Bassattackr

Yep, spot on.

Yes, great bait that catches them. Good search bait over open water too.

A lighter FC sinks slower than a heavier lb test. I fish a lot in those situations as well and stick with 10 lb. Your call..

Depends on what you're throwing on the crankbait / jerkbait setup. Here in the Ozarks we mostly fish 10 lb on that setup. Helps get a wiggle wart down further and the lighter line helps the action of a jerkbait. If you're fishing shallower water or water with a slight stain, then 12 lb is a great option.

Depends on the bait. Some are worth the pricetag and others, the cheap ones work just fine.

I recently switched to the Plano 3701 for all my jerkbaits, thin version of the 3700. Like it much better, less bouncing around so my megabass baits don't get beat up as much.. ?

Gloomis used to make a 6'6" H in their mag bass series. You might check them out.

If you're using braid than the sensitivity point is moot. No difference between either in that scenario.. They're both excellent rods and pretty similar in terms of weight. You made a good choice.

Gamakatsu EWG Treble Short Shank Magic Eye for me. Much higher quality hook than Mustad.

Most glass rods nowadays are pretty close to graphite sticks in weight. Older ones, yes more dead/heavy block of wood but newer ones are impressive.

A similar rod and another alternative is the Alpha Angler Mag Rebound, also a glass rod. 7'6" MH, moderate. Dobyns also makes good glass rods. Good luck!

Alberto is a good alternative. Works well for all line ratios.

I'll go $6 each.. ?

Yep. You're fine.

Correct. The key is wind, bonus if you have cloud cover as well. If you have wind a spinnerbait is great in clear water fisheries. If no wind you need something more subtle. This is where a swim jig shines. If you have dirty water, typically a spinnerbait / chatterbait is a better option than a swim jig.

Keep it simple. If fishing clear water and wanting to imitate bluegill, throw either GP or Watermelon Candy (Great on super bright sunny days).

Well right now, both BASS and FLW are targeting fisheries that are pumping out the biggest fish right now. This is a definite indicator of preference for quality over quantity. Winners of the MLF events typically average sub 2 lb fish.

Personally, I prefer consistency. If I pick up the same reel on a rod with the same style of grip it's one less thing to think about to help me concentrate on fishing. If I have 14 different reels with different grips, handle lengths, braking mechanisms and feels to the drag it annoys the heck out of me taking the time to remember how to adjust each one on the fly. I have all Revo STX reels and I love them. Nothing wrong with Abu as there's nothing wrong with other brands. If you like it and it works well for you, why change? And surprisingly (or not), Abu makes a great rod. I have two of the Villain 2.0 spinning rods and they are the best rods I've ever used for $200.

Most manufacturers recommend not exceeding 70% of the rated towing capacity. That will help with your math equation..

For me the BPT missed a huge opportunity by keeping the catch and release format but taking the biggest 5 fish. It's definitely a dink fest on most waters. They came to Table Rock twice and the average fish catch for the winner was around 1.3-1.4 lbs. Those are 12"-14" fish, not keepers on any tournament I've ever entered. Why would I want to watch that? I can catch fish like that all day as well, no interest to me.

Ditto, also long runs make a hotfoot kind of a pain. For me, it also depends on the boat. If you're driving a Triton, Phoenix, etc which requires a little more driver input, both hands on the wheel is a huge plus. My buddies previous Nitro Z20 only had a hand throttle and I never felt unsafe driving it. I have a hot foot on my Phoenix and wouldn't have it any other way.

I really like FC for the low stretch and better sensitivity, this is where it excels for me over mono. I don't really use mono much anymore, except as leader material on some of my topwater (braid) setups.

6XD is a good staple but I'm getting away from them now. It's old having to tune almost every one out of the box because it wants to run to one side or the other and they pull harder than others out there. I like the Profound Z Boss series and the 6th Sense Cloud series. Much better quality crankbaits.

This is the one I use, taught by the man himself. Great for flouro, mono or braid. This is all I use unless line to leader then I use the Alberto.

Agreed. It is great line. I flip with 17 and 20 lb with no issues.