Article by Capt. Mark Sampson
When purchasing new equipment, anglers will often have to decide whether to go with spinning or conventional (revolving spool) tackle, and throughout their angling career the dilemma of choosing conventional or spinning will continue to pop-up as they engage in different fishing activities and environments. Spinning or conventional – what’s best? No doubt that different anglers will have different answers to that question and to be sure, there really is no all-round best response. But by looking at both the strengths and weaknesses of each type of tackle it can become somewhat obvious which option a fisherman should go with under different situations.
First, let’s look at conventional tackle because it was actually invented long before spinning reels. Conventional tackle is available for lines from two to over 130-pound test, so no matter if you want to catch a three-ounce brook trout or a 1,000-pound bluefin tuna, there is a conventional reel designed for the job. But just as there are a lot of different sizes of conventional reels, there are also countless different designs with features that allow anglers to use them for many types of angling and if someone is considering purchasing one of these reels it’s critical to choose the right one for the job because they are not all created equal!
One of the first things many anglers will recognize about conventional reels is that they are typically not very easy to cast. In fact, some of them simply cannot be cast at all. However, some are specifically designed to be cast and in the right hands, and very little effort, can be cast with create distance and accuracy.
Conventional tackle can be so “castable” that it is often the weapon of choice for both freshwater bass fishermen (who repeatedly cast all day) and surf anglers who are often looking to cast extremely long distances. The problem is, even conventional tackle that’s designed for casting is not user-friendly enough that just anyone can pick it up for the first time and start hurling baits and lures to distant targets. There’s a definite learning curve that comes along with the use of these revolving spool reels that requires a measure of practice and experience before they can be chucked without the dreaded “backlash” or “bird’s nest” appearing in the line.
So anglers who choose conventional tackle will have to understand that if they are going to be involved in any type of casting, they will also need to take the time to become somewhat proficient with their new equipment before putting it to the test on the water.
Something else to consider is that even though someone might be good at casting a conventional reel, if they take other folks out fishing who don’t have much experience, they might find themselves spending much of their time picking bird’s nests out of their reels, so spinning tackle is just the better option!
Except for special situations, I’d have to give a thumbs-down to conventional tackle when casting might be an integral part of someone’s fishing routine. However, in so many other fishing situations, conventional tackle can provide benefits far superior to anything one might achieve from spinning tackle. Most notably, when it comes to catching big fish, and I mean, really BIG FISH like monster tuna, huge sharks or giant marlin, conventional tackle is absolutely the only way to go.
Dealing with any of the real giants of the sea requires a reel with three primary features including large line capacity, a drag that can be cranked down tight and still slip smoothly and a construction that allows it to be almost indestructible. Those characteristics are simply not available in even the largest of spinning reels but they’re pretty much standard equipment on all decent quality conventional reels. Could you imagine trying to whip a 600 pound bluefin on spinning tackle – it’s just not going to happen! But on 80 to 130 pound conventional equipment, fish like that (and bigger) are landed all the time.
But conventional tackle isn’t just for big fish. There are times when the configuration of conventional tackle makes for the most practical and efficient setup. Most hardcore bottom fishermen will opt for conventional rather than spinning tackle because, when leaning on the railing of a boat, pier or bridge, having the reel on top of the rod allows one to properly work the rod and feel the line better than with a reel hanging on the bottom of the rod.
Also, whenever someone is involved with catching fish that pull a lot of drag, it’s always an advantage to be hooked up with conventional tackle because there is less chance that the line will get twisted-up during the fight. A problem with spinners is that the line twists as it comes off the reel during the fight, sometimes to the point that after the fight the reel is totally useless until the line can be untwisted. This problem can be compounded when an inexperienced angler cranks the reel as line is being pulled out. But the revolving spool of a conventional reel lets line out and brings it back in without the added twist that a spinning reel injects into the process. This makes it much less likely that line twist will occur and allows for a much smoother transition between giving and taking line.
Finally, the design of conventional reels has allowed some manufactures to create oversized and silky smooth drags that easily slip with no startup hesitation. High quality spinners will also have good drags, but usually the best drags in the business are always found on conventional reels.
That’s just a few of the pros and cons of conventional tackle. Next week we’ll do the same with spinning reels.
Capt. Mark Sampson is an outdoor writer and captain of the charter boat, “Fish Finder”, docked at the Ocean City Fishing Center.
