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[halcyonguitars]

You see a lot of them in use, but, what makes them attractive beside a baitcaster?

It seems to me, not having your knuckles bashed would be better, as if someone sat down and figured out how to use gears to improve their center pin and came up with a baitcaster as a result? Yet, people who can clearly afford to buy whatever they want still choose center pins, so clearly I am missing something, what is it?

Please advise...

[Rodney]

It makes you look cool even when you're not catching fish.

[halcyonguitars]

Ha ha!

That's definitely worth the 200$ right there...

[Knnn]

I to am interested in hearimg the pros and cons.

There are some previous post on this subject but can copy them on my cell.

[Knnn]

I to am interested in hearimg the pros and cons.

There are some previous post on this subject but cant copy them on my cell.

[Animal Chin]

You just gotta try it. Chances are if you like casting a fly rod, and landing a fish on the fly, you'll also like the centerpin.

For float fishing, it's what i consistently grab. I love my baitcasting rod and have a good reel on it (Luna 253?), and it's my priciest setup, but I always use my "entry level" pin. Even for barfishing I grab the pin rod, though the baitcaster makes more sense.

They're not really that pricey and if you can cast a baitcaster you'll have no problems with a pin using a 20g float/weight or larger (never tried anything smaller).

I don't catch that many fish, but when I do I want to enjoy every moment of the fight. That's how I view it.

It's like when you're fighting a fish on the fly and you feel more "in tune" with the fish and your surroundings..a pin is like that for gear fishing. I suppose you can set your drag really low and use your thumb on a baitcaster..that's probably a similiar feeling. Though, it's the way you hold the pin rod and the pin reel that I really like when fighting a fish. Something about the positioning. Some people might not really care about that though, so as it's been said before: personal taste. Functionally, not much difference between a pin and baitcaster IMO.

[dave c]

I personally started off with a baitcaster but quickly changed to a pin - now have 3 WTF!!! The attraction for me is that on a pin you never have to adjust the drag.  You are the drag!!! Knucklebusting rarely if ever happens. Birdsnests if they happen are much easier to sort out, and definitely the biggest difference for me is the simplicity and feeling that it is you against the fish, no gears to help you fight it, just your fingers to break the spool the correct amount to create drag.

[243Pete]

I still like using casting reels like my Shimano Calcutta D and TE, but they sit around 90% of the time now and my centerpins have basically taken over. 
knuckle busting doesn't really seem to be much of an issue anymore, takes a bit of time and understanding of how it happens. Once you kinda get a grasp behind how and why it becomes almost an non-issue.
Bird nests can happen especially if you aren't paying attention, but like anything it just takes practice.
I love the more one to one feeling of fighting the fish, I feel I can get more control over the fish cause you can adjust how much pressure you put on the fish. I haven't had to chase to many large fish down when using a centerpin but when I used a casting reel I was constantly doing to "Sorry! excuse me! Fish heading down river! sorry! ACK! *trip over rocks* differences in pressure can change a fishes course when in a river and that is where I found the centerpin to have a big advantage.
Drifting floats in different manners through a run from a slowed down presentation to just a total dead drift, but that can really be done with a casting rod and reel as easily too.
Centerpins aren't for everyone, some people love them and some dislike them. I say give it a try and you might enjoy it a lot or you might stick to casting reels for what ever reason.

[Fish Assassin]

It makes you look cool even when you're not catching fish.

A lot of truth to this statement.

[RalphH]

It's an older design that generally can't cast as far plus it takes longer to retrieve line. I often get a sore wrist using mine with all the winding needed to get 50+ feet of line in.

However they allow better control of the cast and the drift plus a more direct connection to the fish. Perfect for smaller streams or short accurate casts. They are simple and easy to look after. My Hardy Silex is 42 years old. I've never had to service a thing or replace a part. I clean it and lube it once or twice a year and that's all it needs.

[Noahs Arc]

Pro: when fighting a fish you're the drag. It's a better fight in my opinion because you are the drag.
Pro: nice natural drift in very slow water.

Con: 1:1 ratio so picking up line can take longer.
Con: tough casting in close quarters of in the bush (see Wallace cast)


You will not catch more fish.

[halcyonguitars]

Well, I think I'll stick with what I got for now. A&N has a 3pc rod with reel for two bills which was kind of tempting, but that'll pay for a lot of gas to the chedder...

[BNF861]

I like the simplicity of the reel itself and that the cast, drift, retrieve and drag is all done by hand and feel.

Truthfully, a level wind reel is a more efficient fishing tool but for drifting a float on a river I much more enjoy using a centerpin.

[Floater]

Ha ha!

That's definitely worth the 200$ right there...

200? maybe some kind of cheap reel.

[halcyonguitars]

I'm sure it is, however, I've found entry level stuff to be adequate for my needs...