find many that will agree with that statement.

I have a 6' Berkley Lightning rod that I bought for my granson on closeout at Walmart for $17. The Lightning is often suggested for those who can't afford to spend much. In recent years manufacturers have been making some darn good rods for less than $100.

I couldn't believe the prices when I got back into fishing a few years ago. The first reel I bought (on closeout) was more than any of my previous combos. I mean, who ever heard of spending over $100 on a rod or reel? Heck, I had never spent that much for any rod/reel combo much less for just one item. Didn't know there was any better line than Trilene XL. The Internet has been my downfall.

[skeletor6]

I've never used Yo-Zuri. Lots of people on here like it. I would guess that it isn't far behind a full fluorcarbon line when it comes to sensitivity or they would be using something else.

The rod also has a lot to do with sensitivity. I have zero experience with Shakespeare rods (at least in the last 30+ years) so no idea how sensitive your rod may be, but I'm going to take another guess and say if you are looking for the best sensitivity you can get, then a rod upgrade is called for. There is one guy here who says sensitivity is highly over-rated and his Ugly Sticks are as sensitive as any other rod. You won't find many that will agree with that statement.

I have a 6' Berkley Lightning rod that I bought for my granson on closeout at Walmart for $17. The Lightning is often suggested for those who can't afford to spend much. In recent years manufacturers have been making some darn good rods for less than $100.

I couldn't believe the prices when I got back into fishing a few years ago. The first reel I bought (on closeout) was more than any of my previous combos. I mean, who ever heard of spending over $100 on a rod or reel? Heck, I had never spent that much for any rod/reel combo much less for just one item. Didn't know there was any better line than Trilene XL. The Internet has been my downfall.

You make some really good points. I'd probably be better upgrading my rod before buying some seaguar tatsu. I understand what you mean about how expensive this gear could get. My goal is to get as many baitcaster rods and reels as I can since having a few would help me make quick switches of lures.

I figured it better to spend more on my reels and then buy quality rods when I can learn to appreciate them.

[hatrix]

I see some people talking about adjusting the tension knob and mag brakes for setting up your reel. I have a few lews and keep them all set the same 2 opposing brakes on and mag set at 1 or 0. I might go as high as 4 or 5 if it's blowing super hard. As for the tension knob I would keep it set to free spool but tight enough so there is no side to side play. You can turn the tension up I guess to learn but I think it will only make it more difficult on you when you decide to turn it off. If you tighten it up so it makes resistance when you crank that kind of defeats the purpose of a smooth reel IMO. As for backlashes I can't remember the last time I had a real one. Two days ago I showed a buddy how to use one of my rods and by the end of the day he was whip casting spinner baits with ease. Good luck and tight lines.

[skeletor6]

I see some people talking about adjusting the tension knob and mag brakes for setting up your reel. I have a few lews and keep them all set the same 2 opposing brakes on and mag set at 1 or 0. I might go as high as 4 or 5 if it's blowing super hard. As for the tension knob I would keep it set to free spool but tight enough so there is no side to side play. You can turn the tension up I guess to learn but I think it will only make it more difficult on you when you decide to turn it off. If you tighten it up so it makes resistance when you crank that kind of defeats the purpose of a smooth reel IMO. As for backlashes I can't remember the last time I had a real one. Two days ago I showed a buddy how to use one of my rods and by the end of the day he was whip casting spinner baits with ease. Good luck and tight lines.

Everywhere I've read and in the manual it states to set the tension knob so the lure falls slowly and when it hits the ground the spool can make one complete revolution. Using 3 centrifugal brakes for my weightless plastics helps me stay consistent I guess it's personal preference.

[new2BC4bass]

I see some people talking about adjusting the tension knob and mag brakes for setting up your reel. I have a few lews and keep them all set the same 2 opposing brakes on and mag set at 1 or 0. I might go as high as 4 or 5 if it's blowing super hard. As for the tension knob I would keep it set to free spool but tight enough so there is no side to side play. You can turn the tension up I guess to learn but I think it will only make it more difficult on you when you decide to turn it off. If you tighten it up so it makes resistance when you crank that kind of defeats the purpose of a smooth reel IMO. As for backlashes I can't remember the last time I had a real one. Two days ago I showed a buddy how to use one of my rods and by the end of the day he was whip casting spinner baits with ease. Good luck and tight lines.

You keep your spool tension set up like I do on all my reels. I bought a Tournament Pro from a young man on this site. Should have already had it, but due to one digit being off on the zip code, the reel got shipped to MA instead of NJ the first time. Apparently it is too hard to look at the address and see something isn't right. MA is not NJ. LOL. This morning the reel was delivered to the wrong address. Hoping to pick it up tomorrow, and get some fishing in this weekend with it. I'll try your settings to start with. This will be my first dual-control reel. I have to run my magnetic brakes up around 6-7 on my Diawas and pre '10 STX with spool tension set just enough to remove side-to-side play. Have to blame it on not getting out enough to obtain a PHD thumb.

Really pumped up about using the Lews after all I've been reading about how great they are. I suppose next year it will be a different reel, and we will start hearing about an area or two where the Lews is coming up short. Wouldn't be the first time such a thing has happened.

[hatrix]

Everywhere I've read and in the manual it states to set the tension knob so the lure falls slowly and when it hits the ground the spool can make one complete revolution. Using 3 centrifugal brakes for my weightless plastics helps me stay consistent I guess it's personal preference.

Pretty much any guide or How-To for setting up a bait caster will say to set the tension so the bait slowly falls and only does 1 rotation when it hits the ground. That's perfectly fine and a great place to start when learning to first use a casting reel. But for me personally I NEVER add any tension to the spool. When first starting I did and when I backed it off I basically had to learn it all over again. It will reduce casting distance and take more effort to cast a bait. If any thing I would turn all 4 pins on and maybe crank up the mags to max. Then when you get a good feel for it back off your brakes and you should have no problem. Thinking about it most of the time I never really thumb the spool except to stop it before it hits the water. You kinda get a sense for when it's a bad cast and you need to control the spool with you thumb. Generally I never have to unless it's human error or the wind blows all of a sudden or maybe your bait helicopters. The reel should do pretty much all the work for you.

[skeletor6]

Pretty much any guide or How-To for setting up a bait caster will say to set the tension so the bait slowly falls and only does 1 rotation when it hits the ground. That's perfectly fine and a great place to start when learning to first use a casting reel. But for me personally I NEVER add any tension to the spool. When first starting I did and when I backed it off I basically had to learn it all over again. It will reduce casting distance and take more effort to cast a bait. If any thing I would turn all 4 pins on and maybe crank up the mags to max. Then when you get a good feel for it back off your brakes and you should have no problem. Thinking about it most of the time I never really thumb the spool except to stop it before it hits the water. You kinda get a sense for when it's a bad cast and you need to control the spool with you thumb. Generally I never have to unless it's human error or the wind blows all of a sudden or maybe your bait helicopters. The reel should do pretty much all the work for you.

I'm looking to Improve my talents with baitcasting. Is it general consensus to loosen up the tension knob to make it spin freely and learn to throw from there? Earlier recommendations from two others in this same thread recommended 2 on 2 off centrifugal brakes and a magnet setting around 4 while setting the tension knob where the bait falls slowly.

By all means I'm looking to improve. Would loosening up the tension knob nearly free be the way the "most talented baitcasters" practice?

It's ridiculously easy to set the lews up where it's impossible to cast without backlash and still have incredible casting distance for any who want to claim that lews has issues with that. Watching Kevin van dam cast, it appears as though his motion is quicker and more wrist whip than mine. (looking aT spinnerbait and lipless crank lessons). Would a pro such as himself leave the spool free like you guys mention?

On a side note I have an old quantum with the spool tension shim and knob broke. So essentially it has no tension on the spool. It seems near impossible to cast beyond 15 yards without backlash. But then again there's no centrifugal braking system to slow down the spool early. I also use a full spool of line. The same quantum I could easily cast when it had maybe 40 yards left.

[shaun_reid]

I am one of the ones that said that earlier in the thread. But everyone is different, and that is what works fine for me. You just need to play around with everything until you find what works best for you. What works for someone else may not work very well for you.

[skeletor6]

I am one of the ones that said that earlier in the thread. But everyone is different, and that is what works fine for me. You just need to play around with everything until you find what works best for you. What works for someone else may not work very well for you.

Yeah your settings have been working best for me. Thankyou! I was unaware that anyone ever kept their spool free. I can see the advantage when pitching but not for long whipping casts which I usually end up making.

[Capt.Bob]

I'm looking to Improve my talents with baitcasting. Is it general consensus to loosen up the tension knob to make it spin freely and learn to throw from there? Earlier recommendations from two others in this same thread recommended 2 on 2 off centrifugal brakes and a magnet setting around 4 while setting the tension knob where the bait falls slowly.

By all means I'm looking to improve. Would loosening up the tension knob nearly free be the way the "most talented baitcasters" practice?

The 2 on 2 off and use the tension is great for guys new to bait casting, or any new reel. But by all means the more you learn to control your casting mechanics, the looser you will be able to run the reel, as someone said, the only time tension being to loose will cause casting efficiency is if the spool has side play. But I prefer 1 brake no spool tension and no mag, but when I started using bait cast equipment, I would quit trying with the respools that would have caused. I relied on spool tension to alow me to learn the mechanics in them days, there was no brakes, the spool tension was the brake, or your thumb.

As for KVD,-------I'm pretty sure he's runnin on FFFFRRRRRREEEEEE spool!

[skeletor6]

The 2 on 2 off and use the tension is great for guys new to bait casting, or any new reel. But by all means the more you learn to control your casting mechanics, the looser you will be able to run the reel, as someone said, the only time tension being to loose will cause casting efficiency is if the spool has side play. But I prefer 1 brake no spool tension and no mag, but when I started using bait cast equipment, I would quit trying with the respools that would have caused. I relied on spool tension to alow me to learn the mechanics in them days, there was no brakes, the spool tension was the brake, or your thumb.

As for KVD,-------I'm pretty sure he's runnin on FFFFRRRRRREEEEEE spool!

Thank you very much capt bob! You've helped me so much throughout this whole process. I do not have the opportunity to fish with advanced anglers like you and many others on the forum. I am going to try to start rocking free spool so I can improve my technique.

My biggest problem is when on long crankbaits casts (free spool) the spool spins too fast and the line unravels. Should I try to make an overall longer and slower motion with a little wrist snap at the end. I've watched the video posted recently here about pitching and flipping. But what do you guys focus on when making long casts with heavier and lighter baits(thumb pressure on the spool/ wrist action/ general casting motion)I am assuming there is more potential to cast further with the spool left free. That alone is incredible because I'm already out casting everyone I fish with using this new Lews.

On another thought, I thought my old 2000 model quantum with a broken tension shim and knob was doomed since it left the spool free. Now it sounds like I can use it again!

Thanks to everyone. I'm glad to be a part of this community. Everyone has gone above and beyond to help me I am very grateful.

[hatrix]

I guess everyone is different but I would assume most people keep there reel free spool once they get comfortable with there gear. Don't worry to much about whipping it as hard as you can right from the start and try using somewhat heavy aerodynamic baits that can be worked fast so you can fire off as many casts as possible to maximize your time on the water casting. You can still make a pretty long cast by putting minimal effort in your cast as opposed to trying to really fire it out there. Also I don't know if any one mentioned but the line you use also makes a difference and some line might be more prone to backlash then others. Getting some line conditioner can really help keep the line from springing off the spool once the smallest backlash starts and can help improve distance by making it a bit more supple and removing memory (temporally).