Did Dave’s feedback make you rethink how you teach heavier games like Spirit Island, or just lighter ones?

Pre-oiling works but it's not the only way. I've had way better luck just cranking the temp up to 425 and shaking the basket every 5 minutes, gets them crispy without the extra mess from the oil. Tossing them in oil does help the seasoning stick though, so if you're adding salt or paprika anyway it makes sense. For stuff like frozen chicken nuggets or mozz sticks, oil just makes them greasy in my experience, those do fine on their own.

Had a buddy who ran a small shop down in Waco go through the same thing. Old timer watched him run a bead on a trailer frame and told him his stops were fine but his restarts were garbage because he was scared of the cold lap and rushed the tie-in every time. Guy spent a whole weekend just practicing stopping and starting on scrap plate, feathering the crater and backing up an inch before moving forward again. Said it was boring as hell but it fixed a habit he'd had for fifteen years.