8:1:1 Gear Ratio needed, worth getting?

[Buffdaddy54]

Need some advice, I've got a 6:3:1 and a 7:3:1 ratio Baitcaster and have been thinking about an 8 but not sure it's really necessary from the bank. Thinking of that or buying another 7. What are some of your opinions? 

Thanks

BTW Bait monkey ? bit me so I'm definitely getting something?

[CroakHunter]

I'm a fan of 8:1 gear ratio reels. 

[Dirtyeggroll]

You also need a 5, a 9 and a 10. 

[Bluebasser86]

I like the high ratio reels for bottom contact baits. It helps catch up with fast moving fish and also allows you to quickly reel in to make another cast. Need? No, but they're nice to have. 

[Oregon Native]

6 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I like the high ratio reels for bottom contact baits. It helps catch up with fast moving fish and also allows you to quickly reel in to make another cast. Need? No, but they're nice to have. 

Yup

[LionHeart]

A 7 can do just about everything, but an 8 is what I prefer for trigs and jigs.  You need an 8 speed.

[junyer357]

I wouldnt get an 8:1 just to have it if you only have 2 other rods/reels. Its more of a designated speed to me for use with baits moved by the rod and take up slack with reel, like worm/jig, jerkbait, and flipping. Id reccomend another 6:1 for general use and diffrent baits on one rod. I have over 20 dedicated use rods now and at least half of them are 6:1. I personally think its the best all around speed for general use in fishing. 

[kschultz76]

I have a pretty large collection of rods and reels. Personally I haven’t felt the need to get anything faster then a 7.x:1 gear ratio. I think it’s a matter of preference and not need. Years ago something in the 6.x:1 was considered high speed.  I have two reels that are 5.x:1 for cranks, then probably 6 reels in a 6.x:1 and 5 I think that are 7.x:1. For me that gives me a lot of versatility and the 7 speeds can still be used for more then just bottom contact and topwater because they’re not too fast. I’ve not lost fish or felt limited by not having an 8 speed or higher. 

 

Funny story relative to gear ratios, I was fishing with my Dad a year ago and we were throwing swimjigs into rocky hard shorelines in the late spring.  For some reason he was picking up fish and I wasn’t even though I was in the front of the boat. And I asked, what are you doing different then me, then I realized he was using his old Bantam Curado which is a 5.x ratio, and I was using a Chronarch CI4 in a 7.2.  I slowed down my retrieve to let that swimjigs bounce along those rocks, and it was game on. 

[Russ E]

where the high speed has shined for me lately, is on my shakyhead rod. In the past I always had trouble catching up with a fish, when using a standard speed real with the shakyhead. the new speed demon spinning reel solved that issue.

It is 7.2 to 1, but picks up line at about the same rate as my 9.3 to speed demon pro casting reel.

[CrankFate]

I don’t know? Just got my first 8 and won’t use it til spring. Not sure I need it though, because a 7 already matches my natural reeling speed.

[FishTank]

I have a 7.3 to 1 and that's fast enough for me.  

[LCG]

I find it is much easier to slow down than to speed up. I like my 8:1 Daiwa fuego ct. Picks up a good amount of line pretty fast. I believe in inches per turn rather than gear ratios, more realistic measurements and less marketing hype. 

[5by3]

Does it help? It certain situations, yes. Do you need it? Absolutely not.

 

I mostly fish 6.3:1 reels so that I can easily swap them out on any of my combos. Personally, I’ve never really felt like I was at a disadvantage in catching up to a fish with a 6.3:1.  I think the higher speed reels tend to shine more when flipping/punching as you can get more flips per hour with a faster gear ratio. 

[FryDog62]

For years I traditionally had 6.8, 7.3 and 8’s... as time has gone on and I’ve bought more reels, almost all have been 8.0 or 8.1.  I totally agree you can always reel slower if needed, but I frequently get frustrated when the 6.8 doesn’t pick up enough line fast enough..

[A-Jay]

Some techniques ~ Yes.  I like a faster reel

Some techniques ~ Not so much . . . .

A-Jay

[J.Vincent]

I found the 8.1 gearing is great for Frog fishing and pitching plastics. With those techniques, the higher speed allows me to make more presentations over the course of an entire day; and statistically improves my chances . But what works for me might not work for you !

[NHBull]

I really prefer 8.1 as I am naturally  slow on the real......especially  after a 40 year cast with a jig. The IPT with 120 feet missing is greatly reduced.

[Heartland]

Guess I am a guy stuck in the past.  I use 5.1:1 reels for crank baits, I use 6.4:1 reels for just about everything else.  I have a few 7.1:1 reels and faster but they are primarily used for pitching jigs or plastics.   I have no problem catching fish, with the equipment I have.   I could see a faster reel being useful in a few rare situations, but not enough that I am replacing anything.

[bigfruits]

id say yes. i have more 8.x:1 than 6.x:1 reels.

[new2BC4bass]

11 hours ago, NHBull said:

I really prefer 8.1 as I am naturally  slow on the real......especially  after a 40 year cast with a jig. The IPT with 120 feet missing is greatly reduced.

Now that is a long cast.  Beats those 100 yard ones by a country mile. 

[RB 77]

Just put an 8.5:1 through the paces down at El Salto. I was nice for fishing T-Rigs and get that slack out quick.

[Log Catcher]

I don't have anything faster than 6:8:1 or about 28 IPT. It doesn't bother me to have to turn the handle more than 3 times to get my bait back in.

[bigfruits]

man, you gotta try buzzbaits sometime.

[OnthePotomac]

The summer grass beds require plastics fishing, they can't be too fast for me.

[Janderson45]

I use an 8 speed for flipping/pitching, football jigs, Carolina Rigs, frogging and shakey heads.  Like others have said a 7 would work but an 8 is better.  Majority of my reels are 7 speed, but 8, 6, and 5 speed reels all have their place in bass fishing.  With only a few rods fishing from the bank I’d probably want a 7 or 8 speed bait caster for workhorse duties, a 6 speed for reaction baits, and a spinning reel for finesse.  Should be able to throw most baits effectively from the bank with those 3 setups.