breezy

The two most popular are the uni to uni and alberto knot. Alberto knot retains most of the line strength (I want to say 80%+?) but is a pain to tie (for me). The uni to uni is closer to 50% but I can tie on a leader in under a minute. I barely fish anything except braid and have had 0 problems with the uni to uni knot. It sounds to me like the problem may not be the knot. Two things to think about: 1) Hookset. Are you still using a massive bone-jarring hookset? If so it's not necessary; braid has no stretch so you're transferring the energy more efficiently. My hooksets are more like a quick gentle jerk of the rod. 2) Drag. If you didn't back off the drag when using braid it's probably way too tight. Again, the lack of stretch comes into play and you don't have a shock absorber as with mono/flouro. I also see most people check the drag by just pulling line from the reel. In reality, that line also has resistance from the rod, going through the guides etc. Try hooking your lure to something and then loading the rod until the drag starts stripping. Maybe it's just me, but I was shocked to actually see how much pressure I had to apply that way vs just pulling line out from the reel the first time I tried it.

Are the PQ Tournament reels available online anywhere or in-store only? Unfortunately I don't live anywhere near a bass pro shops and the local stores don't carry them. I may just end up with a CarbonLite reel since it's in a similar price range, lighter and can find them locally and online.

I've been considering picking up a Viento with the TW sale also. How is it going to stack up with a Revo S/SX or Curado E series? Maybe even compared to the BPS CarbonLite? I've been trying to piece together a very light combo, already have a carbonlite rod. I realize the Viento isn't "light" by any means, but at such a reduced price it's a very tempting offer.

I own a 6'6 MH Veritas and love the rod. It's extremely lightweight and sensitive. The split grip isn't my favorite, and personally I prefer a full cork handle, but by no means is it uncomfortable or a deal breaker. The Veritas rods also seem to run slightly stiffer than rated (not as bad as the Vengeance/Vendetta) so with that in mind you may want to handle one in store. I can't say enough good things about the rod though, I think you'll be very pleased with it.

I haven't used a Lightning Shock, however I do own a Vengeance (albeit spinning) and love the rod. I've heard some negative comments about the spinning rods in particular but no problems so far here. Everyone I have heard with a vengeance has enjoyed the rod. It's not going to be the lightest but it's hard if not impossible to beat for the price.

I have a 6'9 M Vengeance spinning rod a 6'6 MH Veritas. Both rods have been GREAT and very happy with the purchase. I have heard negative comments about the quality of spinning rods in the lineup but I've yet to have any problems. The guides do look a little 'flimsy' on the spinning rods but they have held up fine and I don't baby my equipment at all. I don't think you can go wrong buying any of the rods in the lineup, just choose whatever fits your price range. One word of caution though, the rods do seem a bit heavier than they're rated. My veritas is about right but the medium Vengeance feels closer to a MH.

I have been getting by with using a 7' M rod until now so I'm sure anything is going to be a huge improvement. But I hate not having the right tool for the job. Leaning towards the 9.5' or similar BPS rod at the moment, mainly because it's the only rod I have found in the price range that fits my needs. Hopefully someone can chime in that owns one or has at least seen the rods in person because I haven't found a lot of info online. There don't seem to be many other options so I may end up getting one and finding out myself. Thanks for the help guys

Personally I don't think a leader for visibility is absolutely necessary, more of a personal preference/confidence thing. That being said I almost always use a 10-14# FC leader with 30# braid. This is just in case I get hung up; I don't want to bother breaking the braid or losing some of it. Currently just using a leader of a couple feet, whatever I happen to tie on. Haven't even considered using a longer 6' leader so that I don't have to retie leader knot but that definitely makes sense. Does anyone think a long leader such as this actually has any effect on sensitivity?

It's going to be time to start using the float n' fly almost exclusively here, especially after this cold front moving through. With that being said I'm looking for a new rod, the cheaper the better since I don't use it year round; preferably around $50. I'm always looking for a 'deal' so if I could find another purpose for the rod I may spend a little more. I'm thinking I may be able to get a good FNF rod that would also work well when fishing with minnows/shiners in nearby ponds. I've been looking at the BPS Micro Lite rods but unfortunately I can't find any locally to handle. They offer a wide variety and even specialized FNF rods. I'm looking to get some feedback on these rods or even some suggestions as to which model to get. The ones I have been considering are: BPS Micro Lite Float n Fly - 8.5', 9.5', 10.5' ML BPS Micro Lite Spinning - 7' M, 7'6 UL BPS Micro Lite Spin/Fly - 7'6 The Float n Fly model seems to be the obvious choice but I'm not sure what length to go with; 10'6 is a very long rod and fear it may be awkward. I'm also concerned that the rod isn't going to have enough backbone to get a decent hookset or control the fish. The normal spinning rod lineup is slightly cheaper, however I don't think a 7' ML is going to provide the casting performance I want, with the 7'6 UL being too much of a "whip". Went ahead and threw in the spin/fly rod as I thought it may have a stiffer action compared to the 7'6 UL, also always been interested in fly fishing...but I guess that's a whole other post ;D I would appreciate any feedback about these rods or any other suggestions! BTW I will probably throw on an old Abu Garcia spinning reel I have for now, but eventually would like to grab a 25 or 30 sized Pflueger Trion (these are much smaller than a 2500 Shimano) to keep with the budget.