Using 7.x:1 For Everything?

[ABW]

Is it just me or does anyone else do this? I never deep crank so there's no need for the 5.x:1's. With a 7.1:1 I feel that if I want to fish something slower, reel slower. If a fish is coming at me, I have a better chance of not letting him get slack in the line.

[Montanaro]

Eeeh...even if you reel slow you are still bringing in a lot of line. I've noticed my chatterbaits ride higher and don't creep through the strike zone even when I reel slow with 7.1:1.

Biggest problem is trebles and hauling a fish in too fast.

[Darren.]

Is it just me or does anyone else do this? I never deep crank so there's no need for the 5.x:1's. With a 7.1:1 I feel that if I want to fish something slower, reel slower. If a fish is coming at me, I have a better chance of not letting him get slack in the line.

 

I would tend to agree. But I tend to fish soft plastics mostly, and when I want the worm in, I can bring it in quickly. Problem is, I wish my favorite reels (Chronarch 50e) were 7.1:1. But I make do....

 

If I were a wide-range-of-lures-and-such-fisherman, I'd probably like several reels at different ratios. That said, when I do fish a lure, I like either the 50e or my Lexa 7.1:1. Or one of my Stradics.

[PersicoTrotaVA]

My cranking rod has a 5.4:1 reel on it, my spinnerbait rod has a 6.4:1 reel on it, My flippin and pitchin stick has a 7.1:1.  My everything rod has an 8.1:1 reel on it.  I fish everything on that rod except crankbaits.  I love 8.1:1, I can cover a lot of water with it.

[Josh Smith]

All I own are 4.7:1, 5.0:1, and 5.3:1, and one (5600c4 Mag) that's a 6.3:1 gear ratio.

 

The 4.7:1 reels retrieve 23IPT.

 

The 5.0:1 reels are similar, maybe a little less due to a different spool size.

 

The 5.3:1 retrieves 26IPT.

 

The 6.3:1 retrieves 30IPT.

 

All but the 5.0:1 reels are round Abu Garcias.  The 5.0:1 are Quantums.

 

I'm looking at charts for modern low-profiles.

 

My 6.3:1 round has about the same retrieve rate as a 7.0:1 low profile.

 

My 5.3:1 round has about the same retrieve rate as a 6.3:1 low profile.

 

My 4.7:1 round has about the same retrieve rate as 5.3:1 low profile.

 

Interesting.  I've never really sat down and compared all that before.

 

So, you're running about 30IPT?  If you can keep that up and you're catching fish, more power to you!

 

For me, that's a bit fast, though, and I prefer my 23IPT and 26IPT reels for most things.

 

Regards,

 

Josh

[ChrisD46]

Another application for a slower 5.x:1 or a 6.x:1 reel retrieve ratio would be for a large , single blade , colorado spinner bait used for slow rolling along the bottom at night .

[Catch and Grease]

I use 7.3 for most everything.

 

I like a little slower for crank baits, like a 6.5

[Grantman83]

If keith combs and aaron marten can deep crank with high ratios than it can be done. Doesn't mean that's how I wanna do it lol

[mjseverson24]

So far I have stuck with 6:1 and 7+:1, 6's for horizontal presentations and 7's for bottom contact and frogs/buzzbaits. on my deeper cranking set ups I have 6:1's but I put a 100+mm handle on it to increase torque. If I used really deep cranks (over 20 Ft) I would probably get a 4 or 5:1 and still put the big handle on it. in my opinion you could probably get away better with a 6:1 than a 7, but why limit yourself. 

 

Mitch

[Josh Smith]

If keith combs and aaron marten can deep crank with high ratios than it can be done. Doesn't mean that's how I wanna do it lol

 

I agree with this.  I was in Aikido for several years, was an auto tech, and still work with my hands.  My forearms are pretty strong.

 

Reeling all day with even a 7.0:1 isn't an issue.  It's that reeling that much slower doesn't feel natural any more than going to 3.8 gears feels natural.

 

Everything produces its best torque in a certain range.  Mountain bikes, for example, have all those gears so that one can keep in his torque range no matter the speed.

 

The way I see it, the same is true with reels.  Reels that give you 23IPT to 26IPT cover more bases than a 30IPT reel, though the latter has its place.

 

Regards,

 

Josh

[kikstand454]

I agree with this. I was in Aikido for several years, was an auto tech, and still work with my hands. My forearms are pretty strong.

Reeling all day with even a 7.0:1 isn't an issue. It's that reeling that much slower doesn't feel natural any more than going to 3.8 gears feels natural.

Everything produces its best torque in a certain range. Mountain bikes, for example, have all those gears so that one can keep in his torque range no matter the speed.

The way I see it, the same is true with reels. Reels that give you 23IPT to 26IPT cover more bases than a 30IPT reel, though the latter has its place.

Regards,

Josh

So much this.

IMO wanting a lower ratio for deep cranks has alot more to do with torque than it does speed. Dragging a 3/4oz lure, 20+ft underwater and grinding the bottom will wear you out. But like mentioned above, having the appropriate gear for the resistance your encountering makes life alot easier.

[OntarioFishingGuy]

I like high speed reels, not for catching up to a fish, but to get the lure back to the boat quickly. That said, I don't use them for everything, just for things like punching/flipping and topwater, everything else I use a 6.4 or 5.4.

[greentrout]

I once fished with an old gentleman who be on the boat with two spincast setups. He would usually have one rigged with a Texas

rigged worm and Devil's Horse on the other one. The reels were old Zebcos and Johnsons with a reel ratio of about 3:1 and would

bring in per handle turn 15 to 19 inches.

 

We fished farm ponds, State Parks and private lakes. He kept things simple and what he did he was very good at. He caught a lot

of bass.

 

Old school basser....

[doyle8218]

[greentrout]

Old school basser...

[Jrob78]

I love high speed reels for anything slack line, (jigs, t rigs, c rigs, punching, Senkos, etc) and frogs.  When you work the bait with the rod, reel speed doesn't really effect the retrieve.  

 

For moving baits like crankbaits, jerkbaits, topwater, spinnerbaits, etc, I like a slower reel.  I tend to reel faster than I should and a slower reel keeps me from overdoing it.  I also like the added torque you get from lower geared reels for cranks and spinnerbaits.

[Josh Smith]

 

OK, so, paraphrasing:

 

"I use 7.1:1 reels.  The stress on the gears is so much that they had to beef them up.  Additionally, the 7:1 is so hard to crank that I need a larger handle.  That larger handle effectively reduces the overall gear ratio because the handle is, itself, a gear."

 

It makes no sense.  It's a marketing gimmick.  You could do the same thing by putting a smaller handle on a lower gear ratio reel.  Sure, maybe you get an easy 33ipt or whatever, but your hand travels a further distance.

 

You cannot create energy.  It just can't be done.

 

Josh

[TrippyJai]

I prefer 6:1 for anything that needs to be constantly moving such as a crankbait, spinnerbait, some top water baits, chatterbaits, etc. I would only use a 5:1 for deep cranking which I don't do.

 

7:1 for the rest such as flipping, pitching, t-rigs, heavy cover, etc.

 

Don't care for the super high speed reels like 7+:1.

[aavery2]

OK, so, paraphrasing:

 

That larger handle effectively reduces the overall gear ratio because the handle is, itself, a gear."

 

 

 

Increasing the handle length does not change the gear ratio.  The ratio between the handle and drive gear is 1 to 1 regardless of handle length.   What is gained with an increase in handle length is leverage.

 

Sorry I didn't understand your point about the shorter handle, can you elaborate a little on it.

[Grantman83]

I think he was saying you could speed up a slower speed reel by putting a shorter handle on it. Shorter handle means more rotations more quickly ergo more speed.

The gear ratio stays the same but the speed of the rotations will go up because your hand has less distance to travel.

[aavery2]

I think he was saying you could speed up a slower speed reel by putting a shorter handle on it. Shorter handle means more rotations more quickly ergo more speed.

The gear ratio stays the same but the speed of the rotations will go up because your hand has less distance to travel.

Thanks for the explanation,  in my mind the difference in time it takes to make 1 rotation with an 80mm handle -vs-  a 100mm is so small that it makes no practical difference. 

[Josh Smith]

Increasing the handle length does not change the gear ratio.  The ratio between the handle and drive gear is 1 to 1 regardless of handle length.   What is gained with an increase in handle length is leverage.

 

Sorry I didn't understand your point about the shorter handle, can you elaborate a little on it.

 

 

I think he was saying you could speed up a slower speed reel by putting a shorter handle on it. Shorter handle means more rotations more quickly ergo more speed.

The gear ratio stays the same but the speed of the rotations will go up because your hand has less distance to travel.

 

 

Thanks for the explanation,  in my mind the difference in time it takes to make 1 rotation with an 80mm handle -vs-  a 100mm is so small that it makes no practical difference. 

 

Hello,

 

The crank handle is just a lever, and the lever is the simplest tool.

 

It consists of a stick (or whatever) and a fulcrum.  This applies to rods as well as reel handles, and it's one reason I don't understand when folks say longer rods give them mechanical advantage in fighting fish. 

 

Explanation to follow.  I'm going to draw up a couple pictures and scan them.

 

Regards,

 

Josh

[Josh Smith]

OK, here's the math showing the mechanical advantages/disadvantages.  Using a rod, the mechanical advantage always goes to the fish.  It's just how much advantage you're willing to give up to the fish that you have to determine.

 

 

All a rod is, is a series of mechanical advantages/disadvantages.  The above shows the relationship.  It's a series of levers.  All a gear is, is a round lever, by the way.

 

The title of the picture is "Force Multiplier" (or, could also be named "Why You Should Have Paid Attention in High School")

 

Let me know if you can't read something; I'm no longer used to drawing schematics for anyone but me.

 

Longer rods give the bass a greater mechanical advantage over the angler.  A rod that has a medium action doesn't give up as much as it bends in the middle and reduces the overall length.  For the argument, however, we're assuming stiff rods with no bend.  Theoretical rods, in other words, or rods with the same amount of softness in the tip and strong backbones.

 

Likewise, if you have two different rod handles, the longer one will do less work than the shorter one for the same distance traveled, but in return you don't have to reel quite as hard.

 

Make sense?  Can you read it?

 

Regards,

 

Josh

 

P.S.  I noticed I messed up the math.  It should have been 2πr.  I don't know why I did that.  The new numbers should be 12.56 inches vs 9.42 inches.  I don't know why I did that.

[aavery2]

Thanks for taking the time to draw the picture and do the math. I understand the physics of it completely. On a larger scale a longer handle would have some real world implications that would have to be considered if you wanted to gain the additional leverage by extending it.

The trade off for gaining the additional leverage of a 100mm handle over that of an 80MM handle is that you have to move the handle an additional 2.5" per rotation to perform the same work. In real world application with a fishing reel, the time it takes to move this additional distance is almost unmeasurable. Fractions of a second.

So what you end up with is this, a shorter handle requires more effort to perform the same amount of work and is insignificantly faster.

Just my thoughts

[DTack]

I like fast reels. I like catching big bass and showing them to people. I don't like doing math.

If you feel like you're reeling a bait too fast, slow down. If you don't feel like you can slow down, get a slower reel for the job.

I like the fastest reel I can get away with.