Baitcaster: how to keep lure from going so high

[Largemouth21]

I have been doing a lot of baitcaster practice and I am past the complete beginner stage I think although I’m no where close to expert or even intermediate. Anyway I can put what I’m casting pretty close to where i want it now (I have been practicing with a fake senko) and I don’t overrun unless I try and whip it out there. My problem is distance, my rig is a pro max and a veritas 2.0 7MF which is really stiff and is hard to load up with lighter things like my weightless yum dinger. When I cast it goes really high,  it goes up over half the distance of the cast if that makes sense, ie. if I made a 50 foot cast it might go 25+ ft in the air. I know I’ve gotta be losing distance that way. Because the rod is so stiff I can’t get it to load with light things like top waters and light soft plastics like baby brush hogs so I geuss it’s going to have to be a rod for only heavier lures. Anyway how can I keep the lure down closer to the water and maybe gain some distance. The have been reading other threads but can’t find a lot about the height problem... Thanks

[Backroad Angler]

Are ya side swinging it, overhead or what?

[Largemouth21]

19 minutes ago, JoshFromBolo said:

Are ya side swinging it, overhead or what?

I cast a side arm and I make kind of a circle to load up the rod and then I raise the rod tip and keep it straight

[GReb]

Loosen up your spool tension and brakes. Also adjust your launch angle to to 3/4

[Backroad Angler]

12 minutes ago, Largemouth21 said:

I cast a side arm and I make kind of a circle to load up the rod and then I raise the rod tip and keep it straight

If you have'nt I would suggest going on youtube and looking at the different ways of casting a baitcaster, sometimes it can be real tricky to get it down. 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Casting is like throwing a ball. It's all about the release point. Under hand cast, bait sailing high means a late release. 

[burrows]

Could be your rod 

[thinkingredneck]

Watch Glenn's videos on setting up a baitcaster.  The advice above is all good. Get a half oz spoon to practice with.

[CrankFate]

10 hours ago, Largemouth21 said:

my rig is a pro max and a veritas 2.0 7MF which is really stiff and is hard to load up with lighter things like my weightless yum dinger. 

 

IMHO, that’s the problem. To cast without everything being a high pop fly ball the rod has to be soft and rubbery enough to slingshot the bait out there. There are hardly any rods available today that do this. I just got a bass pro brand rod for $79 for my new reel because the Tatula rod I bought is too stiff for weightless casting, just like every other rod in the $150-400 range.

[CroakHunter]

2 minutes ago, CrankFate said:

 

IMHO, that’s the problem. To cast without everything being a high pop fly ball the rod has to be soft and rubbery enough to slingshot the bait out there. There are hardly any rods available today that do this. I just got a bass pro brand rod for $79 for my new reel because the Tatula rod I bought is too stiff for weightless casting, just like every other rod in the $150-400 range.

You know they make rods lighter than a medium, right?

[Deleted account]

If you want to cast light lures and unweighted plastics a longer distance, then as it appears you already know, it will require a lighter action rod. As far as the trajectory of the cast, you are in complete control of that. If you don't want the lure to go up high, then don't cast it up high.

[TOXIC]

And when you try and snap that baitcaster, you are going to relearn what a true birds nest is!!  Casting style is what works best for you.  I overhead cast unless I am skipping a bait.  Loading the rod is a combination of lure weight. rod action and arm motion and it's a balance.  You can whip or snap a spinning rod easily but if you do that with a bait caster, you are going to backlash.  But as a general rule arching casts are an early release and smacking the water is a late release.  If you are trying to do the fancy loop sidearm cast then since your lure is coming up on the release, you are late releasing.  

[Glenn]

 

 

[Boomstick]

It's all in the angle in which you throw it forward. Casting from shore can be tricky depending on the shoreline and what you have to cast around, but the trick is to keep the rod down when casting and keep it down throughout the cast. If you can't keep it down, start higher and then try to keep it down.

[grub_man]

You have a combination of things going on.  It looks like the lure ratings on the 7' MF Veritas are in the ball park for Senko type baits (1/4-5/8oz.).

 

1. Your release point is too late.  If you are sailing really high on a side armed roll cast as it sounds you are making, then you need to work on releasing the spool slightly earlier.  Work on this first to see if you can cut down the height by at least half.

 

2. You have too much spool brake.  If you have magnetic brakes on your reel, they are strongest at the start of the cast and will make your lure rise.  Centrifugal brakes are similar but will cause it to rise a bit less.  This will account for a bit.  You don't need as much spool braking for a side armed cast as you do with an overhand cast.  If you start tweaking this before your release point, when you release too early and drive the lure into the ground/water, you will get a larger backlash.

 

3.  Once you are comfortable with your gear, back down your spool tension knob to where it is just tight enough to prevent the spool from wobbling from side to side.

 

4. When you cast lighter lures than you are used to, you need to release them earlier.  Because the light lure has less inertia, it takes longer for them to bring the spool up to speed on the cast.  Releasing too late will often result in side armed casts going high, right handed casts going left, or left handed casts going right.

 

With practice, you should get to the point where you can keep the lure down and close to the water.

 

Good luck, and keep practicing.

[CrankFate]

8 hours ago, CroakHunter said:

You know they make rods lighter than a medium, right?

So they claim. But they’re few and far between. You can get spinning rods that are thin as a pencil and bend almost tip to tip. The casting rods are all stiffer. And in the store (at least around where I am) they rarely have anything softer than a mojo bass or abu Veritas. I’m always afraid to order rods because they will either be too stiff or will arrive damaged even from reputable stores.

[CrankFate]

4 hours ago, grub_man said:

It looks like the lure ratings on the 7' MF Veritas are in the ball park for Senko type baits (1/4-5/8oz.).

 

 

 

Good luck, and keep practicing.

I know I’m new to post here, but I’m calling rod maker conspiracy theory here. I say the veritas is too stiff to cast weightless senko type baits. The conspiracy is the rod companies all make inexpensive high quality spinning rods that can cast down to the size of anything heavier than flycasting. Like a tiny rap minnow. So to force us to buy more rods and reels they sell these too stiff casting rods so we think we need the best reels. Then we get those reels and realize we really need that “finesse” spinning set up. But really all we need is a $49-$99 bendy kiddy rod and any small casting reel and we’re casting senkos into the trees on the other side of the lake. But we don’t buy those set ups because we’re men who want fancy rigs, not kiddie rods. So there I am backlashing my $600 set up and then casting my kid’s spinning rod with nothing but a tiny bobber and 1/16th of a worm on it with one hand and getting hung up in the trees 50’ past the other side of the lake, while holding my birds nest in my left hand......

 

Rant over  

[CroakHunter]

1 hour ago, CrankFate said:

I know I’m new to post here, but I’m calling rod maker conspiracy theory here. I say the veritas is too stiff to cast weightless senko type baits. The conspiracy is the rod companies all make inexpensive high quality spinning rods that can cast down to the size of anything heavier than flycasting. Like a tiny rap minnow. So to force us to buy more rods and reels they sell these too stiff casting rods so we think we need the best reels. Then we get those reels and realize we really need that “finesse” spinning set up. But really all we need is a $49-$99 bendy kiddy rod and any small casting reel and we’re casting senkos into the trees on the other side of the lake. But we don’t buy those set ups because we’re men who want fancy rigs, not kiddie rods. So there I am backlashing my $600 set up and then casting my kid’s spinning rod with nothing but a tiny bobber and 1/16th of a worm on it with one hand and getting hung up in the trees 50’ past the other side of the lake, while holding my birds nest in my left hand......

 

Rant over  

Its not the rod. It's what's holding it. Work on your mechanics and technique. I can cast senkos and other weightless plastics with a mag heavy power rod. 

[WRB]

I can't recall a beginner to baitcasting start with a light weight loop cast, that is a skill set that requires lots of practice with the right rod and ree set up.

with a baitcasting reel start with heavier weighs like 5/8 oz casting plug until you are proficient with it before going to lighter weight. Some presentations are better suited for spinning reels.

Tom

[Steve1357]

I didnt see it mentioned, apologies if so....

 

How much line are you using with the lure to cast?

 

I use more line out with lighter lures, helps wind them up and sling them out there better.

(my humble experience)

[CrankFate]

4 hours ago, CroakHunter said:

Its not the rod. It's what's holding it. Work on your mechanics and technique. I can cast senkos and other weightless plastics with a mag heavy power rod. 

I was joking. I’m actually good at casting. But I see no reason why rod makers can make perfectly soft spinning rods that no one has complaints about, but almost all casting rods are impossible to load up with less than 1/4 to 1/2 oz, when so many fishermen will fish below those weights. Throw a trigger seat and close guides on one of those spinning rods and people will be casting a single kernel of corn 150 feet to the carp foraging around under the water.

[Boomstick]

4 hours ago, CroakHunter said:

Its not the rod. It's what's holding it. Work on your mechanics and technique. I can cast senkos and other weightless plastics with a mag heavy power rod. 

Yup. I mean it's not like we're talking about skipping weightless 4" senskos here either, which is obviously a whole lot harder. Sure, they'll cast further on a medium power rod...

[Thalimar]

7 hours ago, CrankFate said:

So they claim. But they’re few and far between. You can get spinning rods that are thin as a pencil and bend almost tip to tip. The casting rods are all stiffer. And in the store (at least around where I am) they rarely have anything softer than a mojo bass or abu Veritas. I’m always afraid to order rods because they will either be too stiff or will arrive damaged even from reputable stores.

Go cheaper for softer rods.  I've looked at the Mojo and my first thought was broomstick.  The Veritas is a nice rod, I've got the spinning version but it's much stiffer than the cheaper lines like the Vengeance and Vendetta. Don't always have to spend a lot to get a nice rod.

[islandbass]

If your lure is unable to make the rod flex,  the angler is forced to make adjustments to his or her casting mechanics to compensate. That is not a good place to be. 

 

So unless we want to continue with adjusted mechanics which I have had to do on occasion, the easiest solution is to find the right rod to toss your lure. 

 

Yeah, it kind of sucks but at least your bait monkey will be happy. 

 

If anyone fishes with a casting fast at most action and hopefully 2 piece (not a show stopper), spill the beans. 

 

@Steve1357 I have also arrived at that conclusion and doing that is one of ways I compensate for a rod over powered for a low weight lure. It enables me to hurl a homemade 1/8th oz inline spinner on my 8’6” heavy powered rod rated for 1/2oz to 2oz and a curado 201D. The rod doesn’t flex at all on account of the inline spinner, lol. 

[TOXIC]

You want my rant?  

 

Why this obsession to throw finesse baits on a baitcaster?  Can you do it.....yes, but is there a better tool for the job?  I say there is....a spinning rod/reel.  It's what it is designed for.  The stigma of throwing a spinning setup has long been discredited.  If you take your cues from the pro's how many do you see throwing dropshots, ned rigs, senkos, etc., on baitcasters?  Not very many and only if they have upsized their weights and taken it out of the finesse category.  I love my spinning rods and have an equal number of spinning and casting on my deck every time I go out.  

 

Rant over, carry on.