Late May 2019. Big Hole River, Montana. 3 days total, 1st day on a small pond where I caught several small rainbows and a 22 inch, 4 pound Brown on flies. 2nd and 3rd days fully guided float on the river, I caught 20 rainbows, 18 Brookies and 16 Browns, again all on flies. This trip was one of the best fishing trips I have ever been on, which includes multi day tuna trips.

Almost all of the trout I have caught have been after 8am and before 6pm. Of course, at 6pm I am thinking more of eating than I am of catching fish!

I would think that the maximum pressure available to apply to a hooked fish is determined by:
1) breaking strength of your line
2) where the drag is set
3) the amount of line you have in the water
4) the fighting ability of the fish.
The variables are the amount of line in the water and the breaking strength of the line.
An explanation is probably needed here. If you buy a 100 yard spool of 10 pound fishing line, the actual breaking strength is probably 10.2 or 10.3 pounds over the entire length of line. If you buy a 5000 yard spool of 10 pound line the breaking strength will vary at approximately 1000 yard intervals by as much as .3 of a pound. This is why the IGFA requires a length of line used to determine which category to check for any possibility of a new record.

Mr. Bass face, I would like to ask you a few questions. I do not need your reply, rather I would like you to reflect on your answers to these questions.
Do you eat fish? If your answer is no you need go no further.
If you eat fish, are these fish that you personally caught?
Do you ever eat fish in a restaurant?
Do you ever buy fish (either fresh or canned) in a market?
Then think about this...all the fish sold, whether in a restaurant or a market were caught commercially and sold. Your ex buddy catches a few extra fish and shares with the less fortunate who are not able to catch their own (for whatever reason.) I will not condemn or condone either practice because fish were put on this planet for everyone to use as we see fit.
I think a little reflection on your answers to these questions may help you to understand all of us on the other side of your argument.
I personally see no reason for you to be "pissed off" at your ex buddy for sharing his catch.

Have you tried a small pillow for your back and seat cushions for your backside?

I would say don't just cast, but rather cast to a specific spot. Place buckets, hula hoops or paper plates at different distances and try to place your "bait" in/on the plate/hoop/bucket. When you are fishing, the closer you get to your target, the better chance you have of getting a strike.

I don't think a bobber is the right answer to your dilemma. If you ae using nightcrawlers, put a marshmallow on the point of the hook to float the worm (or inflate the worm with air to make it float.) If you are using cheese, try Berkeley's power bait or Zeke's floating cheese.

I see nothing immoral about fishing. When our creator made us and everything else, we were told to use the resources for our livelihood.

If you get into Bishop, there was a very good resource for fishing the Owens R. They sold bait and tackle along with other stuff, but also gave out excellent information about where and when to fish the river. Unfortunately it has been over 40 years since I was up there so the place might not be there now. Look for any tackle shop in the town and they should be able to help you.

I have found a soap that takes the smell from my hands. It is sold by Sportsmans Warehouse. The name on the bottle is "Coghlans Camp Soap", I think.
That said, with my hands clean I still have a distinct odor coming from my hands and have found that if I clean under my fingernails thoroughly and then use my camp soap, I no longer have a fishy smell on my hands.
Look it up at https://www.sportsmans.com/camping-gear-supplies/safety-survival/personal-hygiene/coghlans-camp-soap/p/p9232

If your reel has enough line capacity surf fishing should be no problem. Just remember to thoroughly clean and lube the reel after every trip!
There are many lakes in So. Cal. where your baitcaster can be used. If you live in Huntington Beach you might want to try Irvine lake. It is fairly close and there are lots of good sized fish (both trout and LMB) in this impoundment. There are also Santa Ana Lakes (one entry fee, but several lakes) fairly close.

When I was a teenager, I used to go to the Santa Monica pier to fish for Bonito. One day a kid showed up with a Zebco spincast reel on a spinning rod. He said he had 20 pound line loaded on the reel. He hooked a larger Bonito (for that location) and fought it until his reel came apart. It wasn't an explosion but the reel burst into many pieces. He didn't lose the fish but his trip ended when several of the fishermen helped him handline the fish onto the pier.
I can not testify to the maintenance performed on this reel prior to this incident, but my takeaway was "If fishing for really good fighting fish, DO NOT USE A SPINCAST REEL!"
The only other problem I have with spincast reels is the line capacity is very limited which means they are not a good choice for saltwater fishing.

I have been tubing for over 30 years and really enjoy fishing from my tube. That said, recently I have been considering trading in my tube for a pontoon. They are easier to move across the water and you can attach an anchor so you are able to stay in one place without all the commotion of turning around and around and around when the wind is blowing.

The end of Tourmaline St. in Pacific Beach is very good for surf fishing. For bait, try anchovies, sardines and/or squid. All of these should work pretty good!
If you go here stay to the left of the parking lot as there are lots of rocks straight out and to the right.

Independent is right. Learn to fly fish first. If you feel the need to spend that much money on a tying bench and materials after you have caught fish, then go ahead, but remember that tying flies is more expensive than buying them ( a single fly tied is less expensive than a bought fly unless you consider the time it takes to tie a single fly for a beginner.) This is due to the fact that no matter how you collect the waste materials and how frugal you are with all materials, you won't use all of them in your tying. Example, when you buy dubbing ( a common material on many flies) you get enough in one package to tie thousands of flies. Marabou is almost as bad, you can get hundreds of flies from one package.