I have 3 rods; each spooled with two colors of lead core. My preference (most of the time) is a 50-foot leader of 30lb Power Pro because it has a small diameter compared to other 30 lb lines. I can also use these same rods for 3-ways. I like the long and strong leaders because you don’t lose many plugs with that set up.
I trim off a few feet as the leaders get frayed, when there is about 10 feet left I put on a new 50’ leader. Therefore, I am actually trolling with all different lengths of leaders at any given time. Let out line until the plug hits bottom, then reel up a couple times — no rocket science here.
Does one leader length catch more fish than the others? Yes, at times one length may produce better than the others – it just depends on the fishing situation. For river fishing I think the leader length issue is insignificant compared to the boat control issues.
Dave Gulczinski