Home Forums Fishing Freshwater Thinking about a baitcaster…

EFW,
One of my go to pike rods is a St Croix Triumph 7' medium action casting rod. I like it.
M/H would be good for heavy baits. I choose my rod weights by the size of the bait I throw.
95% of the time I am throwing a 3/8oz spinner bait or a large spoon that weight 7/8 of n ounce or less.
For large plugs or bucktails the M/H would be a better choice than the Medium

I posted a similar question earlier this spring and the brain trust here steered me toward the Shimano Calcuta 201DC. I used it on a northern Ontario fishing trip in June, and while I didn't tie into anything over 30", it handled it well. I'm still no expert at the baitcasting game, for me I guess part of the skill is in untangling birdsnests.

Your Calcutta has a centrifugal braking system, the magnetic brakes are much more forgiving for a novice.

The DC, according to Shimano, is "Digitally Controlled braking that allows anglers to externally adjust the brakes which measure and control the spool rotation with a microcomputer every 1/1000 of a second. Shimano’s DC system for digitally controlling the speed of the spool every nano-second of the cast gives even the most novice anglers a much more enjoyable experience with a baitcaster.". The spool has a winding in it that produces electricity that controls the braking. Not sure exactly how it works, but it makes a unique whine when you cast it.

Ooops, my mistake. I have heard of them but never used or seen one. Sounds.... well , complicated...

Not much different than a standard baitcaster...............a tension adjustment and brake setting. But even with the fancy schmancy brake controller, thumb skill is still required. I you wind up for a long cast and throw it in the drink 10' in front of you, that brake won't do anything to prevent a high quality birdsnest! BTDT. I will say I can cast it much better than an older Riobi magnetic brake reel I have. FWIW, I chose a left hand crank because I'm a life long spin fisher and wanted to keep it similar.