Any downside to installing t-bar type knobs?

[japeto]

Hello all,

I've installed t-handle type knobs on my Avet LX6/3 and Fin-Nor Lethal LTL20II & LTL30II.  Love the ergonomics but I've only handled them in the garage.  I haven't fished either reel yet with the new knob and was wondering what to expect.  Will it "feel" like I have more leverage since the knob is bigger or will the knobs induce wobble when reeling fast? Or both?

[SoCalAngler]

Looks good. I have only installed one on my mod'ed SL20SH and like a lot over the stock handle. I have not caught any real sea monsters with the reel just some school sized BFT up to 30 lbs. The handle worked great for me.

[handi2]

Those type rubber T bars I don't like to sell for heavy offshore fishing. I stick to the aluminum ones. The ones shown don't have much offset at all. They feel good and fit the hand great but the center shaft doesn't seem to be very strong. Referring to the ones in the top picture.

The second reel pictured has a great Tiburon T Bar light on it. 

They do work well on the TLD reels used for trolling.

This is just an opinion so don't hate me..!!

[sundaytrucka]

I am slowly converting all my reel handles to T-bar style...

First, there will be a little bit of wobble on a fast retrieve, but that is no reason, in my opinion, to say a dinky little ball handle is better, as most people say is better and more comfortable when jigging. I fished my Newell 338, small handle and small arm, but as soon as I hooked into a 25# YT I wished I had a bigger handle. No leverage and a nice blister on my finger.

You can jig and turn a handle just fine with a T-bar...

The leverage will be clearly noticeable, in your favor, with a larger T-bar style handle. On Alan's five day I used my Seeker 670 and TLD star drag setup the most, not because it was the best setup combo I had, but it was really nice to fish because it had the largest handle of all my setups; the rest were stock knobs.

Those Fin-Nors look nice!

[Alto Mare]

Not all ball handles are small and dinky. I use both, but I happen to like the ball knob a little more, but I've only been fishing for 40+ years.
I guess it's up to the individual.

A "T" knob will create lots of stress on the arm, it acts as a pry bar, especially at high drag settings.
The ball knob is more forgiving.
I have bent some handle arms using the "T" knob in the past .
You could do a little test on your own, apply some pressure on the "T" knob while holding the reel in your hand, don't over do it or you will bend your handle arm at the tip.
The "T" knob is nice, but personally, I would never install one, unless I'm using one of our SS arm from our house here.
...just my opinion.

Sal

[gstours]

Cause you asked!   My experience tells me if your going to be in a battle with something and cranking is from medium to slow the larger offset grip is the ticket.   And if reeling kinda to very fast the round or football shape is better.  
 What should really be the easy way to answer the question is,,,,,,,, if you complain slightly or more about the small whatever knob you have.  Try the larger offset t-bar type........
  Finding an arm and knob to fit your reel is getting easier every year.......try something else if your not happy!  Your not married to it!

[Three se7ens]

For smaller reels I prefer ball handles.  Only my heavy offshore stuff gets t handles.  The t handle works well at high drag, and is very comfortable at that, but I think its a bit akward for light, fast reeling. 

[Dominick]

For smaller reels I prefer ball handles.  Only my heavy offshore stuff gets t handles.  The t handle works well at high drag, and is very comfortable at that, but I think its a bit akward for light, fast reeling. 

I agree with the T-handles for heavy offshore.  I have never used ball handles so I cannot comment on them.  Dominick

[jurelometer]

Cause you asked!   My experience tells me if your going to be in a battle with something and cranking is from medium to slow the larger offset grip is the ticket.   And if reeling kinda to very fast the round or football shape is better.  
 What should really be the easy way to answer the question is,,,,,,,, if you complain slightly or more about the small whatever knob you have.  Try the larger offset t-bar type........
  Finding an arm and knob to fit your reel is getting easier every year.......try something else if your not happy!  Your not married to it!

Exactly!!

To expand on Gary and and Adam's posts:

With t-bar designs you tend to have more leverage plus a greater grip area.    This grip design works best when you are using your arm and shoulders to turn the crank.   Better for applying more force,  but not possible to wind as fast as a  small knob or ball that allows for positioning the hand perpendicular to the crank, and using a tight circular motion with just the wrist to spin the knob. 

As Sal mentioned,  a ball style knob, especially a larger one is a nice compromise that works pretty well in both situations. You don't get the long grip area, but you do get both hand positions that allow shoulder/arm  or wrist cranking.

Also crank arm length comes into play- longer gives more leverage, and shorter allows faster cranking. 

For very light tackle, a small paddle or knob on a short crank is probably best, for large trolling reels a t-bar and longer crank is more typical.   Once you get above about 7-8 lbs of drag, it depends on how much you value cranking power vs speed for the type of fishing you are doing.

I made a prototype that was a  hybrid between a t-handle and  a ball knob.  It also sort of split the difference in performance.  Didn't fish it enough to decide if I liked it better than a ball knob, but I did learn that lighter/shorter t-knobs are easier to wind fast than heavier/longer ones.

-J

[SoCalAngler]

Oh yeah I almost forgot I replaced a stock handle on a TLD 30II that I had replaced the frame and did other upgrades to. This handle I installed about 4 years ago and the frame, drag plate and other things I did about 10-12 years ago. This handle upgreade offered much more power, mostly due to the longer arm and some added by the offest of the handle.


On the SL20SH I mainly fish live bait but I have caught several tuna jigging with it using Luna Jigs, the 4.5 oz size. Is it the best for jigging? No, there is a bit of wobble during a fast retrieve and for fishing the yoyo iron and other jigs that I need to crank fast I have other reels for that, ones that don't use the T-bar type handles.