Conventional v/s Levelwind

[trollboy8]

I am definitly a novice in saltwater fishing, but am looking into getting some gear for my annual/semi-annual trips to Mexico and the East coast. This might sound really stupid, but is there a "method" to reeling a conventional, non-level wind reel? Something like a Penn Senator 113 or 114? Why aren't all reels levelwind? Obviously there is a reason, I just want to know what that reason is? Thoughts anyone?
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[tubeN2]

Hey Trollboy8. Thanks for the question. I don't have the only answer to this question but I do have one of them to share with you.

The conventional reel was designed for higher torque applications as compared to the spinning reel. There are gears in it to make it easier to reel in a bigger fish.

Once you add the level wind, you are now transferring some of the power into another mechanism that is not going directly towards your gain on the fish.

The level wind was designed to help the biginner to get a hand on how the line should be reeled back onto the spool. It is a usefull tool at times but can be a hinderance at other times.

It gives you one more lubrication point to be concerned with and one more piece that can break, therefore causing you to loose a big fish.

I'm sure others will chime in as well to give you one of the other correct answer or even concur with the advice that I have just shared with you.

I have a few level winds too. I use them specifically when I am not concerned with hand winding the line back onto the spool. The level wind is particularly useful for smaller game fish.

Feel free to ask any questions you have here. That is how we all learn.[cool]
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[Tarpon4me]

Great question trollboy. Like Tubn2 was saying, the level wind is more of a convienience thing than anything else.

There is a big reason that all reels don't have a levelwind. Certain fish, like a Wahoo for instance, have the capability of huge bursts of speed. Though the gearing in a reel itself is pretty much infoulable, if the right fish jumps on the line, the level wind can actually get "out run." In other words, it is possible for a fish to strip line off a reel faster than the gearing on the level wind can keep up. Usually the paw goes first, but sometimes the small gear on the inside of the face plate croaks. This is a big reason you'll never see an experianced angler chunking a hook to a speedy fish with a levelwind reel. Think its a bunch of crap? Think again. I've had atleast a half dozen levelwinds fall apart on me before I decided to go to non-levelwind reels for larger, faster, game fish.

As far as a technique for cranking in a fish on a reel with no level wind, there isn't one. I've seen people, and did in the past, try to "guide" the line back on the reel with thier finder as they cranked. BAD IDEA For one thing, it takes away from your grip on the rod, and two, it's not neccesary. A Penn 114HLW, which I own a couple of, has plenty of "air space" from the cross brace to the top of a filled spool. I never guide the line back on unless a fish has pretty much stripped the line down to the spool. And if that's the case, then you've waited way too long to chase down the fish. LOL Alot of times, the line will fall into place on it's own, so I would say just moniter it as you crank on it. It the line bulks up in the center, no biggie. If it's not rubbing on the cross brace, it's not hurting a thing.

However, for most applications, a level wind reel is just fine.
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[trollboy8]

Thanks to both of you. This is exactly the kind of information I was looking for and also answeres another question about why they don't sell many high capacity reels that even have a levelwind. Penn, for example, the biggest levelwind they sell is a 30 lb. class reel (I think).

This all kind of came up while I was in Mexico last month and had my dad's pfleuger Contender (a 30lb class level wind). Basically he told me "that's a good reel for kids, and beginners." Obviously, any red-blooded man will take that as an emasculating comment, so I immediately started looking for non-levelwinds to get back my manhood.

I was just wondering if you should at least try to "thumb" the line onto the reel like it was your own little "level" wind. The info you have given me pretty well addresses that and it soundls like getting the line on level is not really all that important. I suppose I can see where it might be more important to lay level on the spool when dealing with thinner diameter lines so they would be less likely to bite into the spool, maybe? Anyway, thanks for the advice.
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[tubeN2]

I have some of the bigger level winds myself. I have a Penn 320 GTI and and the 330 GTI. I use those to fight the big flat fish that require a strong grip on the rod.

I would not recommend them for fish over 200lbs though. They would ultimately break under the stress.

We are glad however that you are able to benefit from the knowledge that we share with you. We all feel better when someone else can benefit from others experience.[cool]
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