Baitcaster vs Spinning Reel

[N.Y. Yankee]

When do you prefer one over the other?

[MN Fisher]

If I'm casting into heavy cabbage - BC

Finesse - Spinning

 

All other techniques - doesn't matter.

[gim]

Spinning for finesse, BC for power.

 

I generally prefer a BC if I'm able to use one, but certain applications aren't practical.

 

Its best to master both and use the one that is best served in each situation.

[roadwarrior]

6 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Spinning for finesse, BC for power.

 

[ThatZX14Fella]

Spinning is typically what I use, but only because I'm mainly a finesse fisherman. The baitcaster is for everything else. Power fishing, heavy cover, and catfishing.

[Angry John]

I prefer skipping worms with a spinning reel.  About zero consequences for small mistakes.

[Dens228]

I have nine BC setups and one spinning.........lol

I use the BC for everything except dropshotting and wacky rig....and I don't fish either method very much.  As a result I can cast pretty darn accurately with a bc but when I use the spinning setup it's a crapshoot on where my cast is ending up!  

[ironbjorn]

I prefer BC over spinning for everything but ultra finesse, such as the Ned Rig; and truthfully, if I had to money to dive into BFS, I would and I would never look back. Spinning has no use for me other than ML.

[Bankc]

Baitcaster for most everything.  I only use spinning gear for situations where I need extra distance with light lures.  

 

I use spinning gear so rarely, that all of my spinning reels are set up left-handed, so that the crank is on the same side as my BC reel.  I just don't feel comfortable switching cranking hands.

[bowhunter63]

Both have there place. I have been doing more finesse fishing lately so I have been using more spinning gear. Got a 7 ft 6 carbon light rod I really like. 

[MickD]

I'm surprised no one yet mentioned that for most of us mortals spinning works best for the lighter lures.  What "lighter" means depends on one's skills, but at some "light" lure weight it becomes very difficult to get good casts.  No doubt, for power, BC is better than spin.

[GaryH]

Spinning for wacky and on winding days skipping. Other than those BC. Both have there place and it's also a personal preference to what feels best. 

[Bluegillslayer]

As of now, spinning. But I bought my first baitcasting combo a few months ago and already caught some late fall / winter fish with it, and I like it. I think I am going to upgrade to a better combo in the spring though, since my lake is extremely weedy and I want a rod with a little more back bone.

[garroyo130]

≤ 6lb test = Spinning

≥ 8lb test = Casting

[The Bassman]

BC makes me look like I know what I'm doing when I'm walking neighborhood lakes but spinning is much more efficient day in and day out especially now during the colder months when vegetation isn't an issue.

[bulldog1935]

On the flats prefer baitcaster most of the time, because of instant retrieve.  

Prefer the spinning tackle in the dark and especially before the coffee takes because you don't have to keep up as much with your lure landing, and am generally fishing topwaters then.  With XUL, spinning is kind of a no-brainer for distance and countdown (in spite of strides in BFS).  

[12poundbass]

I rarely use spinning, yet I bought a new spinning set up last weekend. 
 

I plan on using them more this year....I’ve said that the last three winters. ?

[MIbassyaker]

I still have a hard time getting my head around just how insecure a lots of bass anglers are about spinning gear; I think it's funny.  I grew up fishing spinning for everything... and it never even registered to me that I might want a baitcaster until I had been fishing specifically for bass for a number of years. I used to fish a frog on a MH spinning rod, and still fish some texas rigs on one.

 

Nowadays I go mostly by lure weight & cover type (heavy = baitcaster; light = spinning) and sometimes whether the presentation is more vertical (spinnning) or horizontal (baitcasting).

 

1 hour ago, MN Fisher said:

If I'm casting into heavy cabbage - BC

Finesse - Spinning

 

All other techniques - doesn't matter.

 

Huh. Cabbage, because it's brittle and vertically-oriented, is usually a spinning application for me, even for, say, a texas rig. Unless I need heavy weight (but I usually don't).

[MN Fisher]

Just now, MIbassyaker said:

Huh. Cabbage, because it's brittle and vertically-oriented, is usually a spinning application for me, even for, say, a texas rig. Unless I need heavy weight (but I usually don't).

I'm using the term in the generic - could be milfoil, lily pads, hydrilla - whatever.

[MIbassyaker]

5 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

I'm using the term in the generic - could be milfoil, lily pads, hydrilla - whatever.

ah, gotcha.  I'm thinking largeleaf & clasping-leaf pondweeds, e.g.:

 

[Darth-Baiter]

Spinning for distance surf-fishing. 
 

spinning for bass finesse. 
 

baitcasting for everything else including line un-entanglement practice. 

[kayaking_kev]

1 hour ago, Dens228 said:

I have nine BC setups and one spinning.........lol

I use the BC for everything except dropshotting and wacky rig....and I don't fish either method very much.  As a result I can cast pretty darn accurately with a bc but when I use the spinning setup it's a crapshoot on where my cast is ending up!  

 

I feel you on that, my accuracy with spinning gear due to lack of experience is terrible.

[BrianMDTX]

For the most part, spinning for finesse (although I will fish weightless Senko TR on my BC). To me, I will say if I am casting and reeling lures like a spinnerbait, topwater, etc., over the course of hours it’s much less fatiguing doing so with a baitcaster than a spinning reel. Reel it up, press the thumb bar, cast and retrieve. No open the bail, cast, close the bail.  Sounds easy but after 2-3 hours I think a baitcaster is much more simplified. And easy to adjust the drag if needed as well. 

 

But it sometimes it’s just pleasant to toss light baits with a sweet spinning finesse rig and actually fight a 3-4 lb bass vs rocketing it back to the boat or shore! 

[kayaking_kev]

1 hour ago, 12poundbass said:

I rarely use spinning, yet I bought a new spinning set up last weekend. 
 

I plan on using them more this year....I’ve said that the last three winters. ?

 

Same here, I just bought a Vanford and built a X-Ray MB-733, so I better be using it more this season.

 

I used to only use Spinning Gear when panfishing with really light baits. I can cast a 1/10 oz Ned Rig pretty good with a BC, but going to switch to Spinning this year.

[gim]

25 minutes ago, kayaking_kev said:

can cast a 1/10 oz Ned Rig pretty good with a BC

 

That seems impossible to me.  When I try to cast something light weight with a BC, its just bad news.  Maybe I need to upgrade to better gear or something.