Center Pin magic ..or is it ?

[theartist]

Sounds logical to borrow one for a trial

Or maybe there could be a pin amnesty like they have with knives down the police station. Failed wannabe centrepin anglers could be rid of their impulse buys and centrepin lovers could get rid of their embarrasing starter pins.

It would get them off the streets and make the world a safer place

 

[greenie62]

.... Failed wannabe centrepin anglers could be rid of their impulse buys and centrepin lovers could get rid of their embarrasing starter pins.

It would get them off the streets and make the world a safer place

That's what E-Bay is for - innit?

 

[no-one in particular]

I like the direct feel you get when playing a fish from a center pin, I can get than from any cheap pin. I don't have any trouble trotting with a fixed spool, just pay out line as and when. I would like to try out a £200-£500 reel but not sure I want to spend that money just to save my arm a bit of bother which actually does not bother me.

 

[Peter Jacobs]

Crow, if you are anywhere in my vicinity I can loan you a decent example for you to "test drive"

 

[S-Kippy]

Be a cold day in the hot place before I paid £200 for a reel of any sort !

The most I've ever paid is that which Mrs S shelled out for my Youngs Purist...which was about £160 I think. I don't think any of the others cost me more than about £90 second hand. I had to get Garry Mills to service one but even after I'd paid Garry the reel stood me in at about half what the cheapest new one would have cost.

Its like cars. They'll all get you from A-B.

 

[Peter Jacobs]

Be a cold day in the hot place before I paid £200 for a reel of any sort !

In Nord Trondelag, in Central Norway there is a town actually called . . . Hell ., where they regularly see temperatures well below freezing point.

Somewhere I have a photo of me standing by a station door that has the sign that reads: HELL GODS EXHIBITION - roughly translated meaning Goods Inwards.

The word 'Hell' stems from the gamle norske "hellir" which means overhang or cliff cave . . . . .



So, S-Kippy, the next time you need that excuse of, 'a cold day in hell', well, a flight to Trondheim and then a lovely train ride will get you there . . . . and you can take that from someone who has been 'to hell and back' a good few times . . . .

 

[thecrow]

Got anyone that could lend you a pin for a few sessions?

I have a friend that owns some but it would be like asking him for one of his children to go up my chimney (if we had one )

---------- Post added at 10:36 ---------- Previous post was at 10:34 ----------

Crow, if you are anywhere in my vicinity I can loan you a decent example for you to "test drive"

That's a great offer Peter thank you but we are a long way apart so I think I am going to go with the one off Amazon and see how I get on with it.

 

[S-Kippy]

That's a great offer Peter thank you but we are a long way apart so I think I am going to go with the one off Amazon and see how I get on with it.

That looks a whole lot like the Marco Cortesi [ who he ?] badged with a different name. For that money its a no-brainer as a starter pin but the build quality on the MC reels is best described as "variable". On mine I was fiddling about trying to get it to run a little sweeter and the bearing just fell out !

 

[Jim Crosskey 2]

Crow, the first one I had was the Cortesi - pretty much the same as the Ikon.

The first couple of trips I was a little bit shaky, but to be honest it all fell in to place pretty quickly. So much so that after I'd gained a bit more confidence I decided to introduce a mate to the wonder of trotting a float on running water, whereupon he half-inched the reel off me with the explanation that with my tackle tart tendencies, I'd be buying another more expensive one!

The worst part of that was that he was absolutely right! But he's still using that Cortesi quite happily some years on, and he's still delighted with it.

 

[Keith M]

I don't have any trouble trotting with a fixed spool, just pay out line as and when.

If I am fishing up off the bottom then I would agree Mark but its when; to get a bite; I need to gently hold back so that my bait is moving along at the same or similar speed as the water down on the bed of a stream (where the flow is slightly less); that's when a pin can be a little more effective than a fixed spool reel. If you need to hold back a little it can be a lot simpler and smoother to do with a pin.

I would like to try out a £200-£500 reel but not sure I want to spend that

You don't need to spend that much at all Mark; two of the best trotting pins out there are the Okuma Sheffield and the Aventa Pro; these pins are used by some of the best pin users out there and can be bought from around £75 up to around £120.
Yes it's nice to have a few classic centerpins but you definately don't need to spend a fortune to get a really good trotting pin.

The late centrepin wizard Keith Spears taught me that, and his favourite workhorse pin was a Sheffield.

Keith

 

[Neil Maidment]

I have a smaller number of pins than I used to! But they all get an airing at one time or another. I really can't be having with the idea of keeping them pristine. They were designed and built to be used so I use them.

I was brought up as a kid using pins and now use them in preference to any other reel just for the pleasure it gives me. Sometimes they are not the most efficient "tool" for the job in hand or prevailing conditions but I've never let that bother me in the least.

The biggest plus for me is the control I can exert on decent sized fish just with my thumb. For me that far exceeds anything I can achieve with any FS real using the clutch or backwind. But I have been using them for 50 years+

 

[mikench]

I cannot quite grasp how you can control , say a double figure carp, on a pin with just your thumb! What happens when it takes line at a rate of knots? Do you not suffer from friction burn?

I have never seen a pin in the flesh let alone used one!

 

[Neil Maidment]

No, it's a question of pressure. If that pressure needs to be increased to stop a fish then the palm of the other hand comes into play. Obviously the whole set up of balancing rod to line to terminal tackle to what you're facing is paramount. Also after 50+ years I've got to a reasonably proficient and confident state with centrepins.

Had plenty of big double figure barbel and very big chub from pacey rivers as well as carp to mid 20's and I know I have far more control over them than I would with a FS reel.

 

[mikench]

I assume that the palm is applied to the entire side of the pin to stop it rotating with the thumb preventing line being taken off!

I am going to have to get one if only to say "i tried a pin and lost" . It is on Santa's list!

 

[Neil Maidment]

In my case the thumb provides the on/off control to the rim and, more importantly, the fine tuning of everything else in between. My left hand usually only comes into play when I need to retrieve any line previously given and generally when playing the fish.

If my thumb can't cope with the need to stop a fish then my left hand comes into play by cupping the lower half of the rim in the palm and applying the necessary pressure. If that fails then I'm in trouble and probably attached to something a bit different. Currently that seems to be double figure seatrout &/or salmon that are in my local rivers in abundance at the moment mg:

 

[mikench]

Thank you Neil for the explanations. I can see that the only way to appreciate a pin is to try one!

 

[Bob Hornegold]

Every time we have a discussion about Centrepins, the same old arguments raise their poorly argued heads.

If you want a centrepin, go and get a decent second hand pin, they are still available on auction sites for around £50.00, if you like it upgrade and sell the s/h pin ?

I would recommend one with a line guard, if you don't like the guard, take it off, an example would be, the original Trudex?

Line coming off the top or the bottom of the reel, what ever you feel comfortable with when using it.

Wallis casting or loops from the rod rings, again what ever you feel comfortable using, it's nice to Wallis cast, but it certainly puts off many new to centrepins for life.

Bearing or Real Pin, I have both, I fish with both and to be honest I could not tell the difference.

And the money thing, buy what you can afford or feel relaxed about spending, you can't take it with you !!

Lastly and the reason I have use pins all my life, winding in a hooked fish with a pin is a slow job, no way can you rush it, which mean you learn to play fish more slowly, not through a gearbox as with a fixed spool.

Thus you don't loose many fish with a centrepin, something I think is often overlooked by many centrepin users.

Bob

 

[mikench]

I assume you must decide whether the line is to come off the top or the bottom BEFORE you spool the pin with line!

Using a pin must be on one's bucket list perhaps! At the mo it is just on Santa's!

I think i will buy new (Santa) because that is the way i am if I have to buy unseen and want to avoid buying a pup!

Thank you for your helpful summation Bob!

 

[Peter Jacobs]

I assume you must decide whether the line is to come off the top or the bottom BEFORE you spool the pin with lin

As a general rule of thumb the windier the day then the more it necessitates the line coming off of the top of the spool, as it produces a lt less tangles that way.

I sometimes even tape another ring to my rod half way between the reel and the first proper rod ring which also helps on the worst windy days.

Remember that you rarely have more than 50m or 60m of line on a centrepin reel so it is relatively easy to swap it around on a given day.

 

[S-Kippy]

Remember that you rarely have more than 50m or 60m of line on a centrepin reel so it is relatively easy to swap it around on a given day.

I cannot be doing with that ! With the greatest respect PJ I'd rather have the odd tangle than fanny about switching the line round & winding backwards.

Last year on the LIF it blew a howling hooligan but I still fished with the line coming off the bottom and no line guard. Yes I got the odd tangle but that can happen on the calmest of days...especially to me.