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Casting an Open Face Spinning Reel
The best way to hold a spinning reel for casting is to slide your rod hand around the reel seat, with two fingers in front of the stem and two fingers behind it. This gives you a good casting grip for the spinning reel and more importantly, leaves your forefinger free to trap the line as the casting swing is made.
A suitable amount of line is allowed to hang from the fishing rod tip (between 15 and 45 cm should do it). The first finger of the reel hand is extended down toward the spool to pick up the line ahead of the bail arm and the line is then pulled back up against the rod grip, where the finger traps it. The bail arm is opened with your other hand and the spinning reel is now ready for casting. It's important to get this sequence right. If you open the bail arm before you trap the line, line will spill from the spool and you'll get into a mess before even casting.
With the line trapped within the spinning reel and the bail open, swing the fishing rod back past your shoulder and then forward again in a swift, smooth arc. This forward casting stroke should start slow, accelerate, then finish by drifting forward so the rod points horizontally in front of you.
At the appropriate moment (while fishing rod is still moving forward) the finger holding the line is straightened, and the casting weight is thrown forward, towing the line behind it. When it comes to casting a spinning reel, you need to get this release timed just right as if you release the line too early in the swing, the bait will fly up into the air and land who knows where. If you release the spinning reel too late in the casting swing, you will know where the bait lands all right because chances are it will go into the ground or water by your feet.
A useful way to get the timing of this release right, is to swing the rod forward and as your casting arms begins to extend, point the line holding finger straight at your casting target. Most times, this will release the line at the correct moment and also direct the cast where it should go.
The technique works with short and light single-handed fishing rods, such as you might use for trout, bass, bream and so on, and with big, heavy, two-handed rods, suitable for beach or rock fishing. With the single-handed rod, your free hand and arm does not come into play very much, but when casting with a two-handed rod, your other hand is needed, to anchor the rod butt and provide a fulcrum for the cast. During the cast, this other hand holds the butt down and in front of your body to act as a pivot point, while the spinning reel hand swings and pushes the rod through the casting arc.
Article Source: Jon Anderson
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