Cigarguy

When I first got my Fuego I did not like it as the tension on it was pretty stiff while turning the reel. A small drop of reel old on the shaft that goes up and down and a tiny drop on the reel handle really made it a lot smoother and easier to turn. I really like it now. In this regards the Nasci and Ultegra X-protect have the Daiwa's Magseal beat. The Shimanos are smooth with low drag resistance right out of the box and only improved with a tiny drop of oil on the spindle shaft.

I would also consider the Fuego LT, Shimano Nasci, and the new Shimano Ultegra. 80% of my reels are Daiwa but I love my new Shimano Ultegra. So much so that I went and got a second one within a few days. It helped that I got it for $175 Cdn which is about $140 US with Basspro/Cabela's spring sale trade-in program.

For a 10 year old. I'd get the Ugly stick. Even in Canada the combo is cheap. I like the toughness of this rod. You won't have to stress yourself out or constantly nag the kid about always being careful not to break the rod. Let the kid be a kid. Use the reel for a season then wait for a sale on a Daiwa Revros or lower reel when they go on sale.

Jbsoonerfan's method is how I do it. Don't need to make it worse by breaking either reel or rod. Most of my reel is braid to leader setup with the leader being significantly weaker than the braid. So it always break at somewhere in the leader.

MN Fisher pretty much answer your question you had of me. I don't do any salt water fishing as the ocean is 10 hours drive west of me. And no deep lakes. So I don't ever see myself ever running out of 75+ yards of braid and leader. And there is no fish that will run that much line. If, by some freak accident, I do get to the backing there is cheap 20lb Pline CXX as backing tied to the braid using an Alberto knot. This summer I'm planning on heading to the West Coast for some salt water fishing. I will be using my buddy's salt water setup but will bring a 4000 size reel loaded with straight mono for side excursions and rock fishing. As for casting, for the environment, lure weight and fish I target, I might cast 20-30 yards on a really good cast. Sometimes just for fun I'll attach a float and let the line float down the river until I reach the backing then slowly reel it back in. When doing this I don't attach a hook as I don't want to risk a snag and risk littering that much line in the river if I had to break the line.

I'm a terrible fisherman so my best lure for when I want to eat fish is Costco.

I put cheap 20lb backing/filler on my reels then about 75 yards (half a spool) of 15-20lb braid. I typically use 7-12' leader of 8-12lb mono or flouro tied with an Alberto knot with a dab of superglue for my own assurance. I do cut, use and abuse the leader then retie another one on. For backing I use cheap mono rather than expensive flouro. By using backing it allows me to use 1 150 yard roll of braid on 2 reels. The weaker test leader allows me to easily break the leader when I snag. Even when I'm not snagging I typically use 8-12 inches of leader every time I tie a terminal knot which prolongs the life of the braid mainline. Except for 1 rod with small guides I do not have a problem with leader to mainline snag or casting problem. For the rod with small guides I have 2 reels with 8lb mono and only mono that I can use. Essentially my spinning setup, except for the 2 reels with straight mono, is a copy my fly fishing setup, backing, mainline, leader, terminal.

Got to revisit and relearn the SDJ. Besides this thread, a lot of folks here like this knot. A few months ago I tied the SDJ about 10 times and I found it weak so I did not trust it. Obviously operator error.

But....that's not his problem. The OP's problem is the terminal knot. The mainline to leader connection is fine. IMO, ditching the leader and tying that thin of a braid with a 5 wrap uni knot would be worse. Thin braid requires more wraps and I've found that even with 10 wraps it still can slip with "some" line. That's why I use a Polamar for my terminal knot. When I experimented with a uni I found I had to put a dab of super glue on the terminal knot to secure it otherwise it will work itself loose after about 20 good strong manual tug. I myself use a leader and found my breakage is at the leader or terminal knot but so far never at the mainline to leader connection. This is as expected and as planned. In a snag I want the line to break somewhere in the leader.

30 years. Just getting back into it this year. Went from half a fishing rod and 1 cheap reel to 10 rods and 16 reels since January of this year. Been out at least an hour or 2 every day for the last 3 weeks. So far I caught 4 bridges, 8 branches and a whole lot of weed. Got 3 bites. Almost landed a pike yesterday but it broke off my line 5 feet from me. So far I'm loving I'm loving it.

The OP clearly states where the problem is in his original post.

I'd first double check and look further into the problem. Tie the 8# leader 10 times and manually break the knot. Take a look at where it is breaking. At the line? At the knot? Is the knot coming apart? If the knot is coming apart then it is user error so change knot, add more wraps or possibly change leader. But changing leader may not be the answer if it is failing due to user error. Any knot will fail unless tied properly. If it is not user error and the knot is breaking at the knot then I would look at changing knot. If it is not user error and the line is breaking at the line or sometimes at the line and sometimes at the knot then I would change leader.

Personally I would not spend good money on cheap/bad gear. I would invest the time in elbow grease and a little oil and reel grease and stop at that. Sure I would maintain and tinker the heck out of it but cheap gear will always be cheap gear. This year I took advantage of Cabelas and BP's Spring sale and trade-in program to convert cheap reels and rods into Stradics, Nasci, Ultegra and Avids. Nothing wrong with my old cheap gear and they were working as good as new when I traded them in but they don't compare to the better stuff.

At best those are just general guidelines. Rod power and action for that matter is similar to describing taste and smell. It is subjective. With my other hobby of cigars, whiskys, and beers I see it all the time. I never did figure out what a cigar that smell like a white lotus flower on the 2nd day after a full moon 2 feet from a donkey's arse taste like. I rate my rods like my cigars and whisky (maybe women)....bad, good or gooder.

If you bought the rod new and are not happy with it, return it. Or contact the manufacturer and hopefully they will fix it. There are many reasons I prefer buying at a local tackle shop. Besides supporting them I can look, feel, molest the product before buying. This is especially so with "high end" rods and tackle. Actually I would question doing business with any tackle shop that would put on the sales floor any crappy/defective rod. To spend more money on a Cadillac that clearly looks like a Cavalier is nuts in my books. I definitely would not be replacing any parts myself. If I damaged it or worse bought from a place that do not do returns it had better be one heck of a deal.

Exactly my experience too. This winter I spent a lot of time while watching TV refreshing and learning to tie fishing and outdoor knots. Got pretty good at tying the double uni and crazy/modified Alberto knot. The FG is a no go for me. The world's best knot is useless to me unless I can tie it properly. 90% of my setup is braid to fluoro leader using a crazy Alberto knot finished off with a dab of super glue. I can tie this in my sleep, in wind, cold, in dim light and even half tanked. So far none have failed and no problem going through the rod guide. Most of my leaders is approximately 10-12' long. To the OP, lots of good knots for tying leader to mainline out there. Learn one or 2 and get really really good at it. Learn on different lines and type of lines. A knot will only work for you if and when you learn how to tie it and know it's strength, weakness and application.

Why not just contact the factory and get a direct replacement from them?

Every rod from every brand can be broken either intentionally, by accident or from hard use. I got a Carbonlite 2 6'6" spinning rod that I use regularly and like a lot. Would not hesitate to get another one at the right price.

I'm a fan of Daiwa and Shimano fishing tackle. No need to limit oneself to one or the other or for these 2 brands only. There are lots of good tackle out there. I don't get the 1 vs the other mentality. Everyone makes good and bad products. Find what works for you at a price you can afford, use it and enjoy it. Once I've bought an item I owe nothing more to brand x.

Always find it interesting that we equate human vision and human mental processing of said vision to fish. How do we know what or how a fish see and how they process what they see? I don't think anybody knows. People do know what works for them under x, y, z conditions on a certain day when the moon and stars are in alignment. Even the best fisherman/woman have bad fishing days. But to say that fish x can clearly see line y in certain water z is just marketing talk.

Big fan of TAFishing out of the UK. Most of his fishing technique doesn't apply to me due to regulations and being landlocked. But Graeme is entertaining and some of his tips are very useful. Can't stomach most fishing YouTube channels as they are nothing more than bad used car salesman. I get on YouTube to get away from commercials, don't need to watch 4 min of commercials for a 30 second video.

There are quite a few reliable terminal knots that can be utilized based on user preference. Pick one or two that works for you for the type of tackle and equipment that your prefer. Then practice, practice and practice some more tying those knots until you can do it from muscle memory. During the winter months, when I'm not out fishing or in the back country, I practice knot tying while watching TV. I do this every day or every second day. Using cheap 8-10# mono and braid I will go through my cycle of 5-6 knots that I use and rely on. After each knot is tied I will test the line/knot combo by physically breaking it and seeing where it fails. At the line or at the knot and why? Learn, backed by experience, the characteristic of the knots, where it is most applicable and when is best to use it. I've never subscribe to the school of thought that will only use 1 knot for x number of years. Why? Because like all things in life, there is more than one way to do things and sometime something better comes along. I like to have a tackle box full of useful knots in my head that I can tie in my sleep and that I know will work based on theory, practice and experience.

Double check your technique. 3 rods breaking (over what time period?) while fishing seems a lot to me. An expensive rod will break as well as a cheap rod if technique is off. Car doors and tailgates are an equal opportunity heart breaker. For that reason I have some cheaper rods to abuse. Under certain conditions I don't need the sensitivity and there is a high likely hood of a broken rod. So out comes my cheap rods.

Baits and lures are design and marketed to catch more anglers than fish.

I love a good scotch paired with a good cigar. As for recommendation....where to begin. The Oban and MaCallan recommendation is good. Lagavulin 16 is also favourite of many. There have not been a Glendronach that I have not liked. Of those Lagvulin and Obans are very peaty. Most new scotch drinkers will not like it but I've seen many who gravitate towards peatier scotch as their taste changes. MaCallan are also fantastic. In my books the MaCallan 12 are fantastic for the price and the MaCallan 18 is one of my all time favourite. We can't get MaC 12 and 18 anymore in Canada which is bloody bummer laddie. Getting taxed to death is not good either. Finally, I love most any scotch that is cask with Oloroso Sherry cask as they tend to be on the sweet side and pairs well with a cigar. So many others I could recommend but start with these. Cheers.