The Maestro

They pitched it as having the ability to switch between speed and power/torque and yes it was painfully slow at 4:1. In reality it was more or less a useless gimmick they came out with before real advancements in reel design that actually improved performance and usability like lighter weight spools and better braking systems.

That lever let's you change between 4:1 and 6:1. You can see it better if you zoom in on it.

2 Speed Shimano Beastmaster. This was one of their most expensive reels at around $200 back in 1990. Just an all around nightmare to try to learn on and good luck putting it back together after opening it up.

I agree with most of this in principle. I think most people place too much importance on rod sensitivity when it comes to detecting bites. The one thing I won't debate though is that a sensitive rod just makes fishing more fun even if it doesn't actually result in more fish landed.

No. I did it for a couple of seasons then went back to a palomar. No difference. If anything a palomar is more reliable and better for hookups. I don't buy into the whole hook 'kicking up' theory. Sure it's a neat trick in your hands but really doubt it helps in practice.

Jigs, Texas rigs, senkos. Any presentation where you're presenting the bait vertically on a semi slack line.

There's really no standard or consistency even within the same line of rods made by the same manufacturer. 2 rods with the same power rating can feel totally different.

Gravity

Got a 7'7" Heavy gen 1 Cumara Flipping rod for $100 when they were closing them out on Tackle Warehouse. Unfortunately it was the only model they had left.

The Core Solid Shimanos (Metanium and Bantam) are the first reels that really felt like a big leap in technology in a long time, at least to me.

There's a lot of varied opinions among them as well. Some of the top money winning anglers around here run straight braid all the time. It obviously works for them. Other guys will have different opinions that are no less valid. It's going to depend a lot on their own personal experiences and especially on their preferred target (largemouth or smallmouth).

I think the more important question would be 'Do the fish care if they can see the line?' There's a lot of stuff in the water that could resemble fishing line from a fishes' perspective. Weeds, blades of grass, algae are things they see all the time that could look like line. I personally haven't noticed it being an issue and now use braid exclusively and I fish in pretty clean clear water. Not crystal clear see 20 feet to the bottom clear but still pretty clear. I prefer it in every regard and feel way better about setting the hook hard and getting a positive hook up. Then there are people who swear by flourocarbon or leaders. It's funny though you never hear about people questioning if fish get spooked by Alabama rigs even though they look like you're dragging a metal coat hanger decorated like a Christmas tree through the water.

The new Metaniums are really nice. To me they're really the first (technically the Bantam was first) substantial improvement in baitcaster tech and design since that generation of reels from the time of those Cores.

A 7'2" MH Expride fits my definition of how a MH Fast rod should feel.

Username checks out.

Pretty sure I read somewhere that the trend started in Japan with guys modifying their bass tackle to be able to cast tiny baits for trout.

I'd say it has to do with the fact that it's a softer material compared to mono and especially FC. A harder line bumping against the tip guide will cause a tiny bit of vibration into the rod that can be felt even on slack line with a very sensitive rod.

It's all about feel. You need to be able to feel when the rod is loaded up to it's optimal point as well as feel the optimal time to release the spool. From there it's all about feeling and feathering the spool for optimal control without sacrificing distance (if you're going for distance). This will be rod and reel specific. Wind will also be a factor. It takes practice but once you get good at it you'll be able to pick up just about any rod and reel and have it down within a couple of practice casts.

If I could just give you one take away when comparing smallmouth to largemouth it's that smallmouth will not only tolerate current but will actively seek it out.

I'd say it does to some degree. If we use an extreme example. An ultralight panfish rod is going to be more sensitive than a musky rod even if you were to use the same length, materials and action. Going from a medium to medium heavy though, in most cases there won't be much difference.

Is this a troll thread?

Not only is there not a standard for power ratings among the different rod companies, there really isn't even a standard within the same company or even within the same product line.

You need to consider the strength of the rod. There's a big difference between a heavy power rod made for punching mats vs. a medium power rod made for light line and light baits.