I got my senior citizen Dad his first decent baitcaster for Christmas, and at 83, he's trying, but struggling. Heck, I'm still adjusting to them myself. The backlashes and learning curve are defeating him a bit. We won't give up, at least for now. So, here is my question, and with luck, I'll get some good responses. Should we go back to old school fishing, like he did back in the 60s and 70s, if I was to get him the "best" spincast reel, what reels have you cats used, or possibly suggest?
I know to ask for a bass spincast reel in the bass section might be dicey, but I thought I'd ask anyway.

Thanks for being open-minded!

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Someone in this forum gave this advice for teaching a kid to use a baitcaster and it might work for you too. Peel off the amount of line that would be a good cast and then tape the line to the spool. There shouldn't be any (as many?) overruns if the line can't run off the spool.

This is great advise!

Thanks for the tip...I'm hoping he'll get used to his H20 baitcast reel, but just in case, still wondering about some of the better spincast reels.

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I can't help on the spincast but a basspro feel with dual braking system is the ticket. Very easy to get dialed in. I Can set mine to where my children don't even have to "thumb" em

The Shimano Stradic is a great spinning reel, own a few of them myself

33 Platinum is a solid spincast

Pfleuger supreme! I use one for dropshotting. Great reel and smooth drag.Caught alot of big bass on it.

This is how I taught my son.

Set his baitcast reel so when the button is pushed the lure will not fall. Set the adjustments on the left side of the reel acompletely off, and then set the tension know on the right side until the lure will not move when the button is pushed.

This will stop all backlashes when cast. Have him cast with this setup until he learns to use his thumb to control the line coming off the spool.

Slowly take off tension until he has educated his thumb and he can cast without backlashing.

Then: Practice, Pratice, Pratice

Good Fishing

Put some heavy mono on the baitcast, might help and spincast the best I have used is the Omega by Zebco they run in the $60 dollar range but you want find a better one

Keep the tips and reel choices coming...and thanks for the slow baitcast ideas!!! So appreciated... Can't believe I didn't think of it.

He's 83, why make it frustrating for him. Get him a spincast and let him enjoy the fishing. I doubt that he would catch one too big for it and if he did he might not be able to handle the fish anyway.

It is what I bought my wife to use. Simple enough that she can use it without getting frustrated and quitting.

Bait caters can be frustrating for anyone when starting out

Have you adjust the brakes inside the reel? The H2O's usually come with 3 in, 3 out. You can "add" more brake by gently pushing the pins out. You will know they are set when you feel a click. Make sure you set them symmetrically so the spool stays balanced. Keep in mind your casting distance will be affected, but it's a great way to get the feel for a bait caster.

That metal is fine, put a senko on, try and match with a castaway medium or something with a fast tip...Try and have him lay it out, not overly strong...light lures will always hurt developing the right feel for cast and feathering...As far as spinning reals go, Okuma makes a good smooth spincast..Tight lines..

I would venture to guess spincast reels are not used by pros or more seasoned hobby fisherman, and that's because they are considered to slow. If the spool is bigger, wouldn't that help with "reeling" intake? I don't know, I'm just picturing it and wondering.

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Hey what are you doing out of the OT.
Anyways Woo Daves used to use a Zebco 33 reel for skipping around docks, heck the man won the 2000 Classic.
Sir buy your dad a good ole Zebco 33 platnium and get a good rod for him.
If I remember right that reel has four or five bearings and cost is like $30

I heard the Bass section was a very scary, tough place to hang out, but these cats have been very helpful to me, as are you. I'm going to adjust the settings on my Dad's baitcaster, and after more practice, if he still struggles, I'll get him a very good spincast reel. Here's is old 70s Zebco 33 Feathertouch. The drag does not work, and I do not know what the ratio is, but it's still his main catfish reel.

Addendum: Also, since I joined a "fishing forum," I figured I'd finally hit the "fishing" sections! 'bout time! IN65/joe

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