Trolling with braid...

[Stick in Mud]

I won't be getting out trolling on the lake tonight/tomorrow, so I have another couple of days to make any last-minute changes. All of my trolling last fall was done with either 8/10 lb mono or with braid that I'd been using on my bass rods for a few years.

I'm thinking of exchanging a few spools, but I'm curious about what lb test folks use. I assume the 10/2 stuff would be fine?

[harvey lee]

May be overkill but I use 20# braid on all my trolling rods. Just incase I get into a larger toothy critter. I have boated a 22.5# pike on 8# braid but I like that fact I have a bit tougher line and it has not slowed the boating of walleyes at all with the heavier line for trolling.

[kfk]

I use braid with the diameter of 6 lb. test. That way I can use the Precision Trolling book and find the dive curve of most cranks since it lists dice curves for 14/6 Fireline.

[TyGuy02]

Like ^. Do you know how tough that 6 lb diameter braid is? I wonder what the official test weight is on that stuff. I think I had read somewhere that the real test for the 6 lb diameter is somewhere in the 20-30 lb range but I almost think it could be more.

[tacklejunkie]

May be overkill but I use 20# braid on all my trolling rods. Just incase I get into a larger toothy critter. I have boated a 22.5# pike on 8# braid but I like that fact I have a bit tougher line and it has not slowed the boating of walleyes at all with the heavier line for trolling.

I think that 20 lb braid is equal to 6 or 8 lb mono in diameter. I use 30 lb braid for my dipsey rods on Lake Superior but I also use it when trolling spinners for walleyes at times on inland lakes and it works fine

[JohnMickish]

I use 10/4 fireline on my longline braid reels and 30/8 suffix 832 on my bottom bouncer reels. I have yet to have a fish break the 10/4 line, and I use the ten pound stuff because that is what is in the trolling bible.

I use the 30# stuff on my BB rods because I don't break the line getting my stuff unsnagged from the bottom. It may come up bent, but it comes up!

[kfk]

John,

You're right, the Trolling Bible has dive curves for 10/4 Fireline and not 14/6 like I mentioned earlier. Thanks for the correction. Sometimes my memory fails me.

I've never had 10/4 fail me while trolling cranks either.

With that being said, any braid with the diameter of 4 lb. test should work with the 10/4 dive curves.

[JohnMickish]

That's the way I see it too. Maybe I'm wrong but I put all braid in the same category. I do like the Suffix 832 the best, but I do own and use them all.

[WIMN]

I'm going to the BWCA in a week and have 8 lb Spiderwire stealth green on my rod (don't like losing expensive lures), do you guys think I'll have any troubles catching walleyes with this braid on trolled cranks or jigs? I've read a lot about line and most people like mono, is it just because it's more forgiving when you set the hook, or are walleyes less shy of mono?

[PerchJerker]

I have 20, 30 or 40 lb braids on my trolling reels. I also have some reels with 65 lb braid that I troll with occasionally, when I want to get the bait a little farther away from the boat.

I mostly troll shallower water, 20 feet or less. If I am going deeper than that then I use thinner line. If I am trying to peg a specific depth according to the trolling guide I use line that matches the dive curves ..... or make adjustments to the dive curves for the size line I am using.

I sometimes use a flouro leader, sometimes no leader ...... but I NEVER troll with mono.