Delaware Valley Tackle

The foot on the big guides is plenty long for a secure wrap. Make if you use a locking wrap on teh runners that the guide is straight before locking it down....don't ask

Brady, I don't have a lot of hands on with the Hydra product but St Croix does sell blanks and Rainshadow and MHX are two other good lines that have competitive offerings. What leads to looking at a custom and Hydra specifically?

It sounds like maybe the heel of your hand is pressing on the thumb bar just enough to disengage the pinion from the spool and then the handle turns easy until it seats itself again. There is nothing about the method you're using to unsnag yourself that would cause the problem.

There's no need to grease a carbon drag on a bass reel at all, but if you choose to be sure to use a drag specific grease. Second, max drag pressure is over rated. 7# is all you actually need. Locking them down puts undue stress on the whole setup.

Before you get ahead of yourself, wait till the reel comes and go through it or have it gone through. This applies to any second hand reel but "only used twice" doesn't mean much if those two uses were in the salt and not rinsed etc.

Eddie nails it with this. Couldn't have said it better myself: http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/rod-actions-power.html

MH / Hvy etc mean different things to different manufacturers. Sounds like the 73 *** would work but I'm not familiar enough to know if the 1oz rating is accurate. The flipping stick probably doesn't have the tip I'd want for C-rigs but if the *** feels over loaded switch it up. A C-rig can save the day from thw back of the boat but some find it a painful way to fish. If you throwit long enough you will get bit. I like a floating lizard as the bait lots of times.

Dogwood, filimenteous algae and icing would be the main conditions to use larger guides. "Micro" covers a range of guide sizes so you have to check yours but a size 4 guide (roughly 2.5mm opening) will pass 50# braid and 15# leader using a well tied and trimmed Albright. Try the FG knot too. Not open a can of worms, but in my experience you can get away with straight braid more often than not. The advantage to micros is reducing weight in the tip section which maximizes the blank's responsiveness and balance & ultimately sensitivity which is most evident fishing jigs, plastics etc. The claims of improved accuracy and casting distance are ancillary and often over blown in marketing.

All else being equal spinning gear casts further as there is no mechanical drag. 99% of the time accuracy is what will get you bites. Some guys use casting tackle as a winch to land fish but I don't recommend that from a reel longevity, effectiveness or sporting perspective, but it is an option. Stick with it and eventually everything will just start to click.

Does he sit in the chair next to you at restaurants and order off the menu?

Pick a ML or M/F that covers the lure weight range you'll use. Mount the reel and see how it feels.

Reels don't "Get it out there", rods do. These reels are similar in more than on paper. They are both Pure Fishing products and built at the same factory. You can find some slight differences but you really have to dig into them. Let features and the deal decide for you.

"I may despise what you say, but I'll fight to the death to defend your right to say it" It's all opinion. There's no way to measure sensitivity. If I'm researching something, why would I not want comment from both sides?

Handle rods with care of course, but the biggest thing is use proper technique and avoid high sticking etc.

Poodle Tail is a new one on me. But, yes too long of a rear grip can be cumbersome however is not related to whether it is a full or split grip.

Don't put too much stock in the drag rating claims. The drag stack in all those as well as other brands and models manufactured at that factory hasn't changed in years. I don't buy the claims associated with ultra adjustable cent brakes either. I'd much rather have the basic 6 pin Cent. brakes. If I needed more the dual braking combo makes more sense to me.

For pure casting distance nothing beats properly setup spinning tackle. Some find baitcasting more accurate. I like the way casting gear handles heavy line and baits but you ca certainly setup spinning tackle to do the same. I feel like mastering different types of tackle is part of the fun and enhances the overall fishing experience, but it causes you more anxiety than it's worth stick with what you're comfortable with. BTW, a lot of people, myself included are right handed but prefer "lefty" casting reels.

The split seat is a love it or hate it proposition for most. I like the minimal almost non-existent grip on the LTB but prefer a full seat with a larger diameter usually 18mm

Pull off 100' of line and put a strip of electrical tape around the spool. This will keep any backlash from getting too deep. Casting is 90% rod. If it doesn't load properly with the weight both distance abd accuracy will suffer. Tie on a 3/4oz weight to practice with. The braid and mono are about the same size so no problem there. Casting is just like throwing a ball in that release point is everything for accuracy. If the bait splashes down in front of you the release was late. If it launches up in the air it's early. Same thing left and right. Nice, easy fluid motion is the goal. Don't get frustrated and horse it.

Well put. The Pflueger spinners are hard to beat on a bang for the buck basis. If I were going to break the budget I'd go right to a Stradic Ci4. SirSnook has a good point as well in that any 2500 size reel in the $50> price range that feels good paired with your rod will probably not disappoint.

To me, light baits and light bites require the most sensitivity. Hence my finesse spinning comment. I don't understand the connection between split vs full grip comfort wise. I don't ever really touch the middle of the grip where the split would be. I can see if the grip is real short and / or steeply tapered.

Just what I was going to say. St Croix makes blanks available to custom builders along with tons of other options. Let me know what you think of the seat after you handle it a little.

If they call that a key washer and it doesn't rotate to unlock my guess is it's pressed onto the shaft and pops into the groove. It will likely need replacing should you need to pry it off. The bearings in that location should last the life of the reel.

No. The ceramic balls are harder and rounder. Lubricate SS bearings with 1 drop of light oil. The Bantam oil from Shimano is decent.

Finesse spinning tackle is where I would spring for the higher end blank ( assuming the seat is not a deal breaker) if you are so inclined. The Avid level rods are perfectly capable though.