Gear Ratio For Jigging Reels

[imaddictedtofishing]

Been reading a lot of posts and some people have mixed opinions on the issue. Low ratio or high ratio reels for jigging kings. I was looking to buy a Daiwa saltist 30TH which has a 6.4-1 gear ratio which i thought what was meant for jigging. Then i find out some people use reels around 4-1 gear ratio.

thoughts?

[fishmaniac]

It is really up to personal preference and what you get used to in my opinion. There is no real right or wrong answer so I will share some of my experiences.

I have a Saltist 40H with the 6.4:1 ratio and it has been great. Loaded with 50lb braid I use it for trolling, cubing for tuna, jigging for kings, downrigging and livebaiting for kings.

Some people complain that the higher ratio makes fighting larger fish difficult. This may be so but in this model i have not had any issues. You will find you have many more things to worry about when you are hooked on to a big fish than "oh, this gear ratio is making winding a slightly more difficult task"!

I picked up the saltist spin reel and found that quite uncomfortable to wind and jig with as the gear ratio is way to high for my liking but other like it. In the spin models i would personally prefer something around the 4.7:1.

Strictly speaking in terms of jigging kings. I have fished my saltist for 2 years with heavy usage and have never found it uncomfortable or awkward to use.

Edited June 30, 2010 by fishmaniac

[imaddictedtofishing]

It is really up to personal preference and what you get used to in my opinion. There is no real right or wrong answer so I will share some of my experiences.

I have a Saltist 40H with the 6.4:1 ratio and it has been great. Loaded with 50lb braid I use it for trolling, cubing for tuna, jigging for kings, downrigging and livebaiting for kings.

Some people complain that the higher ratio makes fighting larger fish difficult. This may be so but in this model i have not had any issues. You will find you have many more things to worry about when you are hooked on to a big fish than "oh, this gear ratio is making winding a slightly more difficult task"!

I picked up the saltist spin reel and found that quite uncomfortable to wind and jig with as the gear ratio is way to high for my liking but other like it. In the spin models i would personally prefer something around the 4.7:1.

Strictly speaking in terms of jigging kings. I have fished my saltist for 2 years with heavy usage and have never found it uncomfortable or awkward to use.

Ok thank you very much.

Now im pretty sure I want the high ratio reel. Now there is a 30TH and a 30H. Whats the difference?

[framedtrash]

as said its really personal preference and what you get use to using

ive tried both hi and low speed reels

and i find low speed being the best for jigging

i find with hi speed reels i cant get the right action out of the jig

the way i jig is that in the time it takes me to do a complete crank of the reel i have the rod tip go down and back up

this allows the jig to drop down then spring back up with the motion of the rod

and the reel takes up the slack as the jig comes back up

using a hispeed i cant achieve this so i dont use them

a great dvd to get for helping with all things jigging is called "Heavy Metal at the Ranfurly"

it goes thru every thing and is very informative

Edited June 30, 2010 by Framedtrash

[olitay]

Just remember 9 times out of 10 your retrieving lures from 60+ meters jut to get the lure back to the boat for another drop.....High speed has a great advantage here, just means you need to be a bit more careful how you fight the fish cause the high speed can put extra pressure on the fight.

I personally like high speed reels for Jigging and have an old Shimano Speedmaster that is a favorite!

[SZ1]

Mate, it is a hard one to decide as many people will say high speed is the go and other will say low, I use low speed reels for all my jigging, I have also used a high speed reel before as well and to be honest with you I could not tell the difference. One thing to remember is when fighting a large fish your rods does most of the work and you never just straight out crank a fish in unless it is a baby.

Also another thing to consider is your jigging style as some people have mentioned that they can’t get the jigging motion right with a high speed or a low speed, I can’t comment on that as I can’t feel the difference.

[fishmaniac]

Ok thank you very much.

Now im pretty sure I want the high ratio reel. Now there is a 30TH and a 30H. Whats the difference?

I am not too sure as to the exact difference between the 30TH and the 30H. I know the 30H has a slightly higher ratio (by about 0.3) but i think the 30TH is a slightly narrower reel with less line capacity. I do howevr know that all the internal components are of the same materials (drag, gears etc).

On that note, i have not seen many of the 30TH reels on the shelf.

As other raiders have mentioned they have had trouble getting the right action however i have not had that problem. I suppose it depends on the action you develop and the type of jigs you use as each has a different action designed for different jigging speeds. The rod you use and how much you lift the rod with each jig will also influence the compatibility of the reel ratio.

If you are new to jigging I am sure you won't notice any major issues and you will simply develop a techique that complements your outfit. I recently upgraded to a saltiga jigging rod and i have noticed my jigging technique had to change slightly to accomodate the new rod action.

[imaddictedtofishing]

Ahhhhhh back to square one. Thank you all for your opinions. I think what I'll do it try a couple of outfits from friends etc and see which one i prefer.

cheers

[AndrewNR]

Had the same dilemma recently. A few wise fishos told me to go the high speed for winding the jig faster and when fighting a fish use the rod to lift the fish and the reel to wind the slack. And as far as action goes with a bit of practice you would be fine on any retrieve. Go fo the faster ratio. Cheers Andrew.