Reel speed?

[Bigguyone]

What are your thoughts on using different speed reels versus using all of the exact same speed reel and just knowing how they feel and adjusting reeling speed?

Sometimes my 5 different gear ratios from 4.9 to 8.5 feels like way overthinking it....

[NRXfever]

I don't think about it after I purchase the setup .. I just use it for its intention

[gear junkie]

I buy them based on why I’m doing

if if using the rod to move the bait I’ll use a 7 or 8 but more 7’s

if I’m throwing and winding I’ll use a 6 speed

but don’t think about it much

[Fishysam]

Your definitely not overthinking it, it would be obnoxious to use a 8/9/10-1 year ratio on a deep crank setup and as stupid as a 5-1 on a frog rod. Jerkbait....... swimjig ... glidebait....

[RazorCat]

5.4:1 Winch for medium to deep cranks, 6.4:1 for shallow or small cranks and squarebills.
7.1:1 or 8.1:1 for pretty much everything else.

[johnnybass]

I just use 7 1 for everything. Don't deep crank though.

[Jsherm62]

I use 6.4:1 reels for all my moving baits and 8:1 reels for all my contact baits. I have a couple 7:1 reels for frogs, but I think that torque is not really a consideration anymore with advancements in technology. It used to be you couldn't turn a bass in heavy cover with a high speed reel due to lack of torque, but with bearing supported pinions and larger gear sets, this shouldn't be an issue.

More importantly it's about finding the Inches Per Turn (IPT) that you are comfortable with. My inches per turn that i am looking for are 25"-26" (6.4:1) and 32"-34" (8.5:1). You can get an older 5:1 reel that has the same IPT as a modern 6:1 reel because of spool size, line diameter, and a lot of other factors. Reel size, spool size, line capacity matter as much as the actual gear ratio.

Sorry, this was an in the weeds answer.