Delaware Valley Tackle

They have spacing charts on their site

Pull the spool and see if it's a full shaft or floating design. Full shaft will benefit from super tuning, beyond that a deep cleaning / bearing flush and carbontex drag should suffice.

There's a number stamped on the reel foot to help ID thecright schematic. Gen 1 &2 weren't that different from one another if I remember

Interesting.

I'm not aware of any such thing. I'd expect the butt and tip section being manufactured as pieces unique to one another.

I agree with Mick. Rods can be successfully spliced with less adverse affect than adding ferrules.

You can't get hung up on any one attribute of a rod. Especially since there are no industry standards. What you want to look for is the right blend of power, action, casting and sensitivity for the application. The BassResource.com article referenced is as well written as I've seen. A rod of fast action with a slightly more forgiving butt section is more a change in philosophy than technology imo but I guess that's splitting hairs. Any rod will bend into the handle if enough force is applied. The thing is , lots of modern bass rods are way more powerful in the butt than any bass fishing situation could stress. As for spine, that's 80's theory than many of not most builders have abandoned. You don't fish a rod on just one plane. You cast side arm, underhand, overhead etc. myself and others choose to build on the straightest axis.

The cost of service for members here is $19.80ea (22-10%). Just supply your screen name when sending reels. Shipping and parts are extra. Feel free to email or call with any questions. Mike

A TN grip is all grip with no seat. You can use rings, tape, even thread wraps to secure the reel in place.

Wax and a quarter turn as you seat the ferrule should secure it.

If you're talking about tip top adhesive I don't like that idea. Too much chance of the heat damaging the blank.

In my experience, the main advantage of improving free spool is in accuracy with any added distance as ancillary.

Graphite doesn't have a life span it's just coincidence. If you have the sections the blank can be spliced by a competent builder.

It's easy enough to adjust retrieval speed. When choosing a reel I'm more concerned about the need to take up slack line quickly or torque for pulling heavy/high resistance baits through the water.

Sounds like all televised fishing to me. Hard to look at for me with a few exceptions.

There's no standard for diameter/lb test for either braid or mono. The best you can hope for is an approximation. The braid company may publish their opinion of mono diameter equivalent. That's where I'd start.

Most likely will be fine. If you see the wrap turning cloudy it indicates moisture has gotten in and should be re wrapped. If it will give you peace of mind you can seal it up with a dab of clear nail polish.

Don't boat flip fish period. It's a misuse of your rod and worse yet, disrespectful and unnecessarily rough on the fish.

20# braid is too light in my opinion. It may be digging in. It's impossible to tell if the brake system is working sight unseen.

If you do much steel head fishing this is a common scenario. Not an indication of a problem of any kind with the reel. If anything the drag may have been set too tight. I'm a believer in the carbontex drag.

It's not a clear cut decision. There are many factors that go into a blank besides base material: scrim, resin, mandrels, processes etc. one of the most intriguing parts of rod building is experimenting with different blanks. Granted not every builder has the time or budget for this on every build. Better to inquire about blanks for a specific application and weed through the responses.

Use the same power, action and length as you would for any other rig of the same weight in the same conditions. The drop shot terminal rig can be employed in a lot of ways. The real technique specific application is vertical jigging finesse baits in open water targeting fish seen on electronics. This is where the <7' MLXF spinning tackle shines.

Daiwa will be cheaper and quicker. The membership has pointed you in the right direction.

Mag brakes are not intended to contact any moving part. The magnetic field is what slows the spool. Don't believe everything you see on the internet. Except here of course. ?

Start slow. Rod building is an awesome craft but not for everyone. I recommend hand wrapping and hand drying the first couple. It's a little tedious but gives you great insight into how epoxy behaves as it sets.