Team9nine

If your drag is good and heavy cover isn't a problem, you shouldn't have any problem with 4lb. line. You might even consider moving up to 6lb. if you don't feel comfortable with the 4. Ned and other "Midwest Finesse" practitioners typically use either 8-10lb. braid with an 6-8lb. fluoro leader, or just straight 6-8lb. mono or fluoro for most of their fishing. The system is pretty fun, but you might also add some 1/16-oz. jigheads into the mix, as the 1/32nds are awefully light and good only for pretty shallow water. -T9

Most everything I've seen is what South FLA posted...through the bottom and the top loops (#1), just doubled in your particular scenario. -T9

Gear ratio should have nothing to do with casting distance, to my knowledge. On most all reels, everything disengages on the cast, so only the spool is spinnning, controlled by whatever degree of braking system you have in place. -T9

Alberto is a great knot, but as you found out yourself, its strength can vary depending on how careful you tie the knot. I've actually migrated over to the J knot, which is nearly as strong, but doesn't require the level of attentiveness to maintain its strength (read: I can tie it more easily and consistently). -T9

Certainly don't use it for everything, but over half my bass every year come on spinning outfits, not to mention a load of crappie and other panfish. Just like everything else, it's a great tool in the right situations, and it's as efficient/good as the time you put in learning to use it. If you don't like it, don't use it. Fishing is supposed to be fun... -T9

I'd be surprised if it's a mix of the two, because Sensation has less stretch than either XT (by a little) or XL (by a lot) lines individually. I actually haven't found a mono/copoly or fluoro line that stretches less, though I certainly haven't tested everything on the market. I've been using it quite a bit lately as both a regular line when I want a mono/copoly with minimal stretch, or as an inexpensive leader line. Pretty good stuff, and the blaze orange is a great color for line watching. -T9

No scent... -T9

Good plan - the knot and line difference should largely be irrelevant, because you should never be casting to the point of reaching that connection, nor have a fish be able to take you into the backing line IMO. -T9

Triple Surgeon's not bad in mono and coploy's, but it is not a good knot to use in braid. The testing I've done with a couple different brands has shown that knot to be the weakest link and break in braid, mainly because the braid cuts into itself too easily. That said, given a high enough breaking strength of braid used to counter the weaker knot, the connection is surprisingly strong. -T9

It'd be a toss-up between Al Lindner and Rick Clunn...decisions, decisions. -T9

Interesting - I'm just the opposite. I want limpness right out of the box. The two lines I mentioned have been the best in that regard. Still early in the weekend, but I was very happy with the first run last night using the 6# 832 with 1/16-oz jigheads. Limp enough to satisfy me, good handling, and I really like the line color. Bite detection was very adequate. I'll try and really put it through the paces this weekend, though I don't have anything close to 4# smallies to test against Did manage crappie, bluegill, largemouth and white bass on the first go, just nothing really large. Still a huge fan of NanoFil, more so for all the open water crappie fishing I do, but has also been great for finesse bassin. The 4# is my favorite, but even after a lot of use, it breaks too easily when tied direct. Even leader knots have to be checked well and sometimes tied several times to get it right, but once you do, life is great. Still haven't found another superline that comes close to its casting distance and low tension feel. Once you hit the 6# and up versions, knot issues seem to become much less a problem. Now, if the previous post about the new colors is correct, and it's something close to flame green FL or neon lime 832, I'll be one happy camper. More details to come hopefully if the fish cooperate... -T9

I also bought spools of 10# and 6# 832 as the next braid to try after NanoFil. I was pretty disappointed with the 10# straight off the spool, as it wasn't near as limp as I was hoping for. I removed it from my shakyhead outfit until I get some more time in with it, as it appears it needs to be "broken in". I've used friends outfits that had it on and was impressed with it, but theirs had been well used. Respooled with the 6# 832 yesterday and plan on giving it a good workout starting tonight. I'll report back in after some thorough use. Hoping I won't be disappointed, because I really like the lime green color vs. the white. So far NanoFil and Spiderwire InvisiBraid running 1-2 in my book, with PP an acceptable 3rd. -T9

Yep - He was throwing it for much of his bite, too, along with a locally made bait - finished 13th. He's tried most of them. He yelled at me good when I bought a Kelly J's this spring Check the pic: Wheeler -T9

Brian's Bee - Know a guy who fished the FLW Cup on Ouachita last summer and he said the Brian's Bee was tied on most everybody's rod that was fishing that pattern, whether they had a competing sponsor product or not. It runs truer with better action than the Kelly J. -T9

Andrew - If you're still into coarse fishing, you're in luck living there. Check out the Indiana Bank Anglers fishing club (Tony Forte & the guys). Also a very strong contingent of such anglers in the Chicago area. Otherwise, the St. Joe is a very good smallmouth river, and parts of it also have good walleye and a salmon/trout run from off Lake Michigan. Lots of very good natural lakes up in the area, also. -T9

Roughly 3.5 million years ago, though the entire Micropterus lineage goes back about 7-8 million years. -T9

Randall nailed it from my experience. It's one of the overlooked things when companies and individuals first started making knock-offs haphazardly just to compete in the market and capitalize on the craze. The head shouldn't be that heavy relative to the jigheads, otherwise you get exactly what you describe. In fact, my favorite versions have very lightweight resin heads. It's the equivalent of casting a crankbait with a weight transfer system. If the design and balance is correct, wind isn't an issue. I've thrown properly balanced rigs in 20-30 mph winds for hours without any problems. -T9

Short answer in my opinion is yes, you are limiting yourself for no good reason. There are no standards in rod ratings, only suggested weight ranges. Don't fret over a 1/16-oz. Buy a ML rated down to 1/8-oz. and you'll be fine. I've got 5 such outfits now that I use and all of them are pretty cross functional when it comes to light tackle applications. Action (fast, x-fast, mod.) will be more important. -T9

As I understand it, the AC models are the older ones without IPC (Integrated Poly Curve) technology. The AVC models have IPC and a slightly different finish, as well as a slightly higher price point Not certain on price, though I believe the going rate used to be $90-$120 new... -T9

Yes...and no. Last year, about half my bass (>1,000) came on 6# or less line, down to 2.5# test. But, I won't use an ultralight rod to fish it, and that is the big difference in my opinion. I've got several outfits set up for this type fishing and they all utilize ML rods with either fast or extra-fast actions. The whole setup is much more efficient from start to finish, including the time required to play and land a bass, versus using an "ultra" light. -T9

Ditto - RW had the shorter, more direct answer but this one is a 'nicer' way of saying the same thing - -T9

x2 on the above - Just measured one of my reels a couple days ago for another reason and it was right on...but I'm a spool overfiller. Over or underfilling basically acts as a way to change relative gear ratio. -T9

Bingo! The only thing I'd add is that line type can definitely make a difference in combination with the above....and clarify that it's the fingertips with the most mechanoreceptors, not the whole finger/hand. -T9

Something is wrong on your end. Either your setup is wrong, your technique is bad, or you're tying a bad knot at the lure. To your questions: I use a Palomar knot on about everything. I've caught nearly 900 bass on 6# fluorocarbon leader line (braid main line) using a Palomar knot in the past 4-5 months and can only recall 1 break-off at the knot. Unless you got a bad spool of line, InvisX isn't the problem. I landed a 44.6lb. flathead on 8# InvisX year before. Used 8# InvisX for all my shakyhead leaders this year and never broke it off once. It's good line. -T9

If you want an honest to goodness quality (read: accurate) meter for those type readings, not just some gimmick, plus you want that length of cable, you're probably going to spend at least $400+ on the pH meter, and $500+ on the oxygen meter. Neither of those type devices are worth spending that kind of money on in relation to how much they will (or actually won't) help your fishing. They simply don't eliminate enough water to make it worth your money. You'll get way more usable info for half the cost from a good graph. -T9