# Self Sufficiency/Living off the Land or Off the Grid > Fishing >  Baitcasters!!!!!!

## Sportsman296

So i was looking online for a cheap baitcaster for my friends and team-mates on my bass team to use because they like to throw around my 200$+ Lew's, and Abu Garcia's. So i came acrossed the Shakespeare Alpha for 15$ on ebay new, and i know it won't be as great as my high-end reel's but is it even worth the 15$ just for a throw around, also it still has to work as a good reel not just a rag doll.hehee

Has anyone used or have a shakespeare Alpha low profile baitcaster?  :Boat: 

Thanks,

Ethan

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## Sarge47

> So i was looking online for a cheap baitcaster for my friends and team-mates on my bass team to use because they like to throw around my 200$+ Lew's, and Abu Garcia's. So i came acrossed the Shakespeare Alpha for 15$ on ebay new, and i know it won't be as great as my high-end reel's but is it even worth the 15$ just for a throw around, also it still has to work as a good reel not just a rag doll.hehee
> 
> Has anyone used or have a shakespeare Alpha low profile baitcaster? 
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Ethan


A paltry 200 bucks?  Ya gotta be kdding me!  Here's what I want for Christmas(NOTE:  NOT a "baitcaster :Smile: :

http://www.orvis.com/store/product.aspx?pf_id=8A5A

 :clap:

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## Sportsman296

Nice That would be a good gift. I do spend alot more on my fly outfit than my bass fishing outfits (Baitcasters.etc) though, $500+ I love orvis.

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## Highhawk1948

I don't allow a sheakspear on my boat.  Bad juju.  Friend use to use a couple of them, nothing but trouble.  But...just my opinion.

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## kyratshooter

> A paltry 200 bucks?  Ya gotta be kdding me!  Here's what I want for Christmas(NOTE:  NOT a "baitcaster:
> 
> http://www.orvis.com/store/product.aspx?pf_id=8A5A


He!! Sarge the Jeep I drive to the lake and the boat I drag behind it ain't worth $1,300  !!!!

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## crashdive123

When I was 14 as is our OP, I fished with whatever Dad had in the basement.  I was lucky to have any gear at all and honestly didn't care what brand it was.  A lot of the time it was a stick with some fishing line tied to it.  The fish didn't seem to mind.

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## Rick

Yep. Cane poles for me. I don't think I saw $200 until I was probably 15....maybe 16. My first car didn't cost that much.

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## Sarge47

> Yep. Cane poles for me. I don't think I saw $200 until I was probably 15....maybe 16. My first car didn't cost that much.


They had cars when you were a teenager?  Really?  I don't believe it!  ...... :Innocent: ...... :Sneaky2: ...... :Drool:

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## crashdive123

Sure they did Sarge.

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## LowKey

Most of the shakespeare reels are junk. I have an underslung spinner I like but it's a constant struggle to keep it functioning, mostly cuz they rust. Real quick.
When I was 14 I think I still only had the 5 foot Zebco all in one push button. I had that thing far too long but like crash said, the fish don't care.
Now I use a $75 Shimano baitcaster for the lake and a $160 Shimano baitcaster for surf casting. The spinner just rides around in the truck on a take-down rod during the summer in case a fishing opportunity  presents itself.

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## pete lynch

I bought a Shakespeare Alpha spinner /Ugly Stick combo for surf fishing a few years back and while I admit it's junk, I wasnt paying a lot for 3-4 trips to the beach per year.
I have Mitchell and Zebco rigs for fresh water fishing which I do almost every week till the seasons end.

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## Sarge47

For bait casting it's Zebco all the way.  For Fly Fishing I have several rod & reels that I've bought over the years.  My favorite is the Lefty Kregh 9' 5wt. that I bought from Cabela's on sale with Free shipping for $150 bucks, I think that includes tax as well.  I have an 8.5' 9wt. Shakespeare fly rod that I bought at a Yard Sale for five bucks, but the Orvis reel and fly line ran me about another $90.  To be honest, I do a lot more fly  fishing than bait casting...... :Sailor:

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## Wildthang

Thos open bait caster always birds nest on me, so I just use the closed face reels!

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## birdman6660

i USE ALL MY OLD pHLEUGER level wind reels .. used em since 1958 .. still catch fish ...too old for a switch up ( or too stubborn)

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## Batch

My first baitcaster was given to me by my brother-in-law in the late 1980's. It was a Daiwa Black Widow. I couldn't cast a baitcaster for shift. Everyone else we fished with prefered them and they would tell me to switch from my Shimano spinning gear to a baitcaster. I would try theirs and walk away while they tried fruitlessly to untangle the birdsnest that I put in their reel. Knowing that I could fish for a while in peace while they worked on their rig. LOL

I was fishing with that same Black Widow last weekend.

I was really trying to get the hang of that Black widow by casting in the yard and not doing well at all. Then some guy stopped right in the middle of the road and said he knew what my problem was and showed me how to use my wrist. An hour later I was a baitcasting fool. 

My brother-in-law fished a Team Daiwa combo which was a nice combo kinda high end for me. He was given a new one as a gift from his uncle. He gave me his old one and I was a Team Daiwa fan. Though I ran Berkley Lightning Sticks in combo with the reel. after awhile I broke the case on the reel somehow and when you set teh hook the case would open up and allow the spool to spin to loosely on the drag to get a good set. I couldn't find anymore Team Diawa reels. I had always bought up good deals and we all had many rods and reels. I fished Shimano Coriolis and Citica. I currently fish A Shimano Curado CU2000 though that needs to be rebuilt. 

I use an Abu Garcia Ambassador 5000 on 8 1/2' custom rod that my brother Sean won in a local bass tournament. Both of which he gave me. 

The current issue of Outdoor Life (March) has the 2013 tackle test. it is also their survival issue.

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## Mozartghost1791

I don't even pay attention to the brand of my fishing gear.... Usually it's cause the alternative is a stick with a rock for a sinker, an old hook and some old untangled line. LOL! But I figure if my reel reels, and it's not one of those stupid 'push button' reels that winds itself up every cast, then it works fine for me. I catch plenty of fish.

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## ElevenBravo

Ive got a $25 open face Shakespear I use regularly and have no issues with it.  

Im sure a $200 reel would be slick as snot on a doorknob, but... Im not into slick reels or paying too much for the basics.


I think the lure is way more important than the reel that is bringing it in...

EB

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## Batch

You can catch fish with a willow stick and a primitive line. You don't need a good reel and rod combination to catch fish. If you want to enjoy catching fish you don't need the high end stuff either. But, if you want to hook up on the lunkers then a good reel and rod make a whole world of difference. I can put food on the table with a willow rod and a grub.

He said bass team and that's either fishing local tourneys or a lunker club. Lest I read that wrong. He is looking on more hook ups. The next thing is good line...

I haven't fish a tourney since Fenwick Lunker Line was made. The god of all mono!

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## Sportsman296

I fish as a free lancer for different teams and with a few of my friends and the tourneys are not that local, and i mostly fish the national Jr.Bassmasters due to me being 14. and im on a Pro-Staff so im used to using the "High end" stuff, it comes with the "PRO" teritory and when im just camping i sometimes use a self made cane pole. 
And Batch set your spool rotation and your friction control right and you won't get back lashes, also is Fenwick still in buisness, my grandpa used to use it alot, would make a good b-day present?

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## Batch

> And Batch set your spool rotation and your friction control right and you won't get back lashes, also is Fenwick still in buisness, my grandpa used to use it alot, would make a good b-day present?


I was using my whole arm to cast and that was the problem. Fenwick had a Lunker series of rods and sold a line of mono called Lunker Line. I used that line with line dressing on baitcasters in the 1980's and it was the smoothest casting, lowest memory, strongest by weight class line there was back then.

Your right if you set your cast control system just right for the bait and there is no unexpected precast snag or after cast impact you should not have a backlash on modern baitcasting gear. Not so back then and if you go gator hunting with me and you are slinging 5 oz trebles on a jig master or a squider out at the distances you have to when the late season is on and your using braided line. You will backlash period.

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## Rick

My whole life has been about precast snag and after cast impact. And it had nothing to do with fishing. (Big sigh).

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## Xaheni

This is seemingly an old thread, but I'll add my two cents.

I've been happy with this 2500 Sedona https://under-the-open-sky.com/best-baitcasting-reels/  $59.99, holds plenty of 6# and a decent drag. It's three years old and is still pretty smooth....I hose it off when I can remember to. Not sure what you'll be targeting there, but out here it's barred surf perch, corbina, yellow fin croaker, spot fin croaker to six pounds or so.
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Sorry for bumping....

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## crashdive123

Nothing wrong with bumping an old thread.  At my (and some others) age, it's like a new thread.

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## chiggersngrits

I remember I bought my first baitcaster at Walmart in the late 80s. Got it home, put line on it and tied on a half ounce casting plug. Went out in the parking lot, cast it, bird nest from hell. Back inside for 20 minutes to untangle. Repeat, repeat, repeat, man this sucks. I tried again off and on every once in awhile but it was just to frustrating. Then about 20 years ago I was fishing with this guy and he finally got me casting his setup. Now I can cast a eighth ounce spinner bait into a 15 mph headwind with no worries. Its like riding a bike, once you get it, you got it.
 I still prefer spinning gear because it is more versatile. For reels I like the Sedonas and other mid range Shimanos.
 Lately most my fishing has been done sitting in a chair on the river bank with a cane pole and whatever I can kick up for bait.




  edit: some facts in this post have been embellished because its about fishing.

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## Randy5Ambrose

> So i was looking online for a cheap baitcaster for my friends and team-mates on my bass team to use because they like to throw around my 200$+ Lew's, and Abu Garcia's. So i came acrossed the Shakespeare Alpha for 15$ on ebay new, and i know it won't be as great as my high-end reel's but is it even worth the 15$ just for a throw around, also it still has to work as a good reel not just a rag doll.hehee
> 
> Has anyone used or have a shakespeare Alpha low profile baitcaster? 
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Ethan


Here's some budget baitcaster combos. Take a look & find the best one for you!!

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## madmax

Despicable machines created by Satan to torture the souls of fishermen for "exaggerating" how big that fish was.

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## Rick

The perfect machine for creating unbreakable knots.

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## FrankHunting

Yes - I used Shakespeare a lot but the last decade or so I made the switch to Abu Garcia. I just feel that that they offer great quality with their low profile reels (Especially the max series like black, pro and silver max) and I my C3 round reel I have been using for almost two decades. I am not sure if you always need to latest model but you can always check out their official website.  Otherwise just check E-bay or Facebook for any secondhand models.

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