Strong arm

[Backroad Angler]

Hello,

I've been using bait casters for a few years now, and have always used a right hand retrieve and I am right handed. Not trying to dig into the debate of right hand retrieve vs left hand retrieve, but for the individuals that have switched or use both retrieves, is there any difference with using your dominant hand/arm when setting the hook that you have noticed or even just working the lure?

Thanks

[casts_by_fly]

I cast right and reel right with a baitcaster (left hand sets the hook).  Having done it this way for 30+ years I would struggle to do anything different.  I've tried to pitch with my left hand on my existing rods and it doesn't work.  Forget about casting and thumb control.  I guess I could probably reel a spinnerbait with my right arm holding the rod, but anything more than cast and crank isn't happening.  

[Mike L]

 

Been doing it so long it would be unnatural and just wrong for me not to switch hands. 
Casting, hook setting, “working” a lure, landing etc just felt right from the first cast. 

 

 

 

 

Mike

[Catt]

Tried left hand reel,  nah! Ain't happening 😉

[king fisher]

I cast all rods with my right hand.  I reel spinning rods with my left hand and bait casters with my right hand.  The reason is, when I started fishing spinning reels were left hand retrieve, and bait casters were right hand retrieve.  I should learn to reel a bait caster with my left hand, it only makes sense to do it that way, but I'm getting to be an old dog and new tricks are hard to learn.  I did start reeling a spinning reel upside down and backwards with my right hand but forced myself to change after much ridicule from my friends.  I was young then, learning new tricks was easy and peer pressure was a bigger factor.  By the time I started fly fishing most reels were made to operate with either hand, and because they are mounted on the bottom of the rod it felt natural to reel with my left hand.  

[Functional]

All my spinning gear growing up was left hand retrieve. I wasn't about to relearn how to work lures and set hooks with my left hand/arm when I switched to baitcasters. 

[geo g]

There is no right or wrong way.  Whatever you grew up with is the way to go for you.  After 50 years everything is automatic and I don’t ever have to think about it.  It is a problem solved as a young man starting out.  To change now would be a PITA problem for a long time.  Not worth the struggle!

[Rockhopper]

I am right handed, and literally do everything right handed, but I only buy left handed reels.  I prefer not to have to keep switching my rod back and forth between hands after casting, and also prefer my dominant arm to actually fight the fish.  The left hand just spins circles.  It seems much more natural.

[PhishLI]

4 hours ago, Backroad Angler said:

for the individuals that have switched or use both retrieves, is there any difference with using your dominant hand/arm when setting the hook that you have noticed or even just working the lure?

Yes. I'm right handed and prefer jacking the hook or dragging them back through heavy veg with my right arm and would rather not switch hands either way. With jerk baits in clean water, it really doesn't make a difference to me. I actually prefer working jerks with my left arm.

 

[Dwight Hottle]

I am right hand dominate & have always used right hand casting reels. I enjoy using spinning tackle more when working a jerk bait do I recently bought a left hand bait casting reel to give it a try. So i still cast with my right arm & work the bait with my right just like my spinning gear. The reeling with my left hand feels a little awkward but the more I use it the better it gets. Forcing my self to make the transition was the plan and I figured that if it didn’t work out I would sell the reel. I have seen right handed guys use a left handed reel just for pitching so they don’t have to make the hand transfer. It’s worth the try if you’re open minded. 

 

[Glenn]

Sometimes us bass anglers overthink things.  This is one of them.

[ABU is overpriced]

My answer to this is always the same. Use your setup the way you're most comfy with, and don't pay attention to how others use theirs.

[Bankc]

I'm super-extra-extreme right handed.  My left hand is just about useless to me outside of storing my watch and wedding ring.  But with enough practice, I got it to work and now feel comfortable doing fishing type stuff with it.  Fishing, other than some casting, doesn't really require fine motor skills or extreme dexterity and precision.  And even casting isn't too hard.  Reeling and setting the hook are simple.

I'd say, if you can steer a car with your left hand, you can fish with your left hand.  It just takes practice getting used to it so it doesn't feel awkward.  And not even a ton of practice.  Force yourself to use your off hand for a couple of trips, and it'll come.  Heck, by the end of the first hour you'll be surprised at the level of progress you've made! 

[new2BC4bass]

I started fishing 20 years before graphite rods came out.  My dad had one of the strongest hook sets I've ever seen.  I don't think those are necessary with today's rods.  Especially when using braid.

 

My right arm is a bit stronger than my left, but I've never used maximum strength to set a hook so I don't think it matters which hand is holding the rod.  I use both hand reels.

 

Not sure about retrieve but I think hand doesn't matter for most of my fishing.

 

Where it does matter is accuracy.  I'm better with my dominant right hand.  However, I think practice could get me much closer.  Just like with basketball.  I had a period where I'd practiced so much more left-handed that I was more consistent with it than the right hand.

[Backroad Angler]

18 minutes ago, Glenn said:

Sometimes us bass anglers overthink things.  This is one of them.

Agreed, just thought I would rack the minds of everyone lol

[DaubsNU1]

I am left handed for pretty much everything.  

 

But when it comes to fishing...I am a bit odd. 

 

When I started fishing it was in the 1970s with a Zebco 33 (right hand retrieve). Later I got a fancy new "spinning rod-n-reel," a Mitchell that was a left-hand retrieve. So I learned. 

 

To this day, all my casting rods are right hand retrieve (left hand cast). All my spinning rods are left hand retrieve (right hand cast). 

 

Kind of nice in this way -- if I get tired of casting with one hand...simply switch. 

 

Note: I have tried casting rods with left hand retrieve, and spinning rods with right hand retrieve...CANNOT DO IT!

[TOXIC]

Well, spinning rods you can change the handle side from left to right.  My baitcasters are all right hand retrieve, so I change all of my spinning reels to a right hand retrieve.  At first, being a guide and casting a lot more that the average fisherman, I always worried about damaging my throwing or reeling arms due to the same use for both spinning and baitcasting.  I’m 67 and no problems yet. 😛

[Bigbox99]

6 hours ago, Backroad Angler said:

Hello,

I've been using bait casters for a few years now, and have always used a right hand retrieve and I am right handed. Not trying to dig into the debate of right hand retrieve vs left hand retrieve, but for the individuals that have switched or use both retrieves, is there any difference with using your dominant hand/arm when setting the hook that you have noticed or even just working the lure?

Thanks

I use both and there is no difference in strength.  For starters both arms are large muscle groups and should be of equal strength.  Hand dominance is about fine motor control for things like using tools, writing ect.  Also when setting the hook you aren't, or shouldn't, be just using your arms.  Put some larger muscle groups and weight into the hookset to drive the hook home.  

 

For my reels I use dominant hand to move the bait.  For cast and wind that means a right hand retrieve and for jigging and worming that means a left handed reel.   For punching and pitching I use a lefty and flip/pitch while palming the reel.  For everything else I switch between casting and palming grips after the cast no matter what side the handle is on. 

 

For kayak fishing I use exclusively right hand reels so I can handle fish with my right hand while controlling the reel with the left to use the base of my thumb to press the thumb bar and let out line when a fish pins my rod to the side of the kayak.

[FrnkNsteen]

Well, I've been fishing for around 50 years starting with old Zebco spincast reels. Always used a RH reel in Baitcasters as well.

 

About 15 years ago I started wondering why I was casting with my right hand and then switching hands to reel with my right. I bought a LH reel and it came to feel comfortable pretty quick. I now have more LH reels than RH, but do use both and can cast with either hand.

 

Setting the hook and fighting the fish was never much of a challenge for me. The part that I initially struggled with more than I thought I would was landing the fish with my left hand.

 

My suggestion is give it a try and see what you think after giving it a chance.

[Backroad Angler]

Thank you all for your suggestions and comments. I'm gonna continue using what I'm use to, sometime down the road, I'll pick up a left hand bait caster just to build the arsenal with more variety and also see if I like it.

 

[Mobasser]

The way I learned was cast with my right hand, switch to hold the rod with my left hand and reel with my right. I'm too old and set in my ways to change now.

[fishballer06]

While I am ambidextrous, I would still call my right hand my strongest hand. That being said, I use left handed baitcasters and spinning reels. I have bought multiple right handed reels over the years and tried to force myself to learn them. I just can't do it. Casting and reeling feels perfectly fine to me, but in terms of working a lure (walking a spook, jerkbaits, etc) just feels so awkward for me and I just can't do it. 

[Skunkmaster-k]

I’m right handed and both spinning and casting are right retrieve. I taught my children  the same way. Soon I will teach my grandchildren to use their dominant hand to reel. Eventually right reelers will take over the world ! But seriously, we will. 

[NavyToad]

I don't think there's an advantage in using one over the other. I'm right handed and I cast right, reel left. I bought my first bait caster at 40 and using a left handed bait caster was most natural for me after using spinning gear for 30 years. I don't give it much thought.

[FishTank]

Many years ago when I bought my first baitcaster, I struggled using a right handed reel. I ended up returning my first two to BPS and was ready to give up but a Bass Pro Shop old timer stepped in and gave me a left handed reel to try out. Problem solved.  I have been using left handed reels ever since, even though I am right handed. 

 

I can now use both but prefer left handed reels. I like casting and setting the hook with my right strong hand.