Casting Distances And Speeds Of Retrieve.

[Ricky Gene]

I am trying to learn more about casting and retrieving. I got my head stuck in new and old magazines, and for the life of me I can not find much about either topic. I do know that as casting distance increases accuracy decreases. With retrieves the speed of the retrieve has a large affect on the action. My main question is when are longer casts needed, and what makes you change the speed of the retrieve. As well as special retrieves such as walk-the-dog, what are others that I can use?

[Grey Wolf]

Longer casts are needed when you are throwing deep cranks to get the cranks down to the zone you are fishing.

[Jigfishn10]

Here's a great article on walking the dog:

http://www.berniesch....com/9406bm.htm

I like long casts in clear water situations.

[clayton86]

Long casts I usually use for cranks,spinners,buzz baits,topwater. The short casts for like jigs and such where I just flip/pitch it into a hole twitch twich and bring back.

Retrieve speed is dependant of water and the day I usually just slow roll or do the stop and go the most. Some times I give hard twitches like I'm setting the hook but that's usually to clear weeds or I think I got a bite and its not but will result in one from the sudden movment.

[Marty]

My main question is when are longer casts needed, and what makes you change the speed of the retrieve.

In addition to reasons given above, such as achieving maximum depth with a crankbait, long casts can be helpful when you are not casting to targets, but rather covering water trying to locate fish. Might as well cover more water with one cast.

You would change retrieve speed when you have reason to believe that the speed is not productive. Much of the time you wouldn't know that, because it could be that you're fishing in the wrong place or with the wrong lure. But bottom line, when you're not catching fish, you have to change something and retrieve speed is one of the variables.

[B-Dozer]

KVD has a new article I found on Bass Resource through facebook. This might work. www.bassresource.com/fishing/crankbait-speed-kvd.html If this doesn't work, I'm sure somebody better at computers will find it.

[Packard]

KVD has a new article I found on Bass Resource through facebook. This might work. www.bassresource.com/fishing/crankbait-speed-kvd.html If this doesn't work, I'm sure somebody better at computers will find it.

Here is the link.

[Ricky Gene]

Thanks yall, as soon as I posted this question I went back to the home page and seen KVD's article and read it. Another question is the speed of soft plastics t-rigs, c-rigs, wacky and shaky. Where do you start with those slower speeds or faster speeds. My big goal when I get back to the states is to learn fishing with soft plastics and jigs.

[clayton86]

When I fish jigs and plastics I usualy am hitting a specific target like the crotch of a tree in the water so I just pitch it in and wait a sec maybe reel in a little bit but for the most part I'm just probing looking for a strike. I don't crig so I can't help ya there.

[B-Dozer]

Here is the link.

Thank You

[Catt]

One of the biggest mistakes I see today’s anglers make is in thinking a Texas rig & Jig-n-craw is only good for Flipping/Pitching/Punching. Making long cast to deep water structure with a Texas rig & Jig-n-craw is probably the most effective way to fish structure.

As for speed with the two once I establish a pattern I “power” fish with a Texas rig & Jig-n-craw!

[Ricky Gene]

Thank you all for the help, I'm sure I will have more questions, I dig through magazines first and if i don't find what I'm looking for there I dig on here. Good luck and happy fishing.

[Red]

One of the biggest mistakes I see today’s anglers make is in thinking a Texas rig & Jig-n-craw is only good for Flipping/Pitching/Punching. Making long cast to deep water structure with a Texas rig & Jig-n-craw is probably the most effective way to fish structure.

As for speed with the two once I establish a pattern I “power” fish with a Texas rig & Jig-n-craw!

That is a fact! I used to catch alot from the bank just slow draggin a jig on the bottom. Now that I have a boat, all I do is flip and pitch the timber, but thats where the fish are!

[hatrix]

Unless I am aiming at something I am trying to make the farthest cast I can every time. As for a T-rig I usually just git it a little hop or 2 and then let it sit sit sit I dont think you can ever work it to slow. Same thing with a C-rig but you just sweep it across the bottom. With jigs in cold water I might let it sit for minutes at a time before moving it. It seems like they will just stare it down for what seems like ever and I get so impatient and want to do something but the longer I can let it sit the better it is for me.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

You'll want to make longer casts in super clear water as well. The fish will tell you what they want for retrieve speed. Make note of what you were doing when you get bit and try to duplicate.

[WRB]

There isn't any standard to determine what a long cast is or how fast or slow a lure is retreived.

Todays longer rods of 7' to 8' can luanch a lure over 30 yards with ease, a long cast by anyones standard.

Clear water is another moving target, what is clear water? Lets say you can see the bottom with the sun over head at 10' is clear water.

I fish jigs a lot and make long cast in clear at times. The only reason I do that is to present the jig to bass that are holding in sun lite areas in deep water. If the bass are holding in shaded areas on deep structure or cover, they tend to stay and not spook as easily and I can make shorter casts with the same jig. At night or low light periods I rarely make long casts, the bass are not as spooky under those conditions.

All the above is true for other lures.

Lure speed depends on the lures action and the basses activity level. Active bass will react quickly and faster moving lures work well. Inactive bass rarely react to faster moving lures and bass are inactive far more than they are active.

Most of the time it's easy to determine if bass are active by baitfish activity and visual clues of feeding bass; by sight and by sonar.

Try different lures, diffient depths and different speeds and you will determine by trail and error what works and what doesn't.

The direction the lure is moving relative to where the bass are holding can be more important then length of cast or speed of the lure; bass can get spooked by lures that approach from behind them.

Tom