GetFishorDieTryin

I would recommend trying a weight with an insert to see if you still have that problem. I use swagger the majority of the time and Ive never had a weight with a burr from them.

There are quite a few good options on the USDM. I like Pointers, but the Duo 85 and Rozantes are my favorites.

Riot Little Fuzzy 3" Jackall Chunk Craw 3.5" Gambler Little Otter 3" Reins Ring Craw 3" Yamamoto Double Tail 5"

Never held the new Bantam, but the Met 20s and Bantam 18s sit higher off the reel seat then SLX and Curado because of the frame design. I would suggest finding a Bantam 18 if possible and seeing how it fits in hand.

I would suggest just going with Big Game mono. Its really strong, abrasion resistant, good knot strength and its cheap. Invizx and Red Label would work as well, but the knot strength and abrasion resistance is noticeably inferior to Big Game, in my experience anyway. Now if you want to spend the money and go with a FC leader material, Yo Zuri HD is the way to go. Its softer and has more stretch then Blue Label, but has good abrasion resistance. That softer outer layer helps this line knot very well. In my experience the knot strength is as good or better then Blue Label. I have supreme confidence in both Blue Label and HD. I absolutely love the spools the HD comes in. Its got rubber gaskets that form a soft seal to hold the line as it comes off the spool. Its by far the best design leader spool as far easy access goes. When I run out of the HD I just refill it with Blue Label.

There isnt a right or wrong answer, it all comes down to preference. PE lines alone really vary in how they handle and fish. Then you have fusions and unifilaments that I think aren't technically braids but fall under that as a generalized term. I favor braid over FC 4:1 for spinning gear and I favor FC/mono over braid 4:1 for casting gear just because of where and how I fish. If I were to fish larger deeper lakes, I would use more FC on spinning gear. I like FC over braid for casting gear because I like a little give in the line and I feel like braid is louder in cover, especially wood.

One of these with with a 4" GP Swammer or 5" swimming super fluke in houdini

The 2/0 would be perfect for a 3.3, the shank is nice and short. I like to use these with diesel minnows and trout tricks, the keeper works really well with elaztech. The cost is the drawback.

Noice

I like a thinner more subtle boot tail like, just for something the fish can zero in on other then the blades. The 2 I use the most are keitechs swing impacts and the charlie brewer boot tailed grubs.

I really like a 7'3 as a do it all length. I use quite a few 7'6 for inshore. Theyre long enough to get good distance but they are still short enough to balance with a light reel. I like shorter rods if Im vertical fishing, making really short casts, or working a JB. A longer rod will give you a longer tip section which really helps if you don't want that pool cue feel. As for losing sensitivity relative to length, I'm sure there's something to it especially with heavier power rods, but Ive got a 9ft Dailuna sea bass rod and even though its softer then I would like it to be its really sensitive.

Not really. Measures are taken to keep water out. There is a big descprenecy between the water resistance of a say a Tatula LT and Gosa. The Gosa is very well protected against splashes and spray where there really isn't anything stopping water ingression into the Tatula. Like every other reel Tatula LT relies on centrifugal force to force out any water that may have gotten inside. Once there is a significant amount of water ingression in any spinning reel the best option is to take it apart and service it. If my VS gets water in it will fail eventually, so will a Gosa, and so will a Tatula LT. There are a lot of people who like to use warm water. The fact is that warm water will dissolve crystalized salt, potentially driving it deeper into the reel instead of gently flushing it out. I cant say that I've had issues because of rinsing reels of with warm water, because I used to do it when I was younger. If you speak to any Shimano, Daiwa, Penn, etc... certified reel tech they will tell you to rinse with cool water.

As far as plain ball head the Gami round jig head is tough to beat. I use the 1/0 for 2.8 and 3.3s I really like Hayabusas Brush easy heads for lighter weight ned rigs and swimbaits.

When you rinse a reel you want to do with a cool, low pressure fine mist. You could probably get away with just wiping it down with a damp cloth. That way you run no risk of water intrusion. What reel(s) you using?

I can get away with a 6.3 doing almost anything. The exception would be throwing a frog.

That all depends on the design of the reel, the spool and the line roller and different oscillation systems. Thats why some reels have superior line management to others. It was a common issue with sw guys early on with most round braids. Especially with the older 706z, 710z and earlier VS reels that were made for mono that's much thicker. A simple search on SOL history of main forum posts will verify that.

Its 8-10ft with a 3" easy shiner and 1/16 owner darter head #1. I used 15 for years for fw and inshore, but 10 is better with lighter baits. If you didn't spool your line properly or have poor line management skills you're still going to have an awful mess.

Dont go heavier the 15. The casting distance between 10 and 15 is noticeable but 10 and 20 is night and day. 10lb breaks at about 15 or more 15 is 20 or more and so on. Of course it will. Its not as common as casting gear but the cause is the same. If that line isnt spooled tight it will sink in especially after a good fish. A lot of guys that were going from mono to PP when it was new on the market had that issue. The cast after a fish would go about 10 ft before sneezing out an epic birdsnest.

The Tatula 7'1 ML is a rod I would replace immediately. It can do anything that you would need a ML to do and do it well.

I paid about 50 to ship a tube from NJ to FL through UPS.

A cracked guide will cut line like a razor, check youre guides with cotton. Line can also be damaged from previous backlashes if it knots tight enough. Other then that I dont know.

I prefer FC to Mono for BC, but I actually have a better landing ratio with mono then FC with chatterbaits. I have a lot more confidence in mono as far breakages go. I found 12lb big game to be as strong as if not stronger then 15lb invizx. I love braid for spinning gear, but no so much for casting, just my preference. Basically see how the mono works and go from there.

My JDM met is a little finicky. Normally I like to run my reels loose as possible, but I have to use either 3 or 4 brakes on with moderate external brakes or 2 brakes on with substantial external brakes anywhere from 4-5. Sometimes the spool wont seat right and no matter how the brakes are set it will nest up. If the spool isnt in correct the spool tension won't really work correctly that's how you can tell if there is an issue.

I fish them kind of like I fish a shaky head.

The guards definitely help in wood especially when I use a wide body trailer to help stop roll. While guard are a plus for sure, I still snag them on the regular.