MickD

Show me your data. :-)

All solutions suggested ignore the recommendation that the line come off the end of the spool in an opposite way that it goes onto the reel. To avoid adding one twist for each revolution of the reel rotor. Some Shimano reels' directions don't require that, but recommend coming off with spool rotating as suggested above, not sure if others do too. I don't know why those darned notches are in the spools, but probably to drive the spools when putting the line onto them. One suggestion is to simply reel it on, giving tension between your fingers, with the spool of line rotating, then if it's twisted, drag it behind the boat for a few minutes to remove the twist.

Jannsnetcraft.com , too.

A bite will be transmitted through the line the same for cast and spin, the only difference being that it is a little less handy to feel the line on a spin outfit. Line is line. Pull on one end, feel it on the other.

I agree with you, it's at the tip where the bite is transmitted, and it doesn't matter whether the rod is a spin or cast. Blanks can be wrapped into casting or spin rods. Assume two identical blanks, one built as spin, one as cast. Same weight in the tip section since both are wrapped with the same guides, which, like the blank , can't tell whether they are on a casting or spin rod. Same for the identical tiptop on each rod. So you have the line contacting both rods identically at the tiptop, both rods same mass, same action, same power, same weight, same blank material. The only difference between the two setups is that one has the guides on top, one on the bottom. Line is contacting the same tiptops on both rods, then the same guides on both rods. The difference is going to be essentially nothing.

I would be sure to have PB&J. Very effective around mid-MI.

I was trying to compare Power Pro with a Hitena line. I got the data from the Power Pro web site. Hitena .006 for 21 pound test, Power Pro .009 for 20. I'll try the site again, thanks, Mick Just found it, should have seen the "read more" before. Thanks, Mick

I've been to the TW website and looked at a number of lines, but do not find diameter specified. Did I just pick lines for which there are no diameter data?

Where do I find this line diameter tabulation? thx

From my experience the FG is not suitable for leaders of 6 and 8 pound tests, and I've had unraveling failures with the Alberto at all pound tests. The double uni should be very reliable at the lower pound tests and usable for almost any rod guide since those low pound tests don't make a very large knot (speaking about the reliability of the knot, not the leader). I find it hard to believe that Vanish has survived as long as it has. Seems like it was about 35 years ago when my son's best friend said it was named because the fish vanish when hooked on it.

I only meant to comment on the last paragraph, which is very important to this discussion. After a very sensitive rod, braid is a very big help in feeling bites. I strongly disagree with the statement somewhere above that states that the only way to detect bites is to watch your line and rod tip. If your rod tip moves from a fish and you didn't feel it, you've got the wrong rod and line. Also, the difference between mono, co-poly, and flourocarbon line, in my opinion is very subtle. The difference between them and braid is MAJOR.

I don't seem to have trouble losing fish on Neds. I use braid with FC or mono leaders. My favorite Ned rod is a 7' 2" ML/MF walleye rod. It gets lots of bend, so little errors on my part don't give the fish slack. I've noticed friends of mine losing fish and they usually are doing the lift and crank thing and when cranking, they lose the bend in the rod. Could that be what you are doing? You are, I assume, using the Ned jig? Its light wire construction lends itself to good penetration without a lot of force. Interesting thing I have noticed in the last two years, the Neds are not nearly getting the bites they used to.

Contact Loomis; they are the only ones who can take care of this. There are fixes for problems like this, but one should not use them on a fairly new rod from a major high quality company except as a last resort. Contact Loomis. One thing not clear in your message is the exact problem. Is the seat moving relative to the blank, or is the reel moving relative to the seat? Sounds like the latter, but you need to be sure. Two different issues that should be clarified before contacting Loomis.

I never take mine out. Since I store the boat inside, no need to take it out. But I've been there too. Grandson to Grandpa: "Grandpa, the water's getting pretty deep back here."

Lots of people using braid with little to no problems , but there are some things you need to consider. First, braid has no stretch, so feeling finesse bites is much easier than with mono or FC. Much better feel of the bottom, too. Whacking on a snag with braid is much harder on the rod than with other lines, so keep in mind you could break a hi tech rod if too aggressive. Braid is much thinner for its pound test, so when breaking off, it's best to wrap the line around something like a dowel a few times rather than around your hand. You can get cut from braid. Most who use braid like a mono or FC leader, but not all. Some just tie to the braid. If you use a leader you need to learn to tie a good knot to join the line and leader. Forum strings about the knot often get dozens of different opinions. Mine is that the double uni is the easiest to tie and very reliable if you use small enough leader to allow it to pass cleanly through the guides. if it won't pass (it's a pretty big knot) then learn another. My favorite for micro guides is the FG knot, but it is not an easy knot to master. Many ways to screw it up. Search youtube for "tying the FG knot." Finally, you will cast so much farther with braid of 15 pounds or less than you do with 12 pound mono, you will be amazed.

Ardent reel butter. Any sewing machine oil. 3 in 1 oil. Not olive oil. Yes, just about anything will work in a pinch, but for top performance-long term lubrication, go with something that was designed to lubricate.

Breaking or unraveling? Leader breaking at the knot? After the break, what is left, and what does it look like? Doing more aggressive snapping or jigging now? I never have mastered that knot, but I know if I put the tag end through the loop from the wrong way, it fails almost immediately. But my failures were always unraveling, not breaking of leader or braid.

Sounds pretty clear this is a characteristic of the T wing reels, not a defect. I have one and have not noticed this. Is it possible that because I still have my thumb on the spool when I engage that I don't notice it? My experience with mine has left me with the conclusion that it's the best casting baitcaster I've ever had, and I've had a goodly number of different brands.

What he is experiencing is not the line slipping relative to the spool due to braid's low coefficient of friction; he is experiencing loops of line during retrieve which are not going onto the spool, but are wrapping around the body of the reel. Especially with retrieves that put little tension on the line as it's being retrieved. The only thing I can think of for retrieves like this is a limper line than the current line.

The longer the rod the better, the advice on 6-9 and longer is very good. The rod also has to load properly. Your current rod is not loading much at all from what you describe. For custom builders there are now much better options than building from fly blanks. Look for the recommended line test (should go down to 4 pound test) and lure weight (should go down to 1/16. Rods will work pretty well outside the recommendations, but don't stretch them much for this very challenging technique.

Just ordered a 3 amp on-board charger yesterday, thanks, Mick

It may have casted like crap, but I maintain it was not because of a little misalignment. Ever put a two piece rod together with the one piece out of alignment by a few degrees? Did it cast a lot different than when perfectly aligned? I have done it many times and it is always the appearance that tips me off, not the casting quality or lack of it.

Of course it sounds like a battery or charging issue, but what specifically is going on to cause a battery or charging issue? Could be a number of things, which is why he asked. And, sometimes things are not as they seem. So to figure it out, look at all aspects of the issue. Bad battery? It's new, probably OK, but have it checked to find out. Insufficient time on a charger? Insufficient amperage on the charger? If using a trickle charger, could take forever. Connections all clean and tight? Is the motor OK? If the shaft turns freely, that's a good sign. If it doesn't, it could be using lots of power more than if it were OK.

How does the prop feel when rotated by hand, turns freely and with basically no feeling of drag? It should turn freely. Describe your charger and charging technique. In particular, how many amps does it provide? If it's a new battery, did you buy it locally? Piece of cake for the battery store to check its condition.

A spiral rod is supposed to look that way, but a regular wrap is not. It would bug me forever, and sounds like others are similarly affected with the curse. I had a spiral one time that I had wrapped with way too big of guides, and it performed well, but when I found out the guides were way oversize (early in my building days), it bugged me until I rewrapped with the right guides. No problem now. You're right, it's all in the head.