The majority of folks are right handed thus most baitcasting reels are designed for right handed folks. The thing is though that right handed persons cast with their right hand, and then switch hands with their baitcasting rod and reel such that they hold the rod with their left hand, and crank their reel with their right hand. Yet the standard setup on spinning reels is such that we cast with our right hand, and crank with our left hand, and avoid switching hands.

Why?

Well back in the days of yore baitcasting reels were cast with your right hand, and then the reel was flipped over such that it was on the bottom of the rod. This meant that you would then be casting with the right hand and cranking with your left.

The reason for this was basically the limitations of the technology of the times. BTW this also meant that the guides of your rod were on the bottom of the rod when you were fighting the fish.

Over time the technology of baitcasting reels improved and folks started to do as we do today and cast right handed, and crank right handed as well.

Reel 'handedness' did not change as the baitcasting reel evolved slowly and factories did not change their tooling and such as the evolution of the baitcasting reel was incremental. In the end, at least as lest as of today the convention that made complete sense in the days of yore has remainde with us. Which is not to say that many right handed folks have made the switch to left handed baitcasting reels in order to avoid hand switching.

This sort of thing exists in other sort of machinery, and so forth. The conventional typewriter/computer keyboard layout was designed back when if one 'typed to fast' the arms that swung to tap the typewriter ribbon would jam. The solution turned out to be spacing the most common letters on arms that were widely separated, which in turn meant that the most common letters used in English were also widely separated. The effect of this was to slow down typing speeds.

Today with computers there is no longer a need for the standard layout, and other layouts are superior in terms of ergonomics, and speed. Still the conventional 'QWERTY' layout reigns supreme as it was established as the original standard, and as such society has had so much invested in terms of equipment and training that newer and 'better' keyboard layouts have not found favor as a general matter.

TFP

P.S. If anyone wishes to quote The Fable Of The Keys as a counterpoint to my statements about the keyboard layout issue feel free. I've had this debate on several occasions including a couple with the authors of the 'The Fable...'.

Is Ish Monroe a leftie? I saw him using a right hand crank spinning reel on TV the other day and am wondering if he might be one that rather than changing his bait casters he chose to change the spinning reels instead. he's probably a leftie though.

I blame Zebco...most folks of this generation learned with a reel that you crank with your hand when the reel is on top of the rod...

I've never used a zebco for any extended period of time in my life, and all my younger days were spent with spinning gear.

I find it amusing how many kids at a recent kidfishing deal here in CS reeled a zebco under the rod and would reel backwards using their LH. That screams that a LH retrieve spinning reel would be far more comfortable for them to use.

Why I have all LH retrieve reels.

I'm right handed and recently I bought a left handed baitcaster because I thought it made sense to not have to switch hands. I figured It would best be utilized for flipping....Well I cup my hand around the reel when I retrieve so still after I make the cast, I have to grab the rod with my left hand to re-adjust my right hand around the reel since I do not cast the rod with my hand around the reel. So it's actually quicker for me to cast right handed and hand off the reel to my left hand where I hold it to retrieve.

maybe not necessarily the best video to demonstrate it...but here is a vid of me casting and starting a retrieve. Notice my hand is in the exact same position for the cast as the retrieve, no movement whatsoever. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmIZ0p9cntE&feature=channel_page

Ignore the fact that I just released a fish that was about 15ft off the water

THAT is why I like LH reels.

Oh and another thing...what do most of you who use RH gear do when it's time to lip a fish...do you put the rod in your right hand and lip with your left?

We LHers don't have to switch hands holding the rod or have to switch hands to be able to reel should the fish make a big run at the boat after we've gotten in position to lip it.

Might as well give it up, aggiegolfer...we lefthanders will never convince the right handers we are right...er...left....uh...correct...whatever.

I'm a right-hander that taught myself to cast left-handed b/c I got tired of switching hands. Why more guys don't do this, I don't know. It was tough at first b/c all I had was the old pistol grip style 5.5' rods. The advent of the long handled rods made casting much easier. I only throw right-handed if I need a whole lot of distance.

I'm left handed myself and don't think there is a thing wrong with how the right handed baitcasters are made.

i have both right and left hand bc reels. i reel all of my spinning combos with left hand. I started buying the lefty reels because they are much cheaper on EBAY. Now i can reel with either. I catfish mostly and that is mainly drifting so i dont have to cast then reel directly after like alot of the bass guys, so not so much an issue for me

just a fun fact no one really cares about but i reel tith my right hand on a baitcasting and left on my spinning rod. i dont know were i got this from but ias i can remeber i have always do it,,

Lefthanded here. Sure makes it nice. Love those right hand cranking reels.

One of the few benefits in the amateur sporting world to being left handed.

Agreed! I love that something in this world actually works better for lefties than righties, and we don't have to hunt for it or pay twice as much for it either.


Jay