MickD

The comments on blanks breaking lead me to recall the day I snagged a crank in shallow water fishing with my PB731MXF and the wind blew the boat over the snag. My PB was bent so sharply around the trolling motor shaft that I thought it was already broken. I got the snag loose and inspected the rod and the only apparent damage was a couple bent guides. I've been using the rod for about 3 years since. Seems the PB's are pretty tough.

It's like women's shoes and purses: One cannot have too many rods/reels.

LoganS, please explain your power number. I notice that one blank with 480 IP is 4.3 while one with 505 is 4.1. thanks I must have gotten a different blank on the RS IMM72ML as mine is much slower and less powerful than yours. It was a disappointment to me based on my expectations from its description. Nothing close to 81 degrees. I am not disputing your numbers.

For Point Blank CCS data go to the Anglers Resource site, click on "Open Menu," click on the blank section, click on "click here. . . . ", click on "Product" for product descriptions, click on the length you want to look at, then under each blank's description you will see a dim link called "Hard Specs." Sounds complicated, but it's logical, and do it a few times it becomes a piece of cake. I don't see a MLXF there. I wouldn't go lighter in power than this one. And 77 degrees is pretty fast. PB661MXF Length: 6 ft 6 inches Action Angle: XF • 66-degrees (RDA) • 77-degrees (CCS) Power: Med / 395gr (RDA) • ERN 19 (CCS) Weight: 1.41oz. Butt Dia: 13.91 mm Tip Size: 1.68mm (4.5) Lure Wt: 1/32 to 5/8oz Sugg Line Wt: 6-14 mono 10-15lb braid

Seems like if FC advantages stated here are important, then braid would offer even more of them. Especially the sinking braids. I don't get this logic. ??

That will most likely result in a mottled look, which I have always found to be a killer look in any kind of lure. I just have to try it!

Moderate or moderate fast action, power recommendation for the rod should have 3/8 at about the center of the range. The longer the rod the more a fast action will act like a slower action.

Cast by fly has it right, IMO, glass is just too heavy and you can get any action and power in graphite that you can get in glass. I tried the NFC "fast glass" , built one, seems like a club compared to my graphite rods of the same length and similar power/action.

my favorite rod for this type of fishing is the PB701MLF. Don't be fooled by the ML designation, it has an ERN of about 20, or 580 grams. 77 degree action angle. Most anglers would consider this a medium power blank. I use it for everything from neds up to 3/8 tubes. And cranks. I also fish the 7 foot 2 RX10 Medium power. 597 grams, 75 degrees. The two rods fish a lot alike, but I like the PB best. As some of you know, I do True Natural Frequency testing and Point Blanks generally have the highest TNF numbers of the premium blanks. While the RX10 is high, it is slightly under the PB701MLF. Being a little longer this might be expected. Some argue that TNF indicates sensitivity, and I believe that, but that position is not universally held. However no one has yet provided objective data that disproves it. It is clear and not in dipute that the higher the TNF the higher the recovery speed from deflection.

What are you trying to accomplish?

The finished knot shows that as originally proposed the leader is wrapped around a doubled braid. If you reverse the lines the braid will be wrapped around a doubled leader. If the leader is doubled it is not an FG and will not be as small. It will be more sized like an Alberto. If I'm interpreting it wrong, let me know.

That is not an FG knot. The leader is wrapped multiple times around the braid, therefore it will be quite a large knot. The FG consists of weaves of the braid around the leader, but no wraps of the leader.

I expect they did market research and found that for cost savings it could be dropped without sacrificing many sales. I won't buy a reel without a switch, and fiddling with the drag to let out a little line is something I'm not willing to put up with. Most if not all Daiwa reels still have the switch.

Make sure you like reels without anti reverse switches.

I agree with those stating that braid can last many years, but also caution that some braids have a tendency to "loosen up" the weave and fray, as WRB stated, and when that is noticed I change out the line or reverse it on the reel. But to specifically answer this question, yes it will be fine.

If buying night crawlers try to get the media that's required for Canada, paper I think it is. It is so much cleaner in the boat than the usual black dirt which inevitably will trash your boat. There has never been a live bait of any kind in my boat And I doubt if there ever will be.

I agree that the difference in clarity, or the fish's ability to see it, is overrated. The main differences are in diameter for a given pound test and in density. The FC tends to sink while the mono is very close to the density of water which means it will not drag a surface lure under when it's worked. I use mono for my rigs that I'm likely to use for surface, and FC for the others. The slightly smaller diameter and higher density mean that with FC greater fishing depths will be easier to attain. And there will be slight differences in how lures, especially finesse lures, move. I don't see the reasons for using one over the other are all that compelling.

My favorite thread now is Fuji Ultra Poly. I like its sheen and how it wraps. I have two favorites, candy apple with gold metallic and black trims, and dark green with gold metallic and black trims. Orange inlays/trims look good with the dark green also. I only use size A. I have never had a flaw in a spool of Fuji. They are just introducing a whole new group of colors, including some prismatic metallics, so you are sure to find what you want there. Here is the best depiction of their colors I could find. https://www.therodroom.com/shop/pc/Ultra-Poly-c212.htm

Lighters are a bit problematic in the wind. I would trust the knot better without exposing it to a lighter. I get the superglue and extra half hitches, but no on the lighter.

It is my opinion that the FG, designed for heavy salt leaders , works best with heavy salt leaders. As you can see, many make it work with the light stuff, but it's a pain for most of us. You don't need its size advantage when using braids of 15 pound test or less and leaders of 15 or less. The Alberto, (and even the double uni with most guides) will work just fine. I add a tightly set half hitch to the braid tag end for added security. I've had some Albertos which I thought were tied right unravel.

You probably will use light line on it so the 20 is plenty big, probably bigger than needed. But it will work. As you get more experienced you will buy guides separately rather than sets, and there does not need to be a progressive reduction in size of the running guides. After the reduction guides, all runners can be the same size, and smaller/lighter is better consistent with passing all the knots you plan to use. I have made rods with only two reduction guides, and with braids of about 15 pound test it works just fine. I now exclusively use the KLH reduction guides and KT/KB runners.

I would add 3 running guides to give 3 reduction and 3 running guides, place them with the two line static test. https://anglersresource.net/static-load-tutorial/

I always wait overnight, but with Pro Kote that might even be a little early. It doesn't need to be totally cured, but should not be tacky, IMHO. I think the biggest issue causing wavy finish is excessive finish applied. I use Gen 4 lite or Flex Coat lite and apply it what many might call sparingly, usually needing two coats. But my wraps are straight, flat, no footballs, look very good. Try cutting back on how much you are applying. You can carefully sand them level and apply another coat, keeping it just enough to get the gloss of wet epoxy over the whole area of the wrap. On some blanks excessive epoxy can add enough weight to slow the recovery speed of the blank. There is a reason to keep it minimal besides the football appearance. So keep your wraps no longer than necessary (about 1/16 inch past the foot is all you need) and don't overload with epoxy.

Yes, I've used it to get a gloss finish on a blank and used it (because it is so thin and light) on the reinforcing wraps of external sleeve rod repairs. Good stuff, but yes, you want good ventilation. I have never used it to stabilize a nail knot. CP is always on my bench, easy to use, and most of the time I will be using it on the main wrap so a pinch of it on the nail knot that might get into the main wrap isn't a problem.

Nail knot is the easiest for me as long as it is about 4 wraps. I can get three with most metallics. A tip that will help is to put a dab of CP onto the knot before cutting off the ends. This will stabilize the knot somewhat preventing it from unravelling when the cutting of the ends is done. Also, I think you'll find using a small dowel or similar instrument like a small paint brush handle will work better than wrapping around the finger. Give it a try.