This might seem like a basic question, but I have searched high and low for any answer to this and all I found was a basic, cryptic answer in Binfinex's FAQ.

I'm a UK trader on Bitfinex. I moved my BTC into a BTC wallet on Bitfinex and have been trading with it on the BTC/USD pair.
Bitfinex always pays out on winning trades in the last currency in the pair. In this case, it's USD.

So now I have a large USD balance, but I haven't a clue how to convert it into BTC. I can't wire the USD out either because Binfinex doesn't process withdrawls of fiat currency.

Their FAQ states that I can convert my USD into BTC by the following method:
"If you only want to hold BTC after closing a margin trade, you will need to manually exchange USD profits into BTC using the BTC/USD pair by highlighting "Exchange" in the Order Form box on the trading page."

Now I've tried this and it doesn't seem to work, or maybe I'm doing something wrong. But there should really be a fundamental and clear explanation of how to accomplish this.
Do I need to wait until I have 1 full BTC before I can convert it? A step by step example would be great, anyone?

My view is to go for it and here's why.

Many people in this thread give you the warning that it's likely to drop after the fork. I agree with that. However if you think ahead, in the long term, BTC is highly likely to recover and regain that initial loss back for you, by which time you have an equal amount of BTC and BTG.

It's for this reason I'm holding mine over the fork.

A no reply says a lot I think! Isn't it time there was some answer to these types of questions people ask every day but never get answered?

I'll be honest and tell you I have watched about 20 videos on the subject, read blogs online and posts on this topic right here in this forum. But after hours (and days) of research, I still cannot get a clear and fundamental, decisive answer to my questions and concerns about the upcoming bitcoin fork this October 2017. The problem is not (I think) that there aren't many of you supremely clever folk who understand the tech and what will happen. The problem is that supremely clever folk only seem to be good at imparting this information to other supremely clever folk and not to the reasonably clever, but not as clever folk who just want to know what the heck is going on!   

So, pretend this is a "bitcoin fork for dummies thread," and could some kind soul please try to answer the following in a concise, methodical (yet reasonably simple) way?
We'll start of with an easy one (I think!)

1. There is conflicting information about when this "hard fork" will occur. Even on this page, some say October 16th, some say October 25th, some are as far out as 19th November in YouTube videos. Some clarity would be very helpful.

2. As I understand it, a hard fork is a 'duplication?' of the existing, core Bitcoin blockchain... (BTC)? The new copy still maintains the ledger (ie. all previous transactions), but from a certain block on this future date, will be a brand new alt coin (effectively). Is this the case?

3. Here is where my understanding gets fuzzy... If the current market cap for Bitcoin is, say, 80 billion USD, what happens to that cap? Is it also split? eg. Bitcoin core = 40 billion, Bitcoin gold = 40 billion? Or are we duplicating the worth of our portfolio? (Say I own 1 BTC, will I physically own 1 BTC and 1 BTG after the fork) - How much will my 1 BTC be worth? How much would my 1 BTG be worth? Have I doubled my investment?

4. Where is safest to store my 1 BTC now, before the fork? Is blockchain.info safe? As this is sort of an exchange, they would own my private key, yes? So should I move the bitcoin to a hardware wallet, or some other wallet that provides my private keys?

5. From watching videos on YouTube and reading various blogs, the general advice seems to be to hold on to the bitcoin for a few days after the fork to prevent 'replay attacks' - (Whatever the heck that is!). Is this the right advice? How many days?

I really wish there were greater clarity around events like this so ALL of us could fully understand the implications and have solid advice to work from. Currently, I just see very disjointed, conflicting and half-answered or confusing accounts of this event which is almost upon us (at least I think it is, depending on whose version of events you adopt!)

Many, many thanks to anyone who can lead with an answer to this!

Yours,

A befuddled Bitcoin investor.

I've come across a number of places that will exchange BTC into fiat currency, but all have a shockingly bad exchange rate.

What methods offer the best exchange rate these days?

I'm afraid JP Morgans plans for Bitcoin are a lot more sinister than trying to make a quick buck buying up as much as possible on the cheap.

This isn't a profit-making bid, it's JP Morgan's longer-term plan to eliminate Bitcoin. Should a great quantity of the coin be controlled by one or two organisations, it's possible to manipulate the market to drive it into the ground.