LionHeart

Nope. Not a good sign

What do you mean by rough on your gear? Like using your rod to clear brush and flip logs to check for snakes?

I'd love to help but I'm not exactly sure what you're describing or asking about. Are you asking about how to control the spool with your thumb during casting? Some advice you didn't ask for but here it be: Ask the guide again, they are there to help.

What do you consider to be the difference in taper and action? Do you mean power?

You have chosen wisely

If this question doesn't beg the answer of 'dude, it's personal preference,' I don't know what would. Now that that's outta the way, upgrade the reel for your moving bait rod.?

I have the same rod and while I usually use it for treble hook lures, I also use it for spinner baits and smaller swim jigs. IMO it has plenty of power for 1/4-3/8 chatter baits. Then again I use braid to leader, so line stretch is removed from the equation.

My connection knot, or leader line itself usually fails before the FG knot. Not to say that I've never had an FG knot fail, but it's pretty rare.

You're just paranoid. ? You'll always be able to find a way to hurt yourself or someone else if you try hard enough

Strange. I have dealt with Lews customer service numerous times and they are always exceptional.

Either line dig or the reel is engaging into gear during the cast. I have experienced that multiple times with a certain reel that I use. Since I started consciously keeping the thumb bar depressed with the base of my thumb while casting, it has not occured. I am convinced that is what is happening with my reel. Might be what you guys are experiencing but just seems odd that you are both getting it on 2 different reels.

That's just the thing. The fulcrum is where it is. Where someone believes it is, is irrelevant. Support? Arm×Weight=Moment

Nah man, it isn't a matter of opinion, but a matter of fact. A longer rod gives a greater moment (pulling force) to the fish. Think of it like a pry bar.

An ultra light is pretty flimsy but then again so are blue gill. What type of hooks are you using? Question #2 is a myth that keeps getting perpetuated in the fresh water fishing community. A longer rod gives you less leverage, not more. Do you mean it feels like you are not moving enough line during hook set?

This exactly.

30 lb power pro to 15 lb big Game leader. It ain't perfect, but as close as I've found.

Ya know, I used it for jigs quite a bit. It will definitely do the job. The tip on that rod let's it do a lot of thinks pretty well, but there are definitely lighter, better balanced, more sensitive, crisper rods out there for the $. It is still one of my favorite rods to use, but for me, a jig/trig rod needs to be where you should be the most picky. I'd shoot for Mojo Bass, Tatula (new or old version). The Bass X I have is the 7'4" MH mod fast btw.

I own a Bass X that is excellent as a spinner bait and heavy crankbaits rod. They are over all decent rods depending on what you want to do with them.

The reel is working as advertised. DVT pretty much summed it up. Most people engaged half the pins (be it 4 or 6) and call it a day.

3/16-1 1/2 is a bold claim. Based on my limited experience with the TP 1 rods, they run heavier than rated by a noticeable amount.

With the setups you have, you should be able to fish just about any lure in your tackle box. The whole technique specific rod thing is very subjective. There are some generally agreed rod power/actions that are best suited for certain techniques, but they aren't hard and fast rules. For instance, you likely wouldn't want to throw a jig on a crankbait rod, nor the other way around. Then again, just because a rod manufacturer write the name of a lure on a rod handle, that doesn't mean it's all the rod can do. This is why I say you may want to spend some time with the gear you already have, and find out what your preferences are before spending more $. What you already have should take you far.

Total opinion but a cranking rod is a staple. It should be pretty whippy also. Moderate is a good cranking action but if the rod is lighter power moderate fast works very well also. Like it or not, you will never have enough rods so that you don't have to retie lures. I have 5 casting rods and 1 spinning rod. I have gone through many setups but have found that I usually take 5 rods max when I fish from the boat and 2 max when I bank fish. I have 2 rods for moving baits: spinner bait, chatter bait, buzz bait, swim bait, and crank bait. One is a tad stouter than the other and gets used for the heavier lures with bigger hooks. Reels are a 6 speed and 7 speed. I have 2 rods for bottom contact: jigs, worms, trigs, also frogs. Same as above. The stouter rod is for 3/8-3/4 and the other is for 3/8 and under. Both reels are 8 speed. My 5th casting rod is a misc super versatile lighter power rod that goes great with anything below 1/2 oz and has a 6 speed reel. My spinning rod almost never gets used.

I'd say slow down on buying gear. Fish the stuff you have for a while and figure out which lures you throw the most. Then spend your money on a rod and reel that works best for the techniques you plan to use. Any time you buy a rod and reel, it's best to already know what you will use it for (so says I).

Spinner baits, crank baits (pick a size), and I like a 6 speed for top water poppers.

Just a fancy way to say they are centrifugal brakes. Most reels worth buying nowadays have them. As the speed of your reel spool increases, those little plastic pins you see when you remove the side plate will extend due to the centrifugal force, and rub against an inner race of your reel. This will cause the spool to slow down just as you would manually do when you press your thumb to it. Guessing this reel has either 4 or 6 of these little pins. The pins can be set to 1 of 2 positions, engaged or disengaged. The more pins that are engaged, the more your spool will be slowed by the braking. Be it 4 or 6, I think what most people do is engage half the pins for a good starting point. I recommend using the spool friction knob sparingly but many treat it as the primary braking system on a reel.