Left or right handed?

[bisonhunter]

I took out lots of people fishing this year and most of them needed the reel handle (spinning reel) on the right hand side of the reel and held the rod in their left hand while casting and catching fish.
I hold the rod in my right hand and reel with my left. I have always considered myself to be a right handed fisherman, but many of the folks I took out disagree. They say that because they hold the reel handle in their right hand that they are indeed right handed.
In the grand scheme of things the answer doesn't really matter, but I'm curious as to what you folks think.

[Lefty-Canuck]

I think the way you retrieve (reel) is the way you fish. So if you reel with your right you are a right handed fisher person.

LC

[JohninAB]

I think the way you retrieve (reel) is the way you fish. So if you reel with your right you are a right handed fisher person.

LC

X2

[RayL42]

I was taught your dominant had should be on the rod.

[Kokanee9]

Did you happen to notice when you had anyone out, that they may have used their right hand for casting and then switched hands to reel with their right?

I am right handed and use the right for casting and left for retrieving.

[Kokanee9]

I was taught your dominant had should be on the rod.

I agree. I compare it to being the same as throwing a ball when casting. Easier to pitch into an exact spot with my right.

[jkind]

I am right handed and use the right for casting and left for retrieving.

[AppleJax]

I'm right handed. I hold my rod with my left hand and reel on the right. I know right handed people that are opposite. Depends on the person what feels natural I suppose...

[Geezle]

I'm a bit of an exception to the rule.

I cast with my right hand, then switch the rod over to my left hand and reel with my right :huh:



While we're on the topic, does anybody know why baitcast reels are typically right hand retrieve, with left handed models being far less common, despite it seeming like the majority of people reel left handed? :confused:

[Lefty-Canuck]

I'm a bit of an exception to the rule.

I cast with my right hand, then switch the rod over to my left hand and reel with my right :huh:



While we're on the topic, does anybody know why baitcast reels are typically right hand retrieve, with left handed models being far less common, despite it seeming like the majority of people reel left handed? :confused:

Most coastal guides have RHR reels too especially mooching reels.

LC

[Walleyedude]

I was taught your dominant had should be on the rod.

X2

If you're right handed - rod in your right hand, reel with the left.

In my opinion, controlling and imparting action on the rod, whether you're jigging, casting, dragging a bottom bouncer, or fighting a fish is far more important than turning the handle on the reel, so the dominant hand should be on the rod.

It annoys the heck out of me that so few baitcasting and line counter reels are available in a left hand retrieve version.

[JohninAB]

I'm a bit of an exception to the rule.

I cast with my right hand, then switch the rod over to my left hand and reel with my right :huh:



While we're on the topic, does anybody know why baitcast reels are typically right hand retrieve, with left handed models being far less common, despite it seeming like the majority of people reel left handed? :confused:

When I cast my baitcasters I have my right hand on the reel and left holding the butt section. After the cast, left hand is put on the reel holding the rod while right is used to reel in.

I golf, fish, write, play guitar, shoot a rifle and bow all right handed but play hockey left handed. Hmmm, maybe that is why I never played professionally!

[Walleyemagnet]

Spinning reels are left hand retrieve for me but for whatever reason, bait casters I need to reel with my right. I am right handed.

[Jeff_]

I'm a bit of an exception to the rule.

I cast with my right hand, then switch the rod over to my left hand and reel with my right :huh:



While we're on the topic, does anybody know why baitcast reels are typically right hand retrieve, with left handed models being far less common, despite it seeming like the majority of people reel left handed? :confused:

On a spinning reel I use my left to reel and right to hold the rod, on a baitcaster I reel with my right and hold the rod with my left. It feels more natural to me, some would argue that switching hands after a cast would delay hooksets/ reeling if a fish strikes right after the cast, I'm not sure it makes all that much of a difference. :huh: The only thing I can come up with is with my right I can reel a lot faster and I would be more inclined to use right handed reels when targeting species that tend to make long runs and come right back at you, in that case there would be a need to reel down fast in order to keep tension. (For example, Salmon)

[Okotokian]

Which task takes more motor control? which task takes more power? Casting or turning the handle on the reel? Strikes me that your dominant hand should be doing the most technically difficult task. For me as a right hander, that's holding the rod in my right hand and casting. It's easy to go round and round with the reel handle.

[Jeff_]

Which task takes more motor control? which task takes more power? Casting or turning the handle on the reel? Strikes me that your dominant hand should be doing the most technically difficult task. For me as a right hander, that's holding the rod in my right hand and casting. It's easy to go round and round with the reel handle.

But at the same time, which hand can reel faster? I would agree casting is a complex movement and should be in the dominant arm but I don't see all too much issue casting with the right and switching hands to reel right on a baitcaster. Spinning reels is not too much of an issue to switch the handle side, but baitcasters would require, in many cases, a different model. Though I'm seeing more and more left handed baitcasters coming out from reel manufacturers lately. (ie shimano has the 00/01 models denoting L/R hand). I think at the end of the day, "try before you buy" is a good way to determine whats best, go with what is more comfortable. :)

[AppleJax]

Which task takes more motor control? which task takes more power? Casting or turning the handle on the reel? Strikes me that your dominant hand should be doing the most technically difficult task. For me as a right hander, that's holding the rod in my right hand and casting. It's easy to go round and round with the reel handle.

My dominant hand is my right hand, but I hold the rod with my left. It feels better for me. It just comes down to whatever feels best for the user. I don't think there is any set rule that if your right/left handed your better off holding it a certain way.

[wags]

I am right handed, and I cast with my right, and retrieve with my left. That's what feels natural. (Makes finding a baitcast reel way tougher though!)

My buddy is right handed, casts with his right, and reels with his right. That's right. He casts, switches hands, then retrieves. He says it feels natural, but it sure don't look natural.

Of course, he also golfs left handed, and bats left handed, so i'm convinced he's just backwards in his head! :snapoutofit:

[Freedom55]

But can you change hands without losing a stroke?

[Okotokian]

But can you change hands without losing a stroke?
You've led a sheltered life my friend.

[AK47]

I agree with folks who say dominant hand should be on the rod. Much better accuracy of casts and control when reeling. I always shake my head watching people cast with right and then switching hands to reel with right. Such a waste of time and I bet they miss numerous bites as it is quite often fish strike a soon as lure touches the water... if you switching hands at that moment you missed a chance to set the hook.
But whatever works best for each individual I guess, if you feel comfortable switching hands after each cast then who am I to judge that?

[Fishfinder]

You've led a sheltered life my friend.

BwaHaHahhh! Now that's funny!
As per the thread, I'm like AJ. Dominant right hand..reel with it. Hold rod in left. And here I thought that was the norm.... Not such much.

But ya, there is a second lost, switching hands one would think, unless u do it before your rig even hits the water:thinking-006:

Interesting thread, nobody is normal!:)

[Norman]

I notice tom rosenbauer from orvis casts with his right hand and switches to reel with his right hand when landing a fish on the reel, I never really knew why and I still don't. But it seems to work well for him.
I on the other hand am predominantly left handed but cast with my right and reel with my left. I golf right, play hockey left switch hit in baseball, eat with my left, drink with my left but write with my right hand. Casting with my right just feels better for me so that's what I do. Can't explain it but whatever feels the best for each person is the correct way I guess. Hope that helped confuse you a little. :)

[Pikebreath]

It really wasn't until the spinning reel became popular that the fishing world saw widespread use of the sub dominant hand on the reel. Spinning reels have a very wide handle turning radius and high speed line retrieve (high gear ratio - one turn of the reel handle is typically 4 -5 turns of the reel spool). This makes reeling with the left hand (in a right handed world) much easier to do with the sub dominate left hand. This likely explains much of the popularly of spinning reel / rods today as it allowed the user to cast, work the rod and fight fish the right hand ,,, no need to switch hands.

Baitcasters, level winds. closed face spincasters and fly reels etc have a much tighter turning radius on the handle which from a dexterity point of view is easier to do with the dominant hand, so these reels traditionally were set up as right hand retrieve.

A lot of it has to do with what of type of reel you learned to fish with. If you learned to fish with a spinning reel, you likely developed the muscle training and memory to be a left hand reel / right hand rod kind of angler. If you learned on right hand reel, then you likely are more comfortable switching hands to reel after casting.

[Pikebreath]

Which task takes more motor control? which task takes more power? Casting or turning the handle on the reel? Strikes me that your dominant hand should be doing the most technically difficult task. For me as a right hander, that's holding the rod in my right hand and casting. It's easy to go round and round with the reel handle.

It all depends on whether you are fighting the fish from the rod or from the reel.

[embury93]

Ampidexterous :character0053:

[bisonhunter]

I guess at the end of the day a person can just close their eyes and try all the different combinations and just pick what feels best to them.
I like Pikebreaths explanation of the different types of reels and how we use them.
I learned on a spinning reel using my right hand on the rod, but i have also owned bait casters for many years and they all require right hand on the reel. When I use them I'm a cast right/reel right fisherman. Oddly enough as weird as a left hand on the reel spinning reel feels to me, my level wind reels have also always felt completely comfortable to me as well even though they require right hand on the reel.
Most people are made of playdoh ....I guess I'm made of weirdoh.
Thanks for all your input.

[Geezle]

When I cast my baitcasters I have my right hand on the reel and left holding the butt section. After the cast, left hand is put on the reel holding the rod while right is used to reel in.

I golf, fish, write, play guitar, shoot a rifle and bow all right handed but play hockey left handed. Hmmm, maybe that is why I never played professionally!

Actually this is more how I cast now...with 2 hands...right on the reel and left on the butt of the rod. Once I've casted I'll switch around so my left hand is holding the rod and the right is reeling. Sometimes I'll even switch hands before the lure hits the water and stop the spool with my left thumb, so I don't really miss a beat as far as the actual fishing goes, and I don't miss the strikes that happen right when the lure hits the water.

[stickflicker]

When I cast my baitcasters I have my right hand on the reel and left holding the butt section. After the cast, left hand is put on the reel holding the rod while right is used to reel in.

I golf, fish, write, play guitar, shoot a rifle and bow all right handed but play hockey left handed. Hmmm, maybe that is why I never played professionally!

I fish the same way as you, it feels natural to me this way.

Right handed people should shoot left in hockey. The upper hand on the stick is where your control and finesse comes from, which should be your dominant hand. The lower hand on the stick is just a brace/hinge point.

[Walleyedude]

It all depends on whether you are fighting the fish from the rod or from the reel.

I'm curious about this post.

How do you fight a fish from the reel?

I've never heard of that before unless you mean simply cranking the fish in like a winch.

[RavYak]

I am surprised how many people have the misconception that RH or LH has to do with what they believe is correct. RH or LH retrieve just tells you which side of the reel the handle is. If you walk into a fishing store asking for a RH reel they are going to give you one with the handle on the right.

As already mentioned by people in this thread everyone does it different depending on what feels right to them.

I use baitcast equipment and I cast with my right hand and then switch hands when the lure hits the water and reel with the right hand. Reason is that my right hand is so dominant I feel awkward trying to reel with my left hand and if I were to cast with my left hand I would be having bird nests and cast half the distance...

My exception is fly fishing in which I need greater control over the rod and don't reel very often so I use a LH reel.

[canadiantdi]

I cast with my right and then switch hands to reel in with my right also.

[drifter]

RHR Mooching
RHR Baitcast
LHR Spinning
LHR Fly

I'm right handed.

[Pikebreath]

I'm curious about this post.

How do you fight a fish from the reel?

I've never heard of that before unless you mean simply cranking the fish in like a winch.

In a nutshell, yes... Most light tackle rods are very inefficient fish fighting tools. On a large, strong, fast running fish, lowering the rod and letting the reel do the work will tire and land the fish much faster.

[Walleyedude]

In a nutshell, yes... Most light tackle rods are very inefficient fish fighting tools. On a large, strong, fast running fish, lowering the rod and letting the reel do the work will tire and land the fish much faster.

I assume you're talking salmon or other salt water species.

Lowering the rod and using only the reel would be the quickest way I can think of to lose a fish given standard freshwater tackle and species. The rod is the tool that allows use to keep constant pressure and absorb sudden shocks, the two most important things when fighting a fish.

[Freedom55]

In a nutshell, yes... Most light tackle rods are very inefficient fish fighting tools. On a large, strong, fast running fish, lowering the rod and letting the reel do the work will tire and land the fish much faster.

That is 100% wrong. You made that up. "Are you fishing with a telephone pole with a winch and cable?" as Chronzy would say.

A proper rod and an efficient drag system are the essential tools in your kit in any finesse fishing style.

The winder is for the hand that will go round and round without stalling at a critical moment.

Anyone who has fought a fish for more than ten or twelve minutes will tell you that you want your strong arm holding the rod. Or had a twenty five pound steelhead rainbow rip away with your bait in a west coast river. You must train the other hand to do the roundy bits.

Free

[Pikebreath]

I assume you're talking salmon or other salt water species.

Lowering the rod and using only the reel would be the quickest way I can think of to lose a fish given standard freshwater tackle and species. The rod is the tool that allows use to keep constant pressure and absorb sudden shocks, the two most important things when fighting a fish.

True,,,, but most freshwater anglers could learn a thing or two from their saltwater counterparts when it comes to landing big fish quickly.

A lot of anglers fight their fish with a high overhead rod position which gives all the advantage to the fish when it comes to a tug of war.

Try this experiment at home sometime. Set your reel drag at 6 lb and try deadlifting a 5 lb weight off the floor with just the rod at 90 degrees to the floor and start lifting rod to see how much bend you put in your rod and force you need before the weight moves. Be careful as this is a good way to break a lightweight rod or a rod with a previous stress fracture.

Next, back away a few feet from the weight, lower to rod to below 90 degrees and simply turn the reel handle. The weight will move much sooner and easier.

Now this is not say you should just simply point the rod at the fish and winch it in with the reel, but working with a lower rod angle which now puts the stronger butt section to work ,,,(rather than the vertical high sticking above your head,,, which puts most pressure on the tip section),,,, and using the reel drag to its full advantage makes the fish work harder than you.

[Pikebreath]

That is 100% wrong. You made that up. "Are you fishing with a telephone pole with a winch and cable?" as Chronzy would say.

A proper rod and an efficient drag system are the essential tools in your kit in any finesse fishing style.

The winder is for the hand that will go round and round without stalling at a critical moment.

Anyone who has fought a fish for more than ten or twelve minutes will tell you that you want your strong arm holding the rod. Or had a twenty five pound steelhead rainbow rip away with your bait in a west coast river. You must train the other hand to do the roundy bits.

Free

Who said anything about finesse fishing?

If you want to land big fish quickly, lower the rod angle, put the rod butt in your gut, tuck your elbows into your sides and pivot your whole upper body to move the rod,,, In this manner you can put your back and shoulders into it and it makes little difference which hand is on the rod... it's called getting "down and dirty".

Now if you have a strong running fish that has just run out 100 -200 yards of line (such as 100 lb tarpon and double digit bonefish are apt to do) and has suddenly turned back towards you because the fish has realized that is the path of least resistance, you better be winding on the reel with your fastest hand which for many people is their dominant hand.

Granted this kind of fish fighting is over kill for 99% of what we catch here in Alberta, but you can certainly whip a 5 lb trout or a 20 lb pike in short order by getting "down and dirty".

And FWIW,,, if you look at the tackle used on big game charter boats, you will see most of them are indeed like telephone poles and cable winches!!!

[canadian medic]

I too cast with my right and then put the rod in my left and reel with my right

[Unregistered user]

Did you happen to notice when you had anyone out, that they may have used their right hand for casting and then switched hands to reel with their right?

I am right handed and use the right for casting and left for retrieving.

Bingo.

[RavYak]

Pikebreath you are contradicting yourself and arguing poor fishing habits...

If you are catching large fish especially large saltwater fish you let the rod do 90% of the work. You don't just lean over and start cranking or in your words "lowering the rod and letting the reel do the work"... When catching large fish you pull up with the rod then lower and reel while there is slack line then repeat the process, the reel does very little work except when the fish takes a run in which case it is important to have your drag set properly for the type and size of fish. If you try and just crank in a large fish with the reel you are either going to break the reel handle or tire your arm out very quickly, that is why man invented the fishing rod... Catching smaller is done in a similar methods although in some cases it is possible to just winch the fish in(although I wouldn't recommend it with some species such as trout as you will lose a lot more fish by not having your drag set properly). Even if you are winching the fish in you still have to hold the rod up so that there is constant pressure on the fish, lowering your rod is the worst thing you can do since you will never have quick enough reactions or reeling ability to keep perfect pressure on a fish using only the reel.

Long story short it doesn't matter what you fish for, the rod does the work. That is why it is important to have a properly sized rod for the type of fishing you are doing. If you use a halibut rod for trout you are going to lose a lot of fish same if you use a trout rod for halibut...

The one thing I agree with you on is that too light of gear isn't a good thing, all it leads to is more breakoffs and over playing fish which is the worst thing you can do to a fish.

[Pikebreath]

Rav,,, Perhaps I haven't been clear enough,,,

Most rods are designed to cast and present your offering to the fish first and foremost with fish fighting taking a back seat.

Most good quality reels are designed to have smooth, strong drags which are meant to slow down, stop and tire the fish quickly,,, in other words fight the fish!!!

I am not saying that we do not use the rod in fighting fish, what I am saying is that many anglers do not use the reel as efficiently as they could which would significantly shorten the fight.

Anytime you raise the rod into a vertical position (angles greater than 135 degrees) you gain very little advantage in moving a fish towards you as all you do is bend the weakest part of the rod (that being the tip section) towards the fish. In this case you had better have the drag set much lighter than the breaking strength of the line (which is what most anglers do) to avoid breaking the rod, but you are not putting maximum pressure on the fish by doing this.

Keeping a lower rod angle allows you set the drag on the reel much closer to the lines breaking strength which makes the fish work harder and tire out more quickly. The rod is still used to fight the fish in terms of angles of pressure and moving the fish towards the angler with short 2 - 3 feet pumps opposite of the direction the fish is trying to move. If the fish is moving right, you pull left, if it's going down you pull up and so on. At any rate the goal is to have fish pull against the reel drag rather than the rod tip.

By tucking the rod butt in close to your body, you can now turn your whole body to move the rod rather just the rod arm... this negates the need to put the strongest hand/ arm on the rod,,, and as far as which hand should be on the reel handle it now should be the hand that is most efficient in reeling in line quickly with out tiring,,, on most spinning reels with their wide turning radius the sub dominant hand will do this ,,,but on level winds , bait casters and fly reels with their tight turning radius, many anglers may find it easier to use their most dexterous dominant hand to perform this task efficiently.

As I said in an earlier post, most of all this down and dirty stuff is lost on your typical Alberta fish (and fisherman)...

And for the record, I am been fortunate enough to spend about 3 - 6 weeks per year for the last 15 years fishing Florida, the Caribbean and the Pacific ocean and have caught tarpon and sailfish over 100 lb and sharks over 200 lb on both fly and conventional gear with some of the best known guides in their field. It is worth noting that in the saltwater big fish world, you find most anglers prefer reeling with their dominant hand when it comes to fly reels ands level winds.

[catnthehat]

I can use a reel with either hand and cast either way as well, but prefer casting with my right.
Using the reel, it doesn't matter to me.
Cat

[Walleyedude]

Rav,,, Perhaps I haven't been clear enough,,,

Most rods are designed to cast and present your offering to the fish first and foremost with fish fighting taking a back seat.

I disagree with this. Length, power, action, etc... are all designed as part of a rod's intended use, and that means not only casting or presenting a lure, but fighting a fish, they go hand in hand.

I am not saying that we do not use the rod in fighting fish, what I am saying is that many anglers do not use the reel as efficiently as they could which would significantly shorten the fight.

In my experience, any time you try to horse a fish in, especially big fish, using the reel, you're asking for trouble. Either a break off or just losing your hook up. There are always exceptions of course, depending on the tackle you're using the the technique.

Anytime you raise the rod into a vertical position (angles greater than 135 degrees) you gain very little advantage in moving a fish towards you as all you do is bend the weakest part of the rod (that being the tip section) towards the fish. In this case you had better have the drag set much lighter than the breaking strength of the line (which is what most anglers do) to avoid breaking the rod, but you are not putting maximum pressure on the fish by doing this.[/quick]

I see very few people attempt fight a fish with their rod held vertical, so I don't think that's much of an issue. It is a common cause of breaking a rod tip though, when you "high stick" a fish close to the boat.

Rods are designed to have a maximum flex point and good rods have a strong butt section so you can apply pressure to the fish and not worry about breaking a rod, IF you're using the rod for its intended purpose.

[quote]Keeping a lower rod angle allows you set the drag on the reel much closer to the lines breaking strength which makes the fish work harder and tire out more quickly. The rod is still used to fight the fish in terms of angles of pressure and moving the fish towards the angler with short 2 - 3 feet pumps opposite of the direction the fish is trying to move. If the fish is moving right, you pull left, if it's going down you pull up and so on. At any rate the goal is to have fish pull against the reel drag rather than the rod tip.

By tucking the rod butt in close to your body, you can now turn your whole body to move the rod rather just the rod arm... this negates the need to put the strongest hand/ arm on the rod,,, and as far as which hand should be on the reel handle it now should be the hand that is most efficient in reeling in line quickly with out tiring,,, on most spinning reels with their wide turning radius the sub dominant hand will do this ,,,but on level winds , bait casters and fly reels with their tight turning radius, many anglers may find it easier to use their most dexterous dominant hand to perform this task efficiently.

As I said in an earlier post, most of all this down and dirty stuff is lost on your typical Alberta fish (and fisherman)...

And for the record, I am been fortunate enough to spend about 3 - 6 weeks per year for the last 15 years fishing Florida, the Caribbean and the Pacific ocean and have caught tarpon and sailfish over 100 lb and sharks over 200 lb on both fly and conventional gear with some of the best known guides in their field. It is worth noting that in the saltwater big fish world, you find most anglers prefer reeling with their dominant hand when it comes to fly reels ands level winds.

I can't argue with any of that.

[Walleyedude]

True,,,, but most freshwater anglers could learn a thing or two from their saltwater counterparts when it comes to landing big fish quickly.

I think it has far more to do with matching landing technique to the tackle being used than a lack of skill or knowledge.

I could use a halibut rod and a giant two speed level wind to catch walleye at Pine Coulee if I chose too. I guarantee the fight would be short!

Try this experiment at home sometime. Set your reel drag at 6 lb and try deadlifting a 5 lb weight off the floor with just the rod at 90 degrees to the floor and start lifting rod to see how much bend you put in your rod and force you need before the weight moves. Be careful as this is a good way to break a lightweight rod or a rod with a previous stress fracture.

Next, back away a few feet from the weight, lower to rod to below 90 degrees and simply turn the reel handle. The weight will move much sooner and easier.

Try this experiment while connecting the line to the weight with a small piece of skin or thin bone/cartilage. Then shake it around with the rod tip. Now tell me what breaks first. The breaking strength of the line is very rarely the weak link in the chain.

Now this is not say you should just simply point the rod at the fish and winch it in with the reel, but working with a lower rod angle which now puts the stronger butt section to work ,,,(rather than the vertical high sticking above your head,,, which puts most pressure on the tip section),,,, and using the reel drag to its full advantage makes the fish work harder than you.

As I said in my last response, I see very few people fighting fish with the rod held vertically, I think it's pretty much natural and common sense to hold the rod lower.

[pinelakeperch]

I'm right handed and hold the rod with my left hand and reel with my left. I'm a little strange that way. I shoot right yet catch with my right as a goaltender.

[great white whaler]

Right handed,,,but every now and than I'll go left