Whenever a fish lover tries to learn about parts of baitcasting reels or other different aspects of fishing then he comes across the variety of fancy terms or questions that can confuse him especially if a person is newbie. If wanna be a passionate learner of fishing then you must have encountered questions such as:
What is Baitcasting
What is baitcasting reel?
What is the purpose of Baitcaster? What are baitcaster reels good for?
What are different parts of baitcasters?
So, on the basis of our experience we’ll explore these aspects of fishing so let’s start!

What is Baitcasting?What are parts of baitcasting reels

Baitcasting is the process through which bait is casted to fishes or in simple words fishes are attracted with the help of a material that then results to the catching of these fishes; this material that attracts fishes is known as fishing lure. When a fish is lured with the help of any attractive artificial food item that is usually attached with another hook then fish tries to eat that material so, in this way it gets caught easily. Professional fishers use different material for casting baits for fishes however one of the most common things that is used nowadays is baitcaster. The basic purpose of baitcasters is to catch fishes with the control and proficiency. They are used since centuries however they have changed their shapes because of the advancement in technology. Let’s discuss how they have changed their shapes with a time being and how they have reached to the versions that are available in markets nowadays

History of Baitcasting reels:

Fishing has been a favorite hobby of people since centuries; however, the tools used for fishing are continuously changing. The History of fishing reels can be traced up to 3rd century AD in the Song dynasty of China. The available literature about that time has traces about these reels in addition to this Chinese origin these materials are also discussed in Books such as “A Treatise of Fishing with an Angle” that was published at the end of 15th century. In England the trends toward production of fishing related materials were started mainly from the third decade of the eighteenth century. It is interesting to note that horse hair were used alongside the rods to catch fishes before it grown to current shape. The contemporary designs were also developed after centuries of efforts as some of the following pictures are showing the ancient versions of these reels:
Pictures required!
In United States the designing of these reels starts majorly after 1810 and this designing that is developed to the modern reels that are easy to use. Nowadays different designs in United States have resulted to different types of reels that are easily available in different stores. Some of these fishing reel types are following:
Before understanding the advantages of baitcasters let’s find out the diagram or detailed study of different parts of these reels:

Explanation of different parts of Baitcasters:

Understanding different parts for a newbie is very important as little mistake can make trouble for you so we have discussed all the parts in a manner that you can understand different parts alongside with the method to cast the bait. The detailed description alongside the pictorial view of these different parts of baitcasting reels are following:
Release Button;
Just above the spool there is release button that you press when you are ready to cast the bait and you just have to press the button by keeping your thumb little bit intact with the string. This gives you the control over the string and the lure is released according to your needs.
Spool:
Spool as you can see in the picture is rotatable part that is covered with line or string in a way that on the one side that string is attached with the bait that can be slowly released with the help of spool. It’s one of the important parts and on the basis of our experience we recommend you to make sure that your baitcaster is spooled up in the right way. If the line is not properly adjusted to the spool, then it will create mess for you for example overfilling of spool will cause backlash or string will get entangled while casting a bait.
Handle:
When you press the release button and loose the knob then the line starts moving down toward the ground. The handle as shown in the picture will help you to collect back the string or to reel back and thus the string will again get collected on the spool as before the casting. The handle can also be used to loosen the line as well so, when you move the handle in clockwise then it will allow the spool to loosen the string so, fishing line can be collected back or released with the help of this handle. These handles come in different sizes depending upon the requirement of the users and designs of companies.
Fishing Line or string:
There are different types of fishing lines or strings made up from different material that are available nowadays in the market. They usually pass the holes like structure attached with the fishing rod; all the way to spool and then there are small holes on spool of reels through which these lines are knotted well. These lines
Eyes:
Eyes are basically holes through which string passes and as they are similar to shapes of eyes from where string is stretched from lure to spool. These eyes on the fishing rod helps your strings or line not to deflect away. These eyes can be observed in the picture as well so, you can understand their shapes and function more easily.
Brakes
The brakes as shown in the picture helps to take control over the freewheeling movement of the reel; when you will cast a reel then lure attached at the other end of the rod is supposed to be hitting the water so, these brakes help to prevent the reeling back. Centrifugal Breaking system is one of the important parts of reels and it is used to tighten the line so to do that thing there are usually five or six clicks on the reels. If you are a beginner then the expert advice for you is to maximize the brakes to get the more tightness of the line to prevent back the movement of the lures.
Magnetic Knob/Spool Tension Knob
Magnetic knobs that are also known as spool tension knobs and in some cases the first thing you have to do while setting up the baitcaster is to tight the tension knob all the way, you can adjust the knob by rotating it in clockwise direction.
Are you feeling confused about the difference between the usage of knobs and Brakes? Well, this is natural so don’t worry anymore! The knob is responsible for the tightening and loosing of the spool while the brakes as explained are for the lure to prevent it to come back freely. If you cast a bait and somehow it comes back then you can use knob then to tighten the spool. When you slowly rotate the knob then the spool tension gets less and string or the line that is attached with the spool also gets less tight and the bait at the other side will move slowly toward the ground.
Explanation about what actually the Dial in the side of knob:
Some of the experts may explain the phenomena of brakes by connecting it with Dial as pointed out in the picture so when you tight the dial then upon clicking the releasing button the line won’t be able to move freely back so it will help to prevent the backlash or entangling. So, don’t get confused about the concept of dial and brakes. Some experts may call the tension knob as dial as well so, don’t worry just observe both of them carefully as magnetic knob is for the spool control while brakes are for preventing the backlash while string moves in backward direction sometimes.
Shaft/fishing Rod
Fishing Rod or shaft as shown in the picture comes up in different lengths and as far as our experience concerns then 7 feet rod usually is enough to cast the bait effectively. There are different types of fishing rods that are available and you can choose them according to your convenience. Choosing a right rod is quite important that we’ll explain in another post as well.
Drag:
Drag can be seen as a star like material just behind the handle as you can observe in the picture. You can use this drag when for example the fish gets entangled with the hook then there comes load on the rod then comes the drag that helps you. So, in easy words drag is an adjustment that comes to your rescue to prevent your fishing line to break when fish gets tethered with the hook.
Hook:
Hook as you can see in the picture lies at the end of the rod and choosing a right hook and lure will definitely decide how much success you will get to attract fishes. There are different shapes of fishing hooks that are available in the market depending upon the needs of users.
Baits or lures:
Baits or lures are usually artificial material that is prepared to attract fishes; these are either in the form of small fish shapes or in the shape of worms as well. One of the important types of fishing lures that is famous comes in the shape of frog as well because when a fish tries to eat that lure then it gets tethered with the hook that is attached to the rod or shaft. Choosing the right of fishing lure is important as it will be deciding about the quality of fishes that you want to attract.
Frequently Asked Question:
Benefit of Baitcasters; know what they are good for:
The major purpose of the baitcasters is to achieve the accuracy and that is one of the major advantages. While using these types of reels you can attain control with the help of thumbs to control the spool; the part that is explained above. Thus, if you ask an expert advice about what is the major advantage of baitcaster then the answer is quite simple that is control that you can attain with the help of this type of reel.
Final Words:
Choosing a right baitcaster is really important factor to determine your performance however there are others types of reels as well. This post is for the newbies to introduce about what actually baitcasting is so, hopefully you’ve learnt a lot from this post. Explore the other sections of our website to learn important techniques of fishing a very easy way.