I need an explanation on gear ratios

[Guest the_muddy_man]

hey Fellas Im a little confused I thought the faster you reeled in a deep crank the deeper it goes. I have a great Crankin Lamiglass rod Alpster wrapped for me and he told me to put a 5.3 to 1 Baitcaster on it instead of the 6.3 to 1 I have Since he has always given me the right advice can you guys explain why this is true and what do you use for crankin?

[burleytog]

Slower ratio = less of a workout for deep diving baits.

Good reading here:

http://www.bassresource.com/beginner/fishing_equipment.html

[Guest the_muddy_man]

Thank You much Burley That answers it in one response

[RiskKid.]

The lower the ratio the slower you go  

[Guest the_muddy_man]

The lower the ratio the lefter I go

[burleytog]

The lower the ration the lefter I go

I'm going to be laughing about that one for the next 10 years.  And I wasn't even there!   ;D

[KU_Bassmaster.]

I finally got it when somebody told me to think about it like going up a steep incline (a crankbait) on a mountain bike (the reel).  Would you use the same gears to go up a steep hill and flat land?  Sure it can be done, but if you used the same gears to go up that steep hill that you do on flat land you would wear yourself out very quick.

IMO anything over a 10 ft diving crank needs to be fished on a lower gear ratio reel .... somewhere around a 5:1 or even lower.  I personally use a lower gear ratio reel for all cranking because I just think it presents the bait better.

[Stringjam]

hey Fellas Im a little confused I thought the faster you reeled in a deep crank the deeper it goes.

This isn't true.  There was a guy who took 100 crankbaits from various manufacturers and tested them all with 100' of retrieve and 10 lb. line - - in his findings he noted that reeling the lures faster did not get the baits any deeper than using a medium retrieve speed.  

Listening to crankbait designers, they seem to have the same theory - - once a bait reaches it's maximum depth, reeling faster will not get it any deeper.  

[flechero]

Muddy,

Look at the IPT or IPC (inches per turn/crank) listed with each reel... the actual gear ratio doesn't help with a brand to brand comparison.  And sometimes isn't accurate from 2 different syle reels in the same brand.

If you use the IPT there is no question what you are getting, regardless of brand or style.

-Keith

[Guest the_muddy_man]

Thanks all according to what Fletchero says and the article  Im getting the Fritts reel its on sale till 4/14

[BucketmouthAngler13]

Reeling in the crankbait faster will not make the max depth any deeper, but it will get the lure down to that depth faster. So for short casts, where a normal retrieve will not reach the max depth of the lure, then cranking it faster will make it run deeper than running it normaly.

just my .02

[Raul]

hey Fellas Im a little confused I thought the faster you reeled in a deep crank the deeper it goes.

This isn't true. There was a guy who took 100 crankbaits from various manufacturers and tested them all with 100' of retrieve and 10 lb. line - - in his findings he noted that reeling the lures faster did not get the baits any deeper than using a medium retrieve speed.

Listening to crankbait designers, they seem to have the same theory - - once a bait reaches it's maximum depth, reeling faster will not get it any deeper.

Diving depth has little to do with the speed at which you retrieve the crank, a lure designed to run to 12 ft will run to 12 ft IF TIED to 0.28-0.31 mm line. Slower reels have more winching power, so instead of reeling in a bucket you reel in a crank, also, a slower reel will keep the bait running for a longer period of time.

It 's not about depth, it 's about LONGER time in the water ( where the fish are ) and easiness of retrieve, also, many cranks do not react well when reeled in fast, they just rest on their side.

[Ranger364]

Remember this the faster you crank that crankbait the more it tends to stand on end, (hydrodynamics) So I like a 5.0:1. This allows the bait to dive and by using lighter line you can get more depth out of them.

Good Fishing,

[Guest the_muddy_man]

THANKS TO ALL I UNDERSTAND THAT A LOT BETTER NOW