What Do You Consider A 'good' Cast?

[NBR]

Accuracy, accuracy, accuracy. Short, long or in between!

[Deleted account]

I'll second the accuracy versus distance for bass fishing, also, a lot of folks have trouble estimating the actual length of a cast and usually overestimate the distance, just as a visual aid, the right field fence in Yankee Stadium is just over 100 yards from the plate, It would be very difficult if not impossible to reach that with typical bass tackle.

[craww]

Im not aware the size of that spinning reel, but 14lb mono is beyond pushing the line diameter limits for a bass fishing sized spinner. If you wish to continue throwing baits over 1/2 oz, id go to a 15lb braid...garauntee your distance nearly doubles with a rattletrap style bait. The ugly stick should forgive the braids no stretch.

[new2BC4bass]

Im not aware the size of that spinning reel, but 14lb mono is beyond pushing the line diameter limits for a bass fishing sized spinner. If you wish to continue throwing baits over 1/2 oz, id go to a 15lb braid...garauntee your distance nearly doubles with a rattletrap style bait. The ugly stick should forgive the braids no stretch.

I knew the Abu Garcia 5500C was a casting reel and assumed the Shakespeare Stampede was as well. Wrong! 6-8# mono is fine on that reel. You definitely should be getting more than 40' with this combo unless the lures you are using are too light for the rod. If the rod doesn't load up, distance will suffer drastically. Don't know the lure weight, but I tried a light lure on my new Villain ML rated for 1/8-3/8 lures. Line on reel appears to be 10# mono. This combination wouldn't throw that light lure worth a hill of beans.

14# on the TX 1200 is pushing your luck. Go with the 15# braid. 14# mono will work just fine on a spinning outfit provided it is the right size reel, and you are throwing lures within the rod's rating. First year I decided to get back into fishing I bought a Penn rod/reel combo and spooled 14# mono on it and left it in Florida for use on other visits. Distances weren't outstanding (a lot more than 40'), but I was getting plenty enough to catch fish. I was mostly fishing unweighted 10 inch worms on a 5/0 EWG hook.

[JamesD]

Wow, this has gotten a lot more attention than I expected.

Okay, firstly let me say, that I understand the importance of accuracy. I truly do. That isn't the issue here, though.

This is in response to the same questioned posed on the bronco forum in which I spend most of my online life at... hah

anyway, a buddy of mine who does a lot of pond/lake fishing gave me a similar answer in that accuracy is more important than distance.

It appears that when I posed the question "what's a GOOD cast", that was interpreted by just about everyone, that I was inquiring towards what makes a good cast a good cast.

"let me put it this way, if most of the fish I've caught resided near the shore... I would have caught a FAKWTON of fish this month, last month, and the month before.

The reason I ask, is because everywhere I have gone lately, the fish have been well over 40' away from the shore WITH A LOT OF ACTION.

Take today for example. I went to a small lake that I'd never fished before with a buddy and we hit it hard. I saw a 4lb bass jump out of the water. And then about 20 2-4lb bass do the same. They were going nuts! But the action was so far away from me that I couldn't reach out & cast over them to retrieve them with my rod & reel.

Throwing 3/8 oz spinner with a 7' ugly stuck, on a shimano TX1200 (very old spinner) with like 15lb mono, and I'm falling about 10-12' short of where the action is, not even IN the action.

This is why I'm asking.

As some of you don't see this as relevant, or maybe even understand... I'm trying to cast over the fish & top water action to retrieve through it. I have had NO luck near shores with worms, top waters, cranks, or spinners. "

Most of, or 90% of my fishing is done standing on a shore. The shore in particular is a very shallow area. I have about 120-150 feet from the shore line to the boating channel. The depth of the water from the channel to the shore is about 3-4' deep in varying areas. You can watch the bass feed on the threadfin shad about 60-70' from the shore line. It's a rare occurrence when I can cast out far enough to land a bite. Usually when this happens, it's because I've lucked out and found a school of shad with hungry bass in tow closer to the shore. So it's critical for what I am doing to get more distance in my casts.

Now, I don't exactly know what 'load' means in terms of casting and my lure, but I'm presuming this is the curve of the rod as I rare-back and begin my cast. If that is the case, I have great load on my two spinning rods, and not so much on my casting rod.

I don't understand why you say 14lb mono is too large for spinning reels? I have an old quantum that dwarfs my shimano, it currently has no line on it and doesn't get used much because the bail does not automatically flip back down when you begin to retrieve. I have to manually close it.

The shimano has a fairly 'deep' spool for it's size of reel, and it's one of the larger ones from it's generation.

I may have mentioned this in the forum before, but this is a hobby to me. I refuse to spend hundreds upon hundreds of dollars on tackle. That's just silly. If I wanted to spend stupid money on a hobby, I would go back to offroading and repairing/replacing broken junk on my Bronco. I thank you all for your input in telling me to go to 'better' equipment or better line, but I don't see the sense in spending a great deal of money on it.

With that said, the tackle/equipment is what I've got, and that isn't going to change. I am interested in buying fireline for my smallest combo (the stampede reel) and testing it that way. Probably with 20lb fireline. And if I like it, I will spool the rest of my reels with it.

So, I have included a few pictures to show you what I'm using, maybe this will end the confusion of what rod/reel I have. Most of you are pretty well aware of current market stuff, but since mine is a decade or more older, you may not be as familiar with it.

As you see, I use the shimano & ugly stik for spinners and cranks. It works well for that.

I use the 5500C for cranks, spinners, and heavier baits as (in my head) it's the strongest combo I have.

And the Stampede/IM6 is for great for worms, small spinners, and 1/8-1/4 lipless cranks.

I don't own anything larger than 1/2 oz, unless that bigàss crank you see in the picture is 3/4 (I found that one floating on a rocky shore)

So most of what I throw is 1/8, 1/4, & 3/8. I have two 1/2 lures that I rarely throw.

I hope this sheds some light on what I'm inquiring about and what's going on. I didn't mean for it to turn into something complicated with left-right-upside down replies.

Basically, I'm just asking "Hey, why isn't my gear casting as far as other people's gear" if the answer is as simple as "Your gear is old and sucks", well that's just that. And I can live with that.

[jerzeeD]

In my opinion, distance is not a factor. A "good cast" to me is one that hits exactly where I'm aiming, and lands exactly the way I want it do. It's all about the ability control my presentation.

^This x10. I only care about distance when "hail mary'ing" cranks to cover water. But 9 times out of 10, accuracy trumps distance. When fishing cover, I only need 25-30 feet of distance to hit my mark. It does me little good to have a rig that casts a mile but I can' t hit that sweet hole in the pads or drop a bait perfectly between 2 stumps 3' apart where the fish are. Distance comes from every part of the gear you use. Just moving from 10 lb trilene xl to 12 lb. trilene xt can kill your casting distance if you are using a 3/8-1/2 oz bait. If your distance is terribly unbearable, try using a lighter flourocarb line or getting a longer rod for whatever you are casting. My problem is the opposite... I am a fairly strong guy at 6'3"+ and 210 lbs. My problem is overjealous power casts that sometimes land me in snag territory.

[craww]

_James,

_{I own half a dozen of the old ambassadeurs, from 4600-6000's and while I'm a big fan. Lures with much less than 3/8oz just dont cast well with the heavy spools they have.}

_{Spinning reels with that size circumferance spool just arent a good mix with that heavy of a line. It slaps against the spool lip, stealing distance and giving potential line management headaches. Go down in line diameter and your distance will improve...}

[JamesD]

_James,

_{I own half a dozen of the old ambassadeurs, from 4600-6000's and while I'm a big fan. Lures with much less than 3/8oz just dont cast well with the heavy spools they have.}

_{Spinning reels with that size circumferance spool just arent a good mix with that heavy of a line. It slaps against the spool lip, stealing distance and giving potential line management headaches. Go down in line diameter and your distance will improve...}

Thanks. That's helpful. The fireline should be a good solution when I get around to it.

I believe my 5500C to be an '82 or '84. Do you have any ideas on when it was produced?

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

Looks to me that you need more line on your spinning reels they only half full. I think a different line will help as well the characteristics of braid makes for longer casts. As a cost saver you can use your mono as backing and put half the fireline on one reel and half on another.

Here some baits and distance I get with my spinning gear

Distance can be a factor to catching more bass for shore fishing, a person can be accuate AND throw far as well when need be. My PB was a max cast with just about 5 feet reeled in when hit, easy over 100 feet.

In this photo getting out to the open pockets are a must they hold fish, and shore fishing only, far casts are needed.

[Michael DiNardo]

JamesD I think someone beat me to it, but you definitely need more line on your spinning reels. Most say fill to within 1/8" of the lip. I fill the spool more than this. With a 3/8 oz lure your abus should cast farther than you can effectively set the hook. It may be a cleaning or proper setup issue. I feel your pain on shore fishing and not being able to cast to bass that are busting shad. I have the same problem on the Ohio river. For the spinning reels I would drop down to 10# line and fill the spool. Loading the rod is kinda like pulling a bow, the rod has to absorb the weight of the lure in the opposite direction from where you are casting. Also, keep the point of the rod tip up until the lure hits the water (follow through) this will cause less drag on your line.

Good Luck

Mike

[Capt.Bob]

If you are trying to cast with the SPINNING reels you displayed in the picture, it is very obvious why you can't get any distance. In the first place the spinning reels are empty, any reel has to be full to get any kind of decent cast, accuracy or distance. The next thing is your choice of line, 14lbs. or 15lbs. mono is good for the baitcast reels but those size spinning reels even full aren't going to cast satisfactory!! you will double anything your capable of now with 6lbs. mono if you want to use mono on the spinning reels. But if you switch to braid you will get as good or better with 15lbs test braid, as you will with 6lbs. mono, on the same spinning reel. But the spool has to be full to begin with. "14LBS TEST MONO ON THOSE SPINNING REELS IS NOT GOOD" those reels are not known for casting efficiency anyway, and then your killing yourself by fishing with empty spools, and believe me, there empty.

[JamesD]

That's some great info, thanks for sharing, Quake.

I agree, the spools are not nearly as full as I would like them to be. I just haven't bought any line. I see the rationality in that statement though. It makes sense.

The Stampede is badly in need of line and is not currently in-use, I will keep the mono on it as a backer/filler when I spool 125yds of the 10lb fireline. Wally World carries it for about $13 after tax. I will likely cut a bit off the shimano & load it with 20lb fireline if the tiny one plays well with it.

So, the amount of line I have is what's limiting my casts (on top of having crappy tackle in the first place) ?

Thanks, Bob & Michael

Also, in reference to the Abu's casting... This is going to come down to either rod action or lure weight, as the reel has been completely gone through. I have previously restored it and reworked both bearings (all two of them lol), and recently went in deeper and ended up doing some polishing work to the internal mechanism. Also, I'ts completely free-spooling, if I loosen the knob any more, it will impact with the manual drag star adjustment knob.

[Hooligan]

The only time I care about casting distance is when I'm cranking, but then if it's 75 yards and left of center, it doesn't matter. Accuracy is everything. Practice your accuracy and everything else comes with it. That's the point of it. You get a feel for what your rods and reels will do at a given distance and you then know how much power you must apply based on a relative distance. If I can't put a jig on a 4" plate from 15 yards, I go back to the basics and practice.

You're getting no distance on the spinning reels because you have no line on them, period. Full spools are the only way to get ANY distance on spinning gear.

[Capt.Bob]

That's some great info, thanks for sharing, Quake.

Also, in reference to the Abu's casting... This is going to come down to either rod action or lure weight, as the reel has been completely gone through. I have previously restored it and reworked both bearings (all two of them lol), and recently went in deeper and ended up doing some polishing work to the internal mechanism. Also, I'ts completely free-spooling, if I loosen the knob any more, it will impact with the manual drag star adjustment knob.

I don't know what you meant by touching the drag star, that could be an issue, you can back the tension control off to far! If you back the tension cap off just far enough to alow the spool to run free on a 1/4 oz weight that is about where you want it, any farther and it will allow end play in the spool shaft (side to side movement), that will cost casting efficiency. oil in bearings, not grease, same on the level wind mechanism, make sure it is running free, as my ambassador's don't disengage on free spool. Mine are rough as a cob but will cast 50 or 60 yards with 1/2 oz, I only use them these days for catfishing and carp in the river with the grandkids. hope some of this stuff works for you, everyone has been giving pretty good advice. good luck---- PS FILL THOSE SPOOLS FULL!!!

[Hi Salenity]

As far as the Abu goes if it's like mine the "line guide" moves during a cast and I don't thank they cast that good for distance . Were the bearings flushed on either baitcaster? I know what you mean on trying to get every last bit of distance you can, Last year I was on the bank frog fishing and after a while I could see them just outside my casting distance so I know how important that few more yards can be

[new2BC4bass]

Don't bother removing any line from the spinning reels. Use an Alberto, Albright, Uni-to-Uni, etc. to splice on the braid. I prefer the Alberto. BTW, closing the bail by hand is recommended to help keep line twist down so don't let the fact that your bail trip isn't working on the one reel bother you. You said the rods are loading up nicely, so going to a smaller diameter line and filling the spool should take care of your casting problem.

Otherwise, based on your own comments, live with what you have.

[hatrix]

I agree totally with Capt. Bob. I think people tend to over estimate there casting distance. I would say with a medium/heavy 6'6" you do all average rod that somewhere around 30-40 yards is probably what people average. As for those spinning reels they need more line for sure and should greatly improve your distance. Sometimes casting super far actually sucks. Sure I can whip a spook and take my reel down to the backing but I will tell you I sure as hell don't want to be walking a spook back that far every time. If I am doing something like that once I reach a certain point in the retrieve I will just reel it back in and eliminate half of what I casted and only focus on the area I am targeting.

BTW Capt. Bob are you getting good musky out of there? My buddy goes down there and has been trying to get me to go but I have yet to go. Also I guess there is some guy that uses total trash gear and kinda gets made fun of but he just slays the fish right in peoples face. He is like sorta of famous for it and I guess maybe slightly youtube famous. He makes videos or something I guess and everyone knows who he is. I don't know if your picture is the spot my buddy goes but he says they catch good fish out of there and firetiger baits are usually the deal for him.

[Jig Meister]

Distance is usually only an issue to a shore fisherman I should know.

[DON1937]

I used Mitchell 300s for several years and never felt that I needed to be able to cast further. You'd be very surprised at the difference in casting with 10lb. vs 12lb. mono. I could easily cast half again as far with the 10lb. as I could with the 12lb. You do need to fill your reel up to within about an eighth of an inch of the spool rim but filling it too full may result in line spilling off the reel just from the force of the cast before the weight of the lure takes hold.

[craww]

One more tip for the spinning rig. Clean and polish the lip of the spool (directly above where the line is). Can't tell by your pics, but I've seen a few of mine get gunked up over time. A through clean and a little wax did make a noticeable differance.

[Capt.Bob]

BTW Capt. Bob are you getting good musky out of there? My buddy goes down there and has been trying to get me to go but I have yet to go. Also I guess there is some guy that uses total trash gear and kinda gets made fun of but he just slays the fish right in peoples face. He is like sorta of famous for it and I guess maybe slightly youtube famous. He makes videos or something I guess and everyone knows who he is. I don't know if your picture is the spot my buddy goes but he says they catch good fish out of there and firetiger baits are usually the deal for him.

There aint nobody gettin muskie where those pictures are taken, if they are there rare! that is the Maumme River, the largest tributary to the Great Lakes. Known as the largest Walleye run in the world. I've seen a lot of different fish taken from Coho to Crappie, but in over 40 years, almost every day in March and April, I have never seen a Muskie. If you want to take a mess of the finest eating fish in the Northern States, I recamend going. Let me know when your ready and I'll guide you to great day and hit a few honey holes with you.

[new2BC4bass]

I used Mitchell 300s for several years and never felt that I needed to be able to cast further.

That is the reel I learned on 58 years ago. Still have fond memories of the metal sounds the reel made.

[DON1937]

That is the reel I learned on 58 years ago. Still have fond memories of the metal sounds the reel made.

My wife and I bought ours in 1964.....a few years after you They could be a little noisy but they last forever with a little maintenance. So simple to work on that my 10yr. old daughter took hers apart, cleaned, lubed and reassembled on her own. Other excellent reels from that era are the Shakespeare 2052 and 2062s.

[SirSnookalot]

If the old shakeperes were red I had 2 of them way back in the day, had the mitchell too. Weren't they called mitchel garcia then?

[new2BC4bass]

If the old shakeperes were red I had 2 of them way back in the day, had the mitchell too. Weren't they called mitchel garcia then?

Yes