# Baitcaster recommendation for light soft plastics



## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Looking for suggestions for an inshore outfit for fishing light soft plastics. I have some Daiwa Coastal TWS 200 reels and they are fantastic for the Spook Jrs, Mirrodine, etc, but I can’t get the distance out of the light baits with the bigger heavier spool. 
My go-to rods are 7’ to 7’-6”, medium power with a fast to extra fast action. I’m usually using spinning gear with the soft plastics because I need the long casts... However, I would like the increased accuracy I get with the baitcaster for around the mangroves, and less line arcing way out to be caught in the wind from a spinner makes it easier to deal with. My typical plastic weights with hook are 1/4 -3/8 oz.
I am often fishing in heavy winds so am considering the DC feature available on some of the Shimano reels, but I have never used one with the digital control...
Have been considering the Shimano Metanium DC. I see there are even some higher-end JDM options from Shimano. Lew’s Pro TI seems to get good comments but I’m not sure how it handles light baits. I’m just not sure what I need since most of my baitcasting experience is with heavier plugs or larger, heavier worms... Haven’t thought about a rod yet until I get a new reel on one of my existing ones to see how it feels. 
So what do you use that gets you long distance casts with 1/4-3/8oz soft plastics? Thanks


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## couillon (Feb 5, 2021)

Shimano has a few different models with the "mgl" distinction that are good for tossing lighter lures. I have the curado mgl 70 on a ML falcon coastal that I really like for trout. They also just released a curado mgl in a 150 size that I plan on picking up soon.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

I have a Metanium and a ProTi. The ProTi is my go to conventional reel for sight fishing with soft plastics. I like 1/32-1/16oz short shank jigheads with 2 1/2-3” plastics for redfish and it casts them further than I need it to. DC reels are the training wheels of baitcasters...not for me. Use 20# braid so it does not dig into the spool and you’ll be able to dial it in and cast 60-70 feet on 3-4 on the magnetic setting. I caught my PB speckled trout on the Metanium and retired it. Magnesium reels suck for saltwater use. I love my Core Mg7 as well but only use it for freshwater. All my other Japanese Shimanos are lubed and bagged up for my son to inherit. I have about 6-7 other Lew’s and the second and third favorites are the Custom Inshore and LFS Lite. The BB1 is a great reel but a bit heavy.


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## MariettaMike (Jun 14, 2012)

I agree with Smack ^^^^^ on his Lew’s Pro-Ti and Shimano Metanium reel comments, and would add that the lower priced Lew’s Tournament reels are also very good.

shorter pistol grip rods are the most accurate, easier to cast, and less likely to cause a backlash in my experience. Also get a left-hand crank if you cast right handed


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

It’s stained and murky water around me so unfortunately no sight fishing. My casts are all blind so am looking for as much distance as I can get fo that extra chance before floating right in to one... 
wasn’t aware of the MGL designation for light weight. I’ll check into that further.
Didn’t know the magnesium was a bad idea for salt water. Currently have 20lb braid on my Coastals. 
Many of my old bass rods are the 5‘-6” with pistol grips... can’t remember when I last saw one in a tackle shop.
Thanks much for the comments so far.


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## Michael T (May 18, 2020)

I use my Coastal TWS to throw 1/16 headlocks on jerk shads all the time and get good distance with 20lb power pro. I just lighten up the spool tension and increase the brake a bit to help avoid backlashes.


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## GaterB (Nov 10, 2021)

MAK said:


> Looking for suggestions for an inshore outfit for fishing light soft plastics. I have some Daiwa Coastal TWS 200 reels and they are fantastic for the Spook Jrs, Mirrodine, etc, but I can’t get the distance out of the light baits with the bigger heavier spool.
> My go-to rods are 7’ to 7’-6”, medium power with a fast to extra fast action. I’m usually using spinning gear with the soft plastics because I need the long casts... However, I would like the increased accuracy I get with the baitcaster for around the mangroves, and less line arcing way out to be caught in the wind from a spinner makes it easier to deal with. My typical plastic weights with hook are 1/4 -3/8 oz.
> I am often fishing in heavy winds so am considering the DC feature available on some of the Shimano reels, but I have never used one with the digital control...
> Have been considering the Shimano Metanium DC. I see there are even some higher-end JDM options from Shimano. Lew’s Pro TI seems to get good comments but I’m not sure how it handles light baits. I’m just not sure what I need since most of my baitcasting experience is with heavier plugs or larger, heavier worms... Haven’t thought about a rod yet until I get a new reel on one of my existing ones to see how it feels.
> So what do you use that gets you long distance casts with 1/4-3/8oz soft plastics? Thanks


Cant beat a Curado 70. I have had two of them in my rotation for 3 years now and they are awesome little reels


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Michael T said:


> I use my Coastal TWS to throw 1/16 headlocks on jerk shads all the time and get good distance with 20lb power pro. I just lighten up the spool tension and increase the brake a bit to help avoid backlashes.


Wow. You‘re a better man than me. I tried but just can’t get them dialed in for the light stuff. I can do ok with a zoom super fluke but those seem to be denser and heavier than the Zman paddletails I use most often.


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## Finn Maccumhail (Apr 9, 2010)

Are you set on a baitcaster? Seems to me the solution for really light lures is to go with a spinning rig.


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## Michael T (May 18, 2020)

MAK said:


> Wow. You‘re a better man than me. I tried but just can’t get them dialed in for the light stuff. I can do ok with a zoom super fluke but those seem to be denser and heavier than the Zman paddletails I use most often.


I mean its good for a baitcaster throwing light stuff but it's definitely not as long of a throw as with a spinning rod.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

Finn Maccumhail said:


> Are you set on a baitcaster? Seems to me the solution for really light lures is to go with a spinning rig.


Blasphemy!!! 🤣


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## NealXB2003 (Jun 8, 2020)

Another vote for curados.


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## AGG (Jul 2, 2020)

Shimano SLX is a nice reel at a good price point.


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## Finn Maccumhail (Apr 9, 2010)

Smackdaddy53 said:


> Blasphemy!!! 🤣


Y'all are all a bunch of unenlightened heathens in my book anyway. Step into the light of fly fishing and enjoy the state of grace which comes with it.


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Finn Maccumhail said:


> Are you set on a baitcaster? Seems to me the solution for really light lures is to go with a spinning rig.


I’ve been using spinning and have several high-end spinning reels but it’s just not the great feel I get with a baitcaster. Plus my accuracy is slightly better with a baitcaster and it’s easier to keep the line from being caught by the wind and pulled over into the mangroves, etc. 
I may end up sticking with spinning if I try some new baitcasters and have to give up much in distance...


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Finn Maccumhail said:


> Y'all are all a bunch of unenlightened heathens in my book anyway. Step into the light of fly fishing and enjoy the state of grace which comes with it.


Fishing is tough enough around me... I would never catch anything 😂


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## Finn Maccumhail (Apr 9, 2010)

MAK said:


> Fishing is tough enough around me... I would never catch anything 😂


Fished with a guide in the Everglades years ago and it was tough conditions. It was February and a crazy cold front had highs in the 50's or so. Anyway, he was recounting a story from another guide who said, "I need to guide more fly fishermen. Those guys expect to NOT catch anything."


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Finn Maccumhail said:


> Fished with a guide in the Everglades years ago and it was tough conditions. It was February and a crazy cold front had highs in the 50's or so. Anyway, he was recounting a story from another guide who said, "I need to guide more fly fishermen. Those guys expect to NOT catch anything."


I could excel at not catching anything! Maybe it is for me 😂


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## GaterB (Nov 10, 2021)

MAK said:


> I’ve been using spinning and have several high-end spinning reels but it’s just not the great feel I get with a baitcaster. Plus my accuracy is slightly better with a baitcaster and it’s easier to keep the line from being caught by the wind and pulled over into the mangroves, etc.
> I may end up sticking with spinning if I try some new baitcasters and have to give up much in distance...


I couldn't agree more on the accuracy point. I've always found it easier to be accurate with a baitcaster and keep the bait out of the wind. A low roll cast using mostly wrist will tuck even light baits into small landing areas even in a stiff breeze.


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## Wolfmansbrother (Mar 4, 2021)

The Abu Revo Inshore has been pretty good to me thus far. Its a pretty small reel but it's definitely smooth


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## Featherbrain (Nov 5, 2021)

Shimano Calcutta 50 or even the 100 works well for me.


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## WC53 (Dec 2, 2015)

Diawa alphas, lews or Curado will all throw light. Or go curado bfs if you don’t need capacity. I use Berley pro spec 20lb on my SLX and power pro V2 8lb on a curado bfs. Finding rods to throw light with backbone is the bigger problem. Don’t overfill the line or overlube the bearings, inertia and friction are apparently real things


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

WC53 said:


> Diawa alphas, lews or Curado will all throw light. Or go curado bfs if you don’t need capacity. I use Berley pro spec 20lb on my SLX and power pro V2 8lb on a curado bfs. Finding rods to throw light with backbone is the bigger problem. Don’t overfill the line or overlube the bearings, inertia and friction are apparently real things


I can build you a rod that fits the bill on a USA made blank.


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## KurtActual (Sep 25, 2017)

Smackdaddy53 said:


> I can build you a rod that fits the bill on a USA made blank.


Pair a US Made Smack rod with a Shimano SLX DC and you'd be set.


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## spc7669 (Apr 15, 2015)

I’m surprised at the Lee’s fans on here. I’ve had two of their freshwater reels and they were junk. Maybe they improved since I had mine.


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## spc7669 (Apr 15, 2015)

Lew’s*. Autocorrect is an idiot.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

spc7669 said:


> I’m surprised at the Lee’s fans on here. I’ve had two of their freshwater reels and they were junk. Maybe they improved since I had mine.


Of they were junk I would not own them.


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## spc7669 (Apr 15, 2015)

Smackdaddy53 said:


> Of they were junk I would not own them.


I was gifted two about 10 years ago. No clue about the model. Locked up after about a year of freshwater use. I haven’t considered the brand since. Not trying to throw shade, just my experience.


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## KurtActual (Sep 25, 2017)

spc7669 said:


> I was gifted two about 10 years ago. No clue about the model. Locked up after about a year of freshwater use. I haven’t considered the brand since. Not trying to throw shade, just my experience.


In my LEWS experience, if the frame is graphite, its not worth owning. The aluminum and carbon framed LEWS are nice.


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

Thanks for all the suggestions and info. I decided to go ahead and get a few for comparison since regardless of what I purchased I would always be wondering if x, y or z would have been better...
I got a Lew’s Pro TI, a Shimano Metanium, and a Daiwa Tatula SV. I’m still playing/practicing with them and working at getting them dialed-in, but all after some initial tweaking will get a 3-4” paddletail w/ 1/16-1/8oz weighted hook out where I need them. Fished with them yesterday. No in-depth testing and measuring distances yet but definitely within a few feet of my spinning gear, somewhat of a surprise. Take my comments with a grain of salt. It’s all subjective anyway based on casting style, skill, familiarity, etc. 
I know magnesium and salt aren’t a good mix, but water here is brackish and I heard enough from people using them in salt to decide to give the Metanium a try. Wasn’t happy with the Metanium until I switched off two of the centrifugal brakes. I can throw the plastics the furthest with it but only by several feet. However, I have to try harder to achieve that extra distance. Throwing into a 12mph wind was easily compensated for by dialing the adjustment from 3 to 4.
The Tatula was initially the easiest for me to throw and requires the least effort. Trying harder to gain some distance doesn’t seem to get me ahead with this one. Doesn’t feel quite as smooth or refined as the other two but that should be expected at half the price. Feels smoother than my Daiwa Coastal reels and is a night and day difference with ability for throwing light stuff. The dual centrifugal/magnetic function of the brakes seems to work well. Found myself having to twiddle with the magnetic adjustment more when throwing into the wind. As good as this one is it really makes me curious how much better the jump up to the Zillion or Steez could be. This could get expensive if I keep wondering... only reason I didn’t go that route was I got a great deal on the Tatula.
The Lew’s doesn’t seem to handle the lightest stuff as well, but I am still working at getting them dialed-in to see what settings work best. If I get up to 5/16+ ounces then I can get around the same distance as the others. Below that and my distance suffers a good bit. My biggest gripe with it is that the handle knobs have slop that bugs me. Makes the reel not feel as crazy smooth as it really is. I didn’t fish with it much yesterday so can’t start picking favorites yet. 
All feel equally good in my palm but didn’t catch anything big enough yet to give the drags a workout.


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## KurtActual (Sep 25, 2017)

@MAK are these 3 reels on identical rods with identical baits/line/leader/etc?


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

KurtActual said:


> @MAK are these 3 reels on identical rods with identical baits/line/leader/etc?


Yes, Same 20lb J-braid and two on the same Falcon Coastal Clearwater rods. I‘ve switched around rods to see if it made a notable difference with the exact same lures.


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## WC53 (Dec 2, 2015)

KurtActual said:


> Pair a US Made Smack rod with a Shimano SLX DC and you'd be set.


It’s possible  I read the NFC catalog for bedtime stories (looking a a light tip rod with baby got back) I have a JDM rod on the way so that should hold me,

for a week


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## coloradowalt (Oct 26, 2012)

Only one day using it but I think I like it a lot... Shimano Curado 200 paired with Falcon Coastal SC-67MLS "The Grinder".


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

coloradowalt said:


> Only one day using it but I think I like it a lot... Shimano Curado 200 paired with Falcon Coastal SC-67MLS "The Grinder".


My 7’ Coastal Clearwater “salt cranker” rods feel the best so far of the various rods i‘ve been swapping around on. I’ve got a couple of the 7’-6” Coastal that would be my favorite spinning rods if they had Faster action. Just a little too soft to work well with Texas rigged baits.


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## KurtActual (Sep 25, 2017)

coloradowalt said:


> Only one day using it but I think I like it a lot... Shimano Curado 200 paired with Falcon Coastal SC-67MLS "The Grinder".


Thats a big ass reel for "light soft plastics"


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## coloradowalt (Oct 26, 2012)

KurtActual said:


> Thats a big ass reel for "light soft plastics"


Really? It's much smaller than my Calcuttas. I think you have it confused with another reel.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

coloradowalt said:


> Really? It's much smaller than my Calcuttas. I think you have it confused with another reel.


Yes, there are much better reels for the light plastics. A Curado 200 has a wide spool that takes much more force to get inertia going with a tiny plastic on a 1/16oz jighead. If you are sight fishing why do you really need 200 yards of braid except for those few rare encounters with crevalle. I also do not like rods over 6’6” for baitcasting rigs. The two rods I use 99% of the time are 6’2” and 6’4”. With the reel my rigs weigh 7-8oz each. Wadefishing all day and tossing lures is taxing with those long ass rods.


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

KurtActual said:


> Thats a big ass reel for "light soft plastics"


Yeah, my Daiwa Coastals are the 200 size and what prompted this post and me looking for something smaller for the light stuff. The Coastal 200s work great for the bigger plugs like Spooks but I struggled to whip a 1/16oz weighted hook and 3” soft plastic.


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## WC53 (Dec 2, 2015)

MAK said:


> My 7’ Coastal Clearwater “salt cranker” rods feel the best so far of the various rods i‘ve been swapping around on. I’ve got a couple of the 7’-6” Coastal that would be my favorite spinning rods if they had Faster action. Just a little too soft to work well with Texas rigged baits.


I have their 6-6 ultimate trout which works fairly well with the lighter stuff. It is soft too, in a good way to me. It says down to 1/16, but 3/16 is a sweet spot.

Try a curado BFS reel, the spool starts up sooo much easier than the larger ones. I tried a Diawa X 642LB today. It will throw 1/16 if you pay attention, but goodness it is fast. No decent fish to test it. I was tossing fiddlers on 1/16-1/20 jighead to see what it would do.


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## KurtActual (Sep 25, 2017)

coloradowalt said:


> Really? It's much smaller than my Calcuttas. I think you have it confused with another reel.


Smaller than a Calcutta applies to 99.9% of all modern baitcasters.



MAK said:


> Yeah, my Daiwa Coastals are the 200 size and what prompted this post and me looking for something smaller for the light stuff. The Coastal 200s work great for the bigger plugs like Spooks but I struggled to whip a 1/16oz weighted hook and 3” soft plastic.


I wanted to try a Daiwa Coastal, but am not a fan of the larger reel. My SLX DC is a 150, and is only in service because I can cast as light a lure as I like and not worry about birdsnests.
I feel like the rod has more impact on your ability to throw small plastics on a 1/16th oz jig head. My cheapo Waterloo Phantom struggles with a top water or Corky, but can zing Ned rigs on tiny jigs all day.


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## MAK (Dec 15, 2017)

KurtActual said:


> Smaller than a Calcutta applies to 99.9% of all modern baitcasters.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I would like to add a couple more rods to the collection to try and compare for the lighter stuff but have been having a hard time finding anything in stock anywhere. Ordering rods online is more hit and miss than getting reels online.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

MAK said:


> I would like to add a couple more rods to the collection to try and compare for the lighter stuff but have been having a hard time finding anything in stock anywhere. Ordering rods online is more hit and miss than getting reels online.


Support custom rod builders


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## KurtActual (Sep 25, 2017)

MAK said:


> I would like to add a couple more rods to the collection to try and compare for the lighter stuff but have been having a hard time finding anything in stock anywhere. Ordering rods online is more hit and miss than getting reels online.


I completely agree. I'm REALLY fortunate to have a badass tackle shop ~30min away that carries a wide variety of rods. Most of them are aimed at the wade fisherman.


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## couillon (Feb 5, 2021)

coloradowalt said:


> Only one day using it but I think I like it a lot... Shimano Curado 200 paired with Falcon Coastal SC-67MLS "The Grinder".


That's the rod I have my curado 70 mgl on, it's my favorite trout rod. I also have it in a spinning rod paired with a bg 2500, but don't see it listed on falcon's website anymore.


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