IowaBass15 Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 Hello everyone I have a question about casting my lews. I cannot seem to get any distance with my cast. It casts about 10 or so yards and dies. With my okuma I can cast a mile. My okuma is a 7:3:1 ratio where as my lews is a 5:4:1 ratio I use for cranking. Any advice? Quote
masterbass Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 I assume you know how to set the spool tension and brakes, so is it a new reel? Quote
sprint61 Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 You have to be doing something wrong, no offense. Are you sure you have everything set properly? I have two of these reels and they will cast as far as I want. Quote
IowaBass15 Posted June 22, 2015 Author Posted June 22, 2015 You have to be doing something wrong, no offense. Are you sure you have everything set properly? I have two of these reels and they will cast as far as I want. Ive tweaked the brakes and spool tension to try and adjust it and it gradually started to gain distance. I had about 10 casts before the weather turned on me so I am hoping with more time i'll be able to fine tune it. Otherwise its as smooth as butter and I'm loving it haha Quote
IowaBass15 Posted June 22, 2015 Author Posted June 22, 2015 I assume you know how to set the spool tension and brakes, so is it a new reel? Yes its a brand new reel. I got it for 75 bucks brand new when cabelas was having a sale and just took it out today for the first time before the weather got nasty. I didn't have much time to tune it but it was a little discouraging when it was only casting about 15 yards. Quote
BASSPATROL247 Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 Its kinda funny to me when i hear "tune the tension and brakes" the only way i could cast when i learned was to have the spool loose enough to wear it would slide side to side 1/8 inch and the brakes all the way off. I still cast with a super loose spool but my brakes i set at 2 or 3, its all in the thumb for me bug thats how i taught myself.. did you look under the spool tension cap and check if the little copper or friction washer wasnt left out at the factory??? All my lews casted great right out of the box..or check the brakes to make sure nothings missing or broke... Quote
Super User WIGuide Posted June 22, 2015 Super User Posted June 22, 2015 It's also worth looking at what the weight recommendations are on the rod you're using. Your bait may be too light for the rod which causes the rod to not load properly resulting in poor casting performance. Quote
Super User smalljaw67 Posted June 22, 2015 Super User Posted June 22, 2015 This is an easy fix, the brakes on that reel are magnetic and adjusted on the dial on the outside of the reel. Magnetic brakes work more at the end of the cast than the beginning, that is why you hear of guys dialing in a centrifugal brake casting reel, they set the brakes up so when they make a cast, the brakes keep the spool from over running right at the start of the cast but then you use your thumb to stop the spool as the bait hits the water. With a magnetic brake system, you feather the spool with your thumb at the start of the cast and then you can leave off as the brakes will slow the spool so when the bait hits the water, the spool stops. What is happening is you have the brakes turned up all the way, from you saying the Okuma you have you can cast a mile, I'm betting that reel is dialed in so you don't have to use your thumb much but on the Lews, you have to turn the brakes up high enough to help at the beginning of the cast and because of that the spool turns a little and stops and why you only get a short cast. The way to fix the problem is to practice using your thumb, set the brakes to half of the dial number, if it goes to 10 then set it at 5, if it goes to 20, set it at 10. With the brakes set half way you are going to make a cast, forearm only and don't force it, when you let go watch your reel and see if the line starts jumping off (you'll see the line rise up off the spool as it is coming off of the reel), if you see that it means you need to use your thumb to manage the spool speed until the brakes take over. You already know how to use a casting reel so it won't take long to get this one down but it will require a bit of practice since it is a different brake system. The very problem the OP is experiencing is why I don't recommend reels with only magnetic brakes like the regular speed spool or the MG for those who are new to casting reels and by new I mean those who may have experience but with only 1 reel with less than a year with it. The new brake systems are that good that you really don't have to feather the spool at all anymore when you dial it in but magnetic systems are different, they work from the middle part to the end of the cast, so the higher you turn them up, the sooner they work but the sooner they begin to work the shorter the cast. So in order to get a good cast you have to keep the brake setting low and manage the beginning of the cast with the spool tension and your thumb, if you don't have much experience with a casting reel it will make it tough, with a 6-pin centrifugal brake system you can turn all but 2 brakes on and set the spool tension and make a decent cast without using your thumb. Good luck with your reel, it will be fine but you need to practice with it and since you already use a casting reel the leaning curve will be a few short hours, you just need to train the thumb a little more. Quote
Delaware Valley Tackle Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 It's also worth looking at what the weight recommendations are on the rod you're using. Your bait may be too light for the rod which causes the rod to not load properly resulting in poor casting performance. X2 Reels don't cast baits, rods do Quote
Canyon explorer Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 Put a 1/4 oz or 3/8 oz casting plug or worm weight on your line. Now adjust the spool tension knob so that there is just a slight (half turn or so ) spool over run when your line weight (Lure) hits the ground. Your reel should now cast 60-70' . Re adjust when ever you change lure weight. If the reel still only casts 10 yards Take off the left side plate and re check the three high speed bearings that bear on the spool shaft. If they do not turn very freely they need to be removed and washed with acetone, dried and reoiled. Quote
Canyon explorer Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 X2 Reels don't cast baits, rods do Does that mean I can put a "Snoopy" reel on my IMX? 8-) Quote
Delaware Valley Tackle Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 You'd be the talk of the docks at least. lol Quote
IowaBass15 Posted June 23, 2015 Author Posted June 23, 2015 X2 Reels don't cast baits, rods do Im using a 7 foot duckett ghost medium action rod. Quote
IowaBass15 Posted June 23, 2015 Author Posted June 23, 2015 Put a 1/4 oz or 3/8 oz casting plug or worm weight on your line. Now adjust the spool tension knob so that there is just a slight (half turn or so ) spool over run when your line weight (Lure) hits the ground. Your reel should now cast 60-70' . Re adjust when ever you change lure weight. If the reel still only casts 10 yards Take off the left side plate and re check the three high speed bearings that bear on the spool shaft. If they do not turn very freely they need to be removed and washed with acetone, dried and reoiled. Quote
IowaBass15 Posted June 23, 2015 Author Posted June 23, 2015 Well I figured it out. I cut my line and completely relined it and problem solved. Not sure what exactly was causing it since I don't backlash that often but its fixed and casts better than I had hoped. I also got this fella tonight Quote
IowaBass15 Posted June 23, 2015 Author Posted June 23, 2015 You'd be the talk of the docks at least. lol No one wants to be that guy haha. Quote
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