I did a quick search, and found nothing. Hopefully this isn’t an oft debated topic that I just missed.
I’m wondering if you set your reels up for right hand or left hand retrieve.
I’m right handed and have all of my reels set up for LHR. I like to cast with my right, and feel comfortable reeling left.
I was reading Lefty’s “Ultimate Guide to Fly Fishing” and he sugested that right handed folks set up their salt water reels for right hand retrieve, his reasoning being that while fighting a fish you’ll likely need to take up large amounts of line and would be best at using your dominant hand to do so. (pg 115 and 116 of his book.)
Thoughts on this? I know it’s too late for me to switch now.
Which hand is your dominant hand, and which to you reel with?
Right-handed caster, right-handed retrieve, always have been. Works for me. I know there are a lot of arguments pro and con - dominant hand, quicker retirieve, hand-eye… It works for me to do it this way, so I do. Hey, did I mention that I’m still able to catch a lot of fish and land them too;).
I am right handed and have my reels set for left hand retrieve. Why switch hands with the rod when you need to retrieve?
And why can’t you change back to right hand retrieve if you change your mind?
For freshwater fishing, especially dry fly fishing you can get a strike just as the fly lands, well before you can change the rod hand. Therefore, I believe it is better not to change hands and cast with one hand and reel with the other just like with a spinning rod.
In salt water, fish don’t often hit on the cast. You need to strip the fly to entice a strike and so there is time to cast and reel with the same hand. I believe Lefty is correct in that you can reel faster with the dominant hand but to say that all fly fishers should do this is wrong. I believe that for fresh water anglers it is better to cast and reel with opposite hands.
If you are a fresh water angler that currently reels with the off hand, should you change when you go salt water angling? No! It is much better to stay with your normal muscle memory and do the same thing you do freshwater fishing. Salt water angling is stressful enough without trying to switch it up from your normal pattern.
I am setup for LHR. I started out both casting and retrieving with right hand. Someone suggested I try a LHR. I found I liked it much better. It seems more natural to me that way.
I was taught years ago by an old timer always right hand retrieve. That cannot be changed it is determined by TRADITION!!! Cast with the right - reel with the right.
It was explained that the line could get caught on the reel handle if reeling left handed. I never followed that logic, but I can definitely follow the logic “best at using your dominant hand to do so.” That definitely fits my logical brain.
I cast with the right, reel with the left. Same as a spinning rod. Casting/conventional tackle I cast right and reel right since thats just how most casting reels are set up, I’m guessing for pitching/flipping type casts so you can avoid the reel handle. I’ve never had a problem with the line catching my reel fly casting on any cast that I made unless I really messed something up. Just seems natural to keep the rod in the same hand. Does anyone cast right, strip left, and reel right? That could be the best way, get to reel with your dominant hand when you need to pick up lots of line, but don’t have to worry about switching hands immediately after the cast?
I reel with the left, as I like to have my dominant hand doing the important work of guiding da fishie. Reeling is monkey work, so I use my monkey hand. Not saying anything negative about lefties, I just call my left my monkey hand…a pale shadow of the real hand…my left hand and I don’t get along…a long story of betrayal and missed opportunities there.
When I started flyfishing I cast right and reeled left. I live next to the ocean so I took up saltwater fishing. It took one fish to rip off a 100 yds of backing that I needed to crank back quickly to realise that I needed to use my dominant hand to crank. I can crank faster and for longer periods with my right hand. Most people who conduct test of cranking speed and endurance find this to be the case. There are exceptions of course.
Around here we do a lot sw fishing with conventional gear too. Most people crank with their dominant hand and hold the rod with the non dominant hand - even with really big fish.
Most sw flyfishers that I know crank with their dominant hand since the ability to crank fast for extended periods is so important to quickly bringing fish to hand.
Many people point out that spinning reels are usually cranked with the non dominant hand. However since the handles on spin reels usually provide a lager cranking radius compared to a flu reel, and because the gearing system for the reel allows a much faster rate of line recovery this is not a comparison of equivalent systems.
Another thing to consider is that if a right hander has a reel set up for left hand wind and the rod is in the right hand for the retrive there is a possibility that line may catch on the reel handle. when a fish is struck an heads off at 25 or 30 mph or more the loose line can jump up off the deck several feet in the air. I have been hit in the face by loops of line before they went through the guides. I have seen loops catch on reel handles anc cause a break off of the fish. I have also had loops of line catch on the handle of left hand wind reels when shooting line on the cast.
Anglers are often concerned about switching the rod between hands. In my experience this is a non issue. It takes very little time and can be done when the fish is in its initial run with no loss of control.
For me, I cast right handed and most of my gear is set up for right hand retrieve. I do still have all of my 2,3,4, and 5wt lined reels set up for left hand retrieve. Despite this mixture I have never mistakenly tried to reel from the wrong side
I guess Im confused by this. I cast right handed and reel right handed but I still set the hook with my right hand and then switch hands once the fish is on the reel. I even tend to ignore the reel and just strip in the fish with the rod in my casting hand.
I had one reel (casting) set up for RHR and hated it and got rid of it - I’m a rightie BTW. I hate switching rod from hand to hand. So all of my rods Spin, Cant and fly are set up for LHR. And I need my dominant hand to fight the fish… especially all of those 1 lb monstrers.
I agree there is no right way, just personal preference.
I started fishing using spin-cast reels. Cast right, switch hands, reel right.
Then I switched to spinning gear. Took a season getting used to, but I became comfortable casting right, reeling left. Have done that now for many years.
With fly gear, I’ve continue with that “cast right, reel left” mode. Makes sense to me now.
Though I am ambidextrous, I cast and reel with my right hand normally, when I cast left handed I still reel right handed.
There may be something to taking in line faster when reeling with the dominant hand, but in almost all situations it probably will not be an issue.
I suppose if a bone fish were coming straight at you, and you were in the habit of reeling with your non-dominant hand you might have a problem, so if you foresee the scenario arising by all means cast dominant, switch hands, and reel dominant.
As has been said there is really no right or wrong way.
I also switch hands with a baitcaster, but, do not switch with spinning gear, go figure.
It just doesn’t matter, have fun,
George
I’m right handed and cast right, reel left. It isn’t very likely that I’ll ever have to worry about reeling very fast. Always have thought it was preference.
My rods are all setup for right hand retrieve. However, I’m comfortable using both. I’m a lefty, but growing up my Dad is a righty, so I would use his rods sometimes if I wanted multiple rods while fishing.
Oddly enough, when I taught my wife to cast… she is right handed, right hand retrieve, and casts right handed as well. I didn’t mean for her to learn that way. Oops! Mainly because her first rod and reel was one of my spares. She liked it, and it has since stuck with her.
I really stressed about this buying my first “nice” saltwater reel a few weeks ago. Every picture I seemed to look at had a right hand retrieve. I read an interesting article written by a fly shop owner who said that when he ordered freshwater reels, he ordered a ratio of about 7:1 LHR. Steelhead/Salmon/Light salt, it was something like 2:1 LHR. But for heavy offshore salt it was about 3:1 RHR.
I read another article that stated your reel preference was most likely based on if your dad bought you a Zebco bullet reel for your first rod, or made you borrow one of his mitchell spinning reels.
