Lead Head

@Big Hands a lot of good advice for you so far, but keep in mind that the TX rigs and shakey heads you are using often introduce slack into your spool as you work them back in. I often have to either strip line, or make a dead cast and pinch line while reeling it in to tighten the line back up when using bottom contact and thin braid.

Last thing, you said "full reel of braid". You want at least a little bit of mono tied directly to the spool. Unless the spool has holes and you tied to one of them, braid won't bite well and can slip around the spool. I watched my dad hand-line a 2lb bass because of this.

I'm not familiar with that braid but some braids I have used had a slightly tacky coating when new. They performed much better after the coating wore off. Thin braid on a baitcaster can be done, but requires an excessive amount of line management and attention to detail in my opinion (unless you're using bfs equipment designed for it). I would definitely suggest going up in size, especially if this is your first experience with braid. It's not rocket science, but is different. One more thought, it is likely that you are casting with more line between the tip of your rod and your lure than normal. I say this because you mentioned a swivel and not passing it through your guides. If that is the case, try dumping the swivel and going with a braid to leader knot. Go with around 4ft of leader (just make sure the knot doesn't enter your reel) and cast normally. Now that I think about it, unless you normally cast with 2+ feet of line hanging out the tip of your rod, this is definitely contributing to your problem. That's a lot, especially for a 6'8" rod. If your braid isn't "dug in" on the spool, all that excess line could be contributing to why your lure isn't falling freely when you release the spool as it normally does.

I went back to look for that kit and it appears that I was looking at a kit for a Met. Sorry about that. I did check several of the shimano kits and it looks like most of them are the same size just advertised for different models. If you check the ID of the recessed area of your main gear it is possible one of the kits labeled met, curado, scorpion ect. will work fine. I'm not much of a shimano guy so I'm not super familiar with their internals.

Assuming the mgl has the same gears as a regular aldebaran, you can get a drag clicker on aliexpress for $11.61 shipped. You might want to take some measurements to be sure, and select "left handed". Price drops below $10 at the beginning of May, and will probably take 3 weeks or more to arrive.

It sounds like your only baitcasting experience is a Daiwa with braid. If that is correct, your difficulties are likely just because your new setup is pretty different. You have switched from what is (in my opinion) the most forgiving braking profile (mag-z, sv, and their boost variants) and the most manageable line, to the line that requires the most attention to detail and a braking system that requires a very different and slightly more involved setup. Unlike braid, almost all FC (and mono) will coil off the the spool to some extent if you release the spool with no resistance on the line and no tension on the spool. Double check all the good advice in this thread, and keep in mind that your new equipment will come with a small new learning curve. For example, Daiwa encourages you not to adjust the zero adjuster (spool tension knob), while most shimano reels require a bit of spool tension and some brake adjustments made on the spool itself.

Daiwa TD-Z (with a SV G1 1012 spool) on a NFC X-ray NEO MB765 30lb suffix 832

They are indeed just... better than. While I admit I'm not the most experienced, (haven't used Loomis, and limited St Croix) the 7'3" MHXF is the best 3/8oz jig rod I have ever used.

The absolute best "bad translations" come from aliexpress. I have a screen shot of a shoe insole that boasts "The feeling of stepping in sh**" I would post it but I suspect the mods would disapprove.

I can't answer your question, but I will suggest some cheap rod sleeves to prevent line tangling. You can cut the tip to fit how you like, then use heat shrink tubing to make a new tip.

I'm with Greenback Hunter on this one. Almost all my moving bait reels are 6.3.1 because when I lose complete focus I tend to speed up my retrieve. With the 7.9+ speed reels I would occasionally blow out the lure. I'm far more comfortable speeding up my retrieve when needed than I am attempting to reel slowly for the duration of a long retrieve. With the faster reels I'm one big splash or curious squirrel away from turning a spinner bait into a top water lure.

I built a NFC Delta DS 6107 into a casting rod specifically for Ned's. The soft xf tip let's me cast them great and it has just enough backbone to turn a decent fish out of cover. It's also a really good light top water rod, getting impressive distance when chasing schooling bass in the summer. It's rated 1/8-3/8. I need to weigh a TRD and a 1/15oz jig head, there is a decent chance I'm over 1/8oz. The 2 weeks I'm using it for top water I'm definitely over 1/8, but I'm looking for distance in the schools.

I love it. Flat blacks and grays are my favorite. I've always preferred subtle over flashy.

The only time I noticed the DC doing anything is in strong winds. In the wind, it's impressive, in every other situation it is just loud.

@bulldog1935 Have you had time to tinker with the Zillion custom yet? That matte black is gorgeous to me. I like Reels with simple muted color schemes. If i can ever figure out a way to swap that stupid T-wing with a traditional line guide, ill probably own a few more

I have one from Amazon as well. Maybe from the same link you posted. Its legit, and the aluminum parts you are hearing about is the main gear. That's why the JDM is lighter. It's nothing to worry about, if for some reason you need to replace it, Tackle Trap sells brass gear sets for around $50. If somewhere down the road you need or want the brass gears you will still come out $100 ahead. It may have a shorter handle (JDM reels often do) but I can't remember, I replaced mine before I even spooled it up.

In regards to losing parts... Something I'm pretty sure I learned on this forum that is a tremendous help, the muffin pan. Grab a muffin pan and put parts in it as you remove them. This not only helps prevent you from losing parts, but gives you a guide as to what order they need to go back in.

Sounds like the drag is way loose. If you're using braid, it could be spinning on the spool.

I just double checked to make sure I'm not losing my eyesight (age will do that to you). I'm still not seeing any single foot Fuji running guides (KB/KT). That was why I asked if maybe it was common knowledge that they carried some stuff that isn't on the website. It was my assumption that most people don't build casting rods with only double foot, or spinning reduction guides. That is all that shows up for me when I look, maybe it's my browser... maybe it's my old eyes. Either way, I'm not seeing them because, for me, they aren't there. I even tried the search function. My apologies for derailing the thread, and thank you guys for your time.

I'm not currently looking for anything, but @spoonplugger1 comment had me wondering if NFC has stuff I use that isn't listed on the website. Fuji KT and KB running guides, ECS reelseats, and KDPS just to name a few. I'm not the OP.

Do they have components that aren't listed on their website?

If your focus is fewer backlashes, it's Daiwa all day. At least something with magforce, but preferably SV. This puts you in the Fuego or above bracket. My best advice is to look for something used that is SV. After you get the mechanics down you can decide where you want to go from there. It took my daughter about 30 minutes to be ready to hit the water learning on a Tatula SV.

Yozuri hybrid is strong for its rating because it is oversized. It's strength, while still good, isn't nearly as impressive when compared to other lines of the same diameter. Many companies understate the lb-test rating of their line so it will seem really strong to customers. Yozuri hybrid and Berkley big game both like to sell line rated as 15lb that actually fails much closer to 20lb. I'm not saying anything bad about these lines, they are good. I'm just pointing out one of the first things I learned from bass resource that really changed how I look at fishing line.

I would suggest trying the extra-fast rated rods first. True extra-fast can be a bit of an "acquired taste" but tend to cast below the rating pretty well.

If Point Blank is an option, look hard into them. In my little experience with them they are... impressive. I believe @Mick D has experience with the blanks you mentioned.