Trolling Rods/Reels Opinions

[titelines]

I'm in the market for a trolling set-up and am looking for some advice on rods, reels, line etc.

I'd like a good all-around set-up that I could use for long-lining walleye and pike, as well as trolling the big lake for trout & salmon.

I don't need top of the line stuff, but I would like a good, reliable combo that will last me for years to come. I'm hoping to keep it under $120.00 for a rod/reel if possible. I'm currently looking at the Cabela's Depthmaster Gold line-counter combos, but am not real sure which rod or reel to get for what I'm going to use it for.

Also, for what I'll be using it for, what type of line should I be looking at stringing this with?

Thanks everyone for any help!!

[Northlander]

A 8.5' med telescoping rod with a 27 size reel and 10-12# clear Trilene XT is a great combo. Great for long lining and running boards as well.

I have a couple Cabelas rods and they are ok. The reels can be good or bad.

Go look at a Diawa Accudepth 27 or 47 size line counter reel and a wilderness rod. You should be able to get started in that combo for around $70.

Marine General often runs this combo on sale at the boat show in Duluth coming up. Or call and see if they are honoring that special in house now.

[titelines]

Thanks Northlander!

I looked at that combo and was interested in it. Good to hear that at least one person would recommend it.

I plan on hitting the boat show and will check it out. If nothing else, I'll swing by and talk to Russ at the store.

Thanks again!

[slurpie]

Last spring i got the cabelas combo the rods are good but dont care for the reels. I am now looking at Daiwas or Garcias.

[harvey lee]

I have some of the Diawa Accudepth 27 or 47 and I also like the Penn 320gt for trolling the leadcore.

Jason Mitchell also offer a few differnet trolling rod models that would work fine.

[opsirc]

A 8.5' med telescoping rod with a 27 size reel and 10-12# clear Trilene XT is a great combo. Great for long lining and running boards as well.

thats what I use, Diawa wilderness rods with diawa 27 reels, also have a couple Okumas. they work great for my use.

[nolte]

I personally would stay away from the Cabelas combos. I didn't have much luck with them and they didn't feel very high quality.

For a reel if you are going to fish great lakes, I would make sure to go with a 47 size on the Daiwas. Accudepths or SeaLines. You probably can't fit a full core on one but you can fit 5 colors or so with backing. And trust me if you're going to fish the big lakes, at some time you're gonna want to throw core on there.

27s are a great size for eyes and the occaisonal pike, though.

AS was said, pick up one of those daiwa wilderness rods or a shimano TDR. The TDR will be slightly more expenseive but I like them better. For the price you can't beat either of them. The only time I would pay better money for a trolling rod is if I was going to use it on my Dipsey set up. Then I would step up to a Shimano Talora or better and then I'd maybe beef up my reel to a Shimano Tekota. You need good a combo that can take a pounding with a dipsey setup.

[Northlander]

Ya for walleyes a 27 series is almost always enough. The only time it hasnt been is when your running a lot of inline boards and you have 160' behind the boards. Thats when I like the bigger 47 size.

As for dypsie rods I really like the taloras for that in a 9.5' length. I have been running Diawa Sealines on most of my rods and they handle dypsie duty just fine.

You dont have to spend much on a rod that will be in a holder all day. I will say that after you have done this for a while you like lighter more sensitive rods so you can enjoy the fight a bit more. Just getting started out I would check out the combo I talked about. Its the best bang for the buck I have found. The biggest Accudepth will handle a full core of lead too I believe.

[PerchJerker]

I do a lot of trolling and have Sealine 17s and Sealine 27s.

I love the 17s, especially if I'm going to be holding the rod. The 17's hold enough line that you can run planer boards off them, even in a spread of multiple boards off each side.

I don't use the 27s as much as the 17s. I use the 27s for board rods, for leadcore, and for the little bit of salmon trolling that I do.

For trolling rods, I like 7 foot graphite rods for flatlines. For boards and leadcore I have 8 to 9 foot telescoping rods, but I only use them for boards and lead, never for flatlines, as they are just too heavy and don't have the sensitivity I like from 7 foot graphite rods.

For board rods that stay in rod holders you don't need to spend a lot of money, but if you're looking for a good flatline rod I would find a lightweight, sensitive rod that feels good to you and balances well with the reel --- I spend more money on my flatline rods than I do on my board and leadcore rods.