WHY do most wind in R/H when they should be lefty

[wildthing]

this is a serious question
most people who fish out there are right handed
so why does it come to fishing with mooching reels
your fishing with the rod on your weak arm (left ) then try switching it around reeling in with the left hand?????


which arm do you throw with?
which arm do you use a hammer with?
if fly casting which arm do you use?

its funny how many people i see trying to fish with the reel on the wrong way

is it just cause most don't know how to change the spool round left to right?



i am right handed and reel in with my left hand rod in my right

but can fish both ways with mooching reels or levelwinds

fixed spools will tell you which way you should be fishing
for it to feel right......


thats why i think so many loose fish with guides or friends and get the dreaded knuckle buster

regards all enjoy your fishing

 

[scott craven]

It takes more dexterity to reel than simply hold a rod.
assuming your arms are equal strength, makes sense to have the good hand on the reel.

 

[Fish Assassin]

Cause we are West Coasters.....The Fisherman of these here shores.... Need we say more??????

 

[Saxe Point]

We have all our mooching reels set for left hand wind. It's the only way in our opinion. Finding left hand retrieve level winds, however, is a difficult matter.

 

[Tips Up]

I am right handed.
If I'm casting (Fly or spin cast) I reel with left hand.
If it sits in the holder(down rigger or hali) I reel with right.
I think that is pretty standard .

The only thing do different than most is reel left hand on my steelhead rod. But that is because I am casting and like my right thumb on the spool.

Like Craven said has to do with dexterity.

Tips

 

[Peahead]

It takes more dexterity to reel than simply hold a rod.
assuming your arms are equal strength, makes sense to have the good hand on the reel.

Geat topic....interesting . Ok Gonna have a go at this ....

x2 spot on what Craven says. I am right handed and when trolling for salmon ( single action reels) and preping gear I hold the rod in the right or left hand depending what I am doing during the prep. As RS Craven says the action you are doing or the control/dexerity you need determines what hand/arm you use. For example when casting a fly or with spinning gear a right hand person will likely use their right arm/hand on the rod because the rod in these cases needs more control. The cast action needs more finesse and strength of the stronger arm/hand. When trolling or mooching for salmon and playing a fish with a single action, I beleive you need the strong hand to finesse the reel and wind with controlled speed. Palming you also need precise control so palming with right hand as well. As a right hand dominant person , it is quite simple and easy to hold a rod with your left hand and arm because as long as you have proper leverage the finesse of your better hand/ arm isn't needed on the rod.

It is possible (and you may have a good point, wildthing ) that an inexperienced fisher may not be understanding what method to reel a fish if they haven't had a chance to practice first before they have a fish on the line.

FYI : I know a couple of left handed fisherman who guide here in Vancouver. Rather than buy left hand reels ( because most guests are right handed) one fellow holds the rod in his right hand ( weaker side) and reels the single action backwards with his left ( stronger) hand. The rod and reel flipped over and up with the line guides up ! All I can tell you is he lands fish and much better than most guests!

What I can't explain is why many right handed people, including myself ( who golf right handed and do any other sport right handed) shoot left handed when playing hockey

 

[profisher]

Craven has it right...I can spin that handle a hundred miles an hour with my right wrist, but look like a claud doing the awkward shoulder roll when lefty. You might be confusing another pole that griping with the right hand works much better.

 

[Peahead]

Craven has it right...I can spin that handle a hundred miles an hour with my right wrist, but look like a claud doing the awkward shoulder roll when lefty. You might be confusing another pole that griping with the right hand works much better.

I was wondering when that would come. No pun intended

 

[Highliner]

I'm in the same camp as you Wildthing. Makes perfect sense to me.

Saxe Point, Avet makes a lefty lever drag reel. I'm planning on replacing my Shimano TLD with one.

 

[Peahead]

I'm in the same camp as you Wildthing. Makes perfect sense to me.

.

Interesting . Ok when you are right hand dominant and you are holding a big bowl with one hand and whipping up eggs vigourously with the fork in a fast circular type contolled motion with the other hand - stopping and starting etc. ( making scampled eggs here in case it wasn't obvious -lol ) which hand is spinning/stirring the fork ????

 

[wildthing]

there is also so an important point where missing here is that
if your right handed then its best suited to be the rod hand as when striking setting the hook you have more power in your strongest arm???

which arm do you use to throw a ball that should be your rod hand strongest arm

the winding of the reel is just that a counter/clock wise rotation of the hand
with the rod arm doing all of the leverage work and controlling playing of the fish ?

 

[Englishman]

It takes more dexterity to reel than simply hold a rod.
assuming your arms are equal strength, makes sense to have the good hand on the reel.

I agree with Craven. I am left handed (for writing etc.) and so my rod is always in my right, for any type of fishing, and I have the reel in my left hand. Takes far more dexterity to control a reel, change drag setting, palm the reel etc. Even fly fishing the rod must be in my right, so I can pull off line loops, shoot line etc, with my left.
Unfortunately, most mooching and single action reels come as right hand wind only and are not easily converted to left hand wind. The 10% of us in the world who are left handed are mostly ignored.....

 

[adrianna3]

For me: Hardy Silex and mooching reel = right hand wind. Spinning reel and levelwind = left hand wind. I don't know why, it just feels more comfortable.

Dave

 

[Englishman]

there is also so an important point where missing here is that
if your right handed then its best suited to be the rod hand as when striking setting the hook you have more power in your strongest arm???

which arm do you use to throw a ball that should be your rod hand strongest arm

the winding of the reel is just that a counter/clock wise rotation of the hand
with the rod arm doing all of the leverage work and controlling playing of the fish ?

The relative strength of each arm for hook setting and leverage is very marginal. However the dexterity of your hand various wildly depending on which "handedness" one is. Just try writing with the wrong hand or even turning a screwdriver with the wrong hand. Which hand to use for the reel is not a strength issue; it is one of dexterity. Therefore the rod goes to the "wrong" hand, and reel to your "best" hand.

 

[arima arima]

I always wondered this too. When i started fishing I mostly reeled left handed, spin casting and fly rod. Since fishing the last couple of year I run one lefty on one side and right hander on the other. Saves me the grief when going out with buddies that are die hard right handers. After 3 years of this I am proficient either side, but still prefer left hand reel. Its really preference, but still say right handed means you play the fish right hand on rod left hand on real. As long as you get fish in the boat doesn't really matter anyways.

 

[wildthing]

The relative strength of each arm for hook setting and leverage is very marginal. However the dexterity of your hand various wildly depending on which "handedness" one is. Just try writing with the wrong hand or even turning a screwdriver with the wrong hand. Which hand to use for the reel is not a strength issue; it is one of dexterity. Therefore the rod goes to the "wrong" hand, and reel to your "best" hand.

open one can of worms.... lol

can debate that till the cows come home
being a bricklayer mason/ tile setter, instructor /trainer assessor

also have fished for 30 odd years and come from a casting /fishing type background
like to see you fish with a fixed spool casting reel see how you get on ?

but i did say at the start each to there own?
my point is that right hander's should wind with left and that would be the way i would teach/instruct someone
IMHO go try your hand at laying bricks Englishman i know where the trowel is going to end up ....lol

 

[Rum Buddies]

It takes more dexterity to reel than simply hold a rod.
assuming your arms are equal strength, makes sense to have the good hand on the reel.

exactly - take your 2 hands and move them very fast in a small circle. If you're right handed you'll have more stamina and speed with your right hand.

 

[Peahead]

I always wondered this too. When i started fishing I mostly reeled left handed, spin casting and fly rod. Since fishing the last couple of year I run one lefty on one side and right hander on the other. Saves me the grief when going out with buddies that are die hard right handers. After 3 years of this I am proficient either side, but still prefer left hand reel. Its really preference, but still say right handed means you play the fish right hand on rod left hand on real. As long as you get fish in the boat doesn't really matter anyways.

Ambidextrous ! best of both worlds !

 

[Saxe Point]

The relative strength of each arm for hook setting and leverage is very marginal. However the dexterity of your hand various wildly depending on which "handedness" one is. Just try writing with the wrong hand or even turning a screwdriver with the wrong hand. Which hand to use for the reel is not a strength issue; it is one of dexterity. Therefore the rod goes to the "wrong" hand, and reel to your "best" hand.

The strength vs. dexterity arguments are interesting and equally compelling. At the the end of the day, however, there is no logic to it. I am right handed for most, but not all, activities. Reeling is one of them - just feels better to use the left and control the rod with the right. Just like there are so many right handers that defy logic and shoot left with hockey stick. Very interesting.

 

[-smtw]

Right handed here.
Fly - if fighting fish without reel (stripping line) rod right, strip w/left. If off reel, right hand reels.
Levelwind - rod left, reel right (except when all nog has is a lefty levelwind Hali rig, that worked fine ) in river, right thumb controls the spool/feel of drift.
Single action - rod left, reel right. "in fight" drag adjustments best left to dexterous hand IMO.

Have "flipped" rod upside down to switch rod hands when arm was wore out on YFT... Somewhat worked, but was awkward.