Darren.

I use braid on all my reels, casting and spinning plus a leader. 10 and 15 lb on the spinning side, and 20 lb on the casting side. So anything I will throw is done with a braided mainline. Leader length and material are up to you to decide for the technique on hand - mono for tops, fluoro for bottom contact, etc. Just my .02

Welcome aboard!

Hmm. Ok. No pix of fish with those hooks in their mouths...point looks rather large, too. But ok.

Welcome aboard!

Nice. Now please work for me in my reservoirs!!

Yeah. Ok. Ouch. Sorry, man. Glad you are ok.

Welcome aboard!

Well done

I did the same with my HawgTech handle (which is awesome). Went back to the stock 84's on the 50e reels I have.

Sounds like a great time.

My conclusion, as well, but I'll use the Albright and/or uni-uni. The FG may work fine on heavier braid + heavier leader. But it is still a PITA to tie. I tried it on 10 and 15 pound PP with a 15 lb hybrid leader. Yeah. No. Looked like a broken finger by the time I was done. It held, but was absolutely not worth the effort at my desk and most certainly not worth the effort to tie while out in my kayak.

Wow! Nice haul!

Get better soon, Snook! Back problems are zero fun.

I use both Albright (variants) and Uni-to-Uni. Mostly the former. I've spent time on the FG, but DANG, I canNOT get that thing right, and when I do, it is ugly. So maybe it isn't right. Either way, It seems best to use the knots I'm most familiar with. Tying while on the yak, both of them are easy.

Welcome aboard, Forrest! Belated, of course

That'd fill a dinner plate! Nice catch.

I don't fish tourneys or belong to a "club", but I do really like the MLF format much more than the other televised tourneys. Feels more competitive with live updates, etc. And I like them releasing the fish on the spot and getting penalized for mishandling the catch.

I upgraded my two Chronarch 50e reels with HawgTech bearings. Noisy? Yeah, but I really love the performance improvement. The noise doesn't bother me, anymore. Kinda neat in some ways, to be true. Now I didn't send my reels in for a major cleanup. But the price of the ABEC 7 bearing was great, and I'm quite happy with the results.

Welcome aboard! I think wherever it is most comfortable for you to both sit/fish and work the motor.

Glad my odd catches have been rather tame by comparison to some of you guys. Best non-fish I snagged was a pigeon in flight. Worst non-fish, probably a garbage bag, but I'm not entirely sure what it was...gross, definitely.

Welp... For me it is mostly self taught. A ton of reading, watching anglers do their thing, asking questions, then more questions. I can't really point at one person to say "they were my fishing mentor". Most certainly I CAN say that this very forum, and the articles on this site were VERY helpful to me in my fishing education

Welcome aboard!

Good advice. I've got a spool (many years old) that I used to use for bluegill and long-pole fishing. Works great for those fish. Caught bass on it as well...

Welcome aboard! Kids are awesome, fishing is awesome!

Welcome aboard!