Posted By Captain Quantum on 20 Dec 2011 03:34 AM
So, can you switch the handle's side on baitcasters? I don't use them but I am curious.

Sadly No ya cant!!!!

I like so many others use the right hand crank for bc reels and left hand for spinning reels. I must say that especially when I'm crankbait fishing, it's nice to switch to a spinning reel and give my cranking arm a break! Although after reading this post, I intend to get myself a left hand baitcaster for flipping. It does make sense.

Cheap: I'm thinkin your going to like that a-Lot!!!! and after awhile I can see other Lefty's in your future!!!!!

I cast right handed, reel both with my right hand even though I can use both hands pretty well.I write right handed but drive left handed. Reeling with my left hand just feels weird

I cast and reel right handed.drive left handed and write right handed.It just feels really weird to reel with my left hand

Sorry for a double post.forgot to turn the page.Mbad

Hey, Hoss, how are you? As far as reel construction, back in-the-day all baitcasting and spincasting reels were right-hand crankers, and most spinning reels were left-hand cranks. Don't know why... just the way the manufacturers offered them to us. There were exceptions, as mo65 points out with the Mitchell 301. Penn also had a few right-handed retrieve reels in their line-up back then, but for the most part, you took what you got and lived with it. As it's been pointed out, in modern times just about all spinning reels (and many spincasting reels) are ambidextrous. Personally, I started out (as many of us) with a Zebco 33, which was a right-hand cranker, and when I decided to try spinning in the mid/late 1970s, I just couldn't get used to left-handed cranking (pretty much just the opposite of your experience). I just preferred to cast, then switch hands so my dominant hand's free. I finally settled on the Shakespeare President II 2810DE spinning reel, and just forced myself to get used to the configuration. Taught myself to cast left-handed, too. I'm glad I did, cuz there were times when one or the other hand was incapacitated, but I could still fish. IMHO, everyone should learn to crank with either hand, not only in case of hand injury, but also because it makes more sense if you fish two rods at a time, as I do. If both rods retrieve on the same side of the reel, and you get a bite on the rig you aren't holding, you have to set the rod you're holding down and grab the other one. With cranks on opposite sides, you can immediately set the hook while setting down the other rig, and greatly improve your chances of success. Setting a hook successfully, just like a lot in life, is a matter of timing. So if at all possible, I strongly recommend acclimating yourself to cranking either way.

BTW Barresi, there was an ambidextrous baitcaster out for a very short while. I don't remember the model, but Shakespeare put one out back in the early 1980s. Apparently it wasn't very successful, because it disappeared from the market in short order.

Tight lines, guys.

Ive gotten into several arguments with buddies over the years on this subject also. I'm right handed and have always switched my spinning reels to crank with my right hand. Casting, I'm ambidextrous, but typically I cast with my right arm also. It never seems awkward or clunky to me to change hands because I use my left hand to close the bail anyway, so its an easy crossover. The reason I do this is I've heard so many arguments about not closing the bail with the crank for several reasons ranging from unnecessary wear on the parts, to it putting twists in your line if the line is still being expelled from the reel.

My family is bass-ackwards anyway when it comes to this stuff. My dad was taught to shoot by his older brother who is left handed while my dad is right. This leads to my dad shooting from his left shoulder with his right hand on the trigger, and his left on the grip. I suppose its still right handed but off shoulder? Never seemed to make a difference in his accuracy, that's for sure!