LionHeart

I have 3 of em'. Yes.

What you are talking about is very common. I tend to backlash more often using an overhead cast. I know every one will say it's all about thumb control, but some how for me the advice would go in one ear and out the other. Once I really started paying more attention to controlling my thumb than any other part of the cast, I got better, and better, till back lashes became rare. During very little of the cast is the tip of my thumb not at least lightly touching my spool. I think my problem was after the initial swing, I would entirely remove my thumb from the spool until my lure was just above the water. Now, when I cast, my thumb rarely leaves the spool entirely, I just loosen some of the pressure in order to send the lure on it's way. Focusing on that helped tons. As for your woes with side arm casting, I experience that as well. Typically if trying to cast a lighter lure with a faster action rod, or if my brakes are set a little too high. As others have said, you will have to compensate by adjusting your 'release point. Fact is though, some rods just don't cast certain lures well, and it takes some effort to compensate.

What type of customization did you have done to your ALX Dragger ? I pick one up every time I go into a Cabelas, but always think to myself, "I wish the handle were just a tad longer."

Most flouro stretches just as much as mono... it's true. Mono however will want to recover, while flouro will want to stay stretched.

The 'Regular' taper on the Tatula is like a fast/moderate-fast. Very nice rods, but handle is a little short on the 7'2" rods for my preference. IMO 'Regular' taper is best if used for spinner/Chatter baits, and jigs. Definitely not moderate.

How do you like the Speed Stik Lite? Had my eye on it for a possible jig rod. Also, what optimator said.

I did a bit of reading on this when I switched everything to braid. I am even using 30 lb test on a 20 year old Plueger Trion spinning combo and have seen no guide wear on it or any of my setups. My concerns about braid hurting guides have been put to rest.

Spend the extra 30 bucks and get a Tournament MB. Aluminum frame vs plastic, dual braking, and it will be a tad smoother retrieve, 4 lbs more drag, and it's lighter weight. Well worth the extra $

I use a St. Croix Bass X 7'4" Med/heavy mod-fast for all those techniques except lipless (although it would work well) and absolutely love it. On paper it may not be as sensitive as the mojo bass, but it seems plenty sensitive to me. Love the action on that rod.

Own 3 Tournament MB reels. Next reel will likely be the same. A lot of reel for the $.

FG. Seriously thin and stout knot.

Easy choice. Fast action for those lures.

I own 3 Lews Tournament MB, and honestly have no complaints at all. They cast great, are very smooth, and haven't given me a single problem. You can find them on EBay for $109 which is a steal IMO. The Tatula gets a lot of praise here and I have thought about trying one for my next reel. Honestly, I'll probably get another MB though. I know exactly what to expect from the Tournament MB, and it is all good.

I use 20 lb mono leader for exactly the reason you stated. Overkill? Nah.

Now we need a power and action adjustable rod

Wasn't trying to be a smart allic. Well, I was, but not in a bad way. I have used spinning rods my whole life and never had what are describe, so I was, and still am a little perplexed. I've had line jump off the spool if I over fill it with flouro or mono, but never tangle up. The only thing I can imagine is that the spool has too much line on it, which would still be odd if using braid. A5s for line twist, my goodness I think it would have to be pretty gnarly to cause what you describe. I'd put the offending reel on a different rod and sling it a few times. Misaligned or bent guides maybe?

You had back lash with spinning gear? Congrats!

7 speed (31 Inch per turn)

30 lb Power Pro braid has been working great for me. I have been using a few feet of 20 lb mono as a leader but I'm sure a lot of people don't, and do just fine.

I've seen the same videos. I don't think any bass angler on the planet is going to double their rod over while heaving a fish out of vegetation. I don't care how big the bass is or how much vegetation there is. That is absolutely silly. Fishing 'heavy slop' for 'bass over 5 lb' just isn't a logical reason to change from 50 to 65 lb braid, and I read that often here. Truth is, I'm beginning to think a lot guys have no idea why they use it, therefore have trouble qualifying why they do it. Your statement about shock makes complete sense. Thank you. Also the points about braid not cutting your hand or digging make perfect sense. However, when I see people say 65 lb braid is recommended purely because they don't trust 50 lb while fighting a frog fish, I am filled with confusion. Now, it matters not to me what another guy or gal uses to fish with, and they certainly don't owe me any explanation for it. I'm just trying to gain a little clarity. Thanks. After reading this I realize it sounds like a rant, but honest, it's not.

That's kinda my point of confusion. When you say "horse them out of cover" I imagine you mean with your rod which would break under well below 50 lb of force, so why would 50 lb braid not be more than adequate based on the reason you gave? Are you hand lining the beast out of cover? I totally get the line dig and flesh cutting aspect of smaller braid. That makes perfect sense.

Used straight razor for a while. It took a couple of weeks to start getting the hang of it. It will definitely take longer than using a normal razor. Plan for 20 minutes while just starting out. Once you get the hang of it, you can achieve a very close, comfortable shave. The reason a switched back to conventional razors is that using a straight razor isn't nearly as difficult as keeping it sharp. I found that by the time I paid to have it sharpened, I wasn't really saving much $. I do still use shaving soap as opposed to anything else, and will never look back.

If it only took me an hour to figure out what the fish want, my troubles would be over.

I'm not trying to be funny or confrontational, but why would you prefer a line that can hold 65 lbs when the fish weighs 5 lbs and your rod would likely snap <20 lbs? Serious question as I've read other people saying the same thing. Why would 50 lb test not be up to the task? Or even 30 lb for that matter?