so after peeling the good braid off of the reel I a thinking to spool up some cheap 4-6 lb mono to learn to cast.
I'm thinking it will be much like braid and not a big loss if I have to use a knife to remove over runs!
Heavy, medium or lightweight casting weight to start?

Sound reasonable to those of you chuckling to yourself over the problems the noobie is going to encounter during the learning phase.

I find braid is harder to backlash then mono.The key to baitcasters is make sure the reel spool tension is set so the spool doesn't over run when you put it in free spool.Also when I cast,I let my thumb very lightly drag the spool.

Use mono. It is cheaper and easier to get backlashes out of. 4-6 lb test is really light. I’d start with about 10 lb test which will be a little easier to control and will hold up to pulling backlases out without breaking. When I teach people, depending on the size of the reel and rod combo, I start them with a 1/2 to 1 oz weight, tied directly to the line (like a bank weight for example). No hooks, no lures, just the weight. Wind at your back, in a field or somewhere you have clear casting room without snags. There should be a spool tension adjust knob on the right side of the reel in line with the spool arbor (assuming the reel handle is on the right hand side), and some reels will also have an adjustment on the left side as well (sometimes magnetic or centrifugal), but not always. For a very new beginner, you wasnt to adjust the spool tension until the weight falls slowly from the rod tip and doesnt overrun when it hits the ground. Tighter if need be, but until you get the feel for it, looser will likely result in a backlash (overrun).

When you get ready to cast, hold your thumb on the spool, disengage the reel (freespool), bring the rod back and cast. What you want to feel is to almost drag your thumb against the spool as the line goes out. Too much pressure and no line goes out. Too little and youll backlash it when the weight hits the ground or water. Youre basically controlling the speed of the spool while letting line go out. I normally tell new casters to try to slow down and stop the spool before the weight hits the ground/water, even if you have to stop it short for a while until you get the hang of it. Pressure on the spool should be greatest when starting and stopping your cast. Too much pressure and the weight doesnt go very far and stops abruptly. Too little and the reel will backlash when the weight lands. Practice this until you can smoothly cast and slow the spool when the weight lands without backlashing.

Then, when you start to have a feel for it, slightly loosen the spool tension and repeat until you get to the point of the spool t ension being light or non existent and you are able to slightly wiggle the spool side to side in the frame (pretty much zero spool tension), with the spool controlled only by your thumb. When you have that down, go with a lighter weight and learn to cast that, then learn casting into the wind, which is probably the hardest thing to do with light weight and a baitcaster. Also watch some youtube videos, which will also help.

Dont give up and keep at it until you get the feel of controlling the speed the spool turns at. Once youre good, you’ll never lose it.

Good luck.

Capt Craig gave you the right info. Particularly about the line weight. A good way to begin fishing is with a softer 10 lb mono line for fishing because you will adjust the tension frequently for weight you are casting and how you've learned. When you are fishing a single lure of a single weight is not likely to be what you stick with. Plan on frequent backlashes and just keep on casting. It does take a while to get good at it If you have someone who uses a bait caster all the time they can set the reel for one bait with a couple of casts and make your life easier.

Make sure you are using the proper line weight and the proper rod rating for the lure you are casting.

I thought this had not gone through, did NOT realize I sent it to Salt Water.
I am using 340 and 175 grain rejects, starting with the 340s.
If the Moderator is so inclined this should probably posted there instead of here.

Sunny but 36 for a high today so not going out i the pasture to practice til it warms up.
Did send some pellets down range today.

Funny I have 3 different kinds of Crosman's that do not perform well on paper, these new (4th) Domes are the only ones that shoot decent groups.
TSC stocks them of all places and I got the last tin they had on the rack. They were out two weeks ago also.
You would think that would be a hint to whoever orders stock.

Wet your line on the spool first, use techniques mentioned above. Start short, work longer as you get more confident. Then let let the F'er fly, most backlashes with mono are easy to pick out.

IME heavier mono is easier to cast but you'll lose a little distance. As said above it's also easier to pick out backlashes. I'd go with 10, 12 or 14 lb Trilene XL. Not that expensive and I've found it casts about as well or better than a lot of brands.

I used 20lb mono with a heavy weight and tightened it up to slow the spool down. Didn't cast very far at first but as I go the hang of how to cast without getting backlash, I loosened up the spool tension and then switched to lighter line and lighter weight. Didn't take long to learn that way and all the practice helped me with my accuracy and learning how to "ease" the lure into the target with gentle thumb tension.....

Fairly decent today so I went out and tried 50 casts or so.
Only one "cut the line out" backlash.
I was trying for accuracy/control rather than distance.
I'm thinking 100 casts every time I get to practice . . .

AGAIN accuracy/control over distance

learn to sling it underhand too...

So far "all" of my casting has been side arm.

Went to youtube and found a video on clearing birds nest easily.
Tried one overhand cast and the techniques in the birds nest clearing video were put to good use.
Previously I would likely have used scissors or a knife as it was pretty balled up.
I would would love to see a birds nest forming in really slow motion.
Makes no sense to me.

The 340 Grain projie is going to get replaced with 175 grainer next session (likely rained out tomorrow from the forecast).

Somehow I think the lighter weight will be more difficult.

I have two reels and one was filled with braid when I got it.
Well I decided to try it though not sure how dragging braid across the pasture is for line life.
Well as it got better, I decided I was in for a really long cast to end the day.
Holy mackerel look at that mess!
I learned that one of those brass fillers in the old style ball point pen makes a beautiful birds nest "picker".
Pick, pick, gentle pull, pluck, pluck and poof no ore tangle.
In the past I would have done it faster with a knife at the cost of a "lot" of line.
Thanks to all here, you have got properly me started, now just a few thousand casts and will have gotten a good go at it.

Louis,

Your cast with a baitcaster should be high and have a lot of arch to it so that the spool inertia runs out before the lure hits the water.

Link?

I'm looking, but you know how hard it is to find a site when it was an accidental find the first time

There are 2 kinds of backlashes ( start of cast & end of cast) . The brake controls the cast at the very start, which is the fastest spool speed. The spool tension controls the end of cast, where the spool is still turning fast when the lure stops. Set the spool tension to the point that when holding the rod level with a lure (without hooks) that you might fish with. Disengage the spool allowing it to free fall, adjust tension till spool stops when lure hits ground, might take a couple of tries. To set brakes adjust according to weight of lures you think you will be using, heavy lures max brakes. The heavy brake set up will shorten your distance but the thumb will become educated and you will be able to go lighter on the brakes. Depending on which type of brake your reel has ( Magnetic or mechanical) will determine how quick & easy it is to set the brake. Mechanical type means pulling side cover off and adding or eliminating small hollow plastic tubes. Most reels come with an assortment of plastic tubes of different sizes. If there is only 2 tubes, make sure both are the same size, larger tubes will make it easier to start learning to cast. If more than 2 tubes, you should be able to lock opposing pairs so that they slide or do not slide. Magnetic brakes simply adjust from the outside, with more magnetic force meaning more control over the initial spool start speed but again less distance. Quality of the reel can affect all of the factors in backlashes!!!!!

Remember accuracy of cast is far more important than distance.

practice and more practice a side benefit will be learning to get backlashes out.

And Practice!!!

I learned by practicing in the backyard with a Garcia 5000. Trilene XL is your friend. 15 to 17 lb test is easy to cast and easier to pick out the birds nest. Hold the rod horizontal, handles pointing up or down, thumb on the spool, put it in free spool and remove your thumb. Set the brake so the spool stops turning when the weight touches the ground. Practice short casts and work for accuracy. Don't cast into the wind. Learn to cast with both hands, you will be glad you did latter.

My fishing mentor would not let me use a baitcaster in his boat until I could hit a skoal can floating in the water with the lure. Just learn to pick out the back lash. Accidents happen and we all get a bird's nest occasionally.

sell it and get a good spinning reel or just use it for trolling. why put up with the hassle?

Just read the directions that came with the reel. FOLLOW THEM. Ignore anything you read on the internet.

Don't think you are going to be backlash free after you learn to use a baitcaster. After 40 years of using one I still have the occasional backlash. It's nature of the beast. Don't over think it. That is the problem most people have with baitcasters when they are first starting out. If you tend to throw hard or cast hard with your arm then you need to use or set your brake more. If you tend to throw softer or cast softer then not as much.

Sunday was the first day as a fishing test.
No lure slinging, just common bank fishing.
Could have used spin cast, but I wanted to actually try fishing with it.
strong wind, directly into our face.

Did fin until something happened and I ended up with something that had me reaching for my knife.
Luckily it was bout time to quit anyway.