Lead Core Trolling Help

  • jhalfen
    Posts: 4179
    February 25, 2009 at 4:23 pm #752276

    Quote:

    Jason advised me to keep my drag tighter with lead core…that solved my problem.

    The drag issue is another of those “art” pieces to the leadcore trolling puzzle. You can’t only consider the reel drag….you need to think about drag as part of the larger system….rod length, action, power; leader length and material; water depth; boat speed. For some anglers, their system demands a loose drag on their lead reels; for others, a snug drag performs nicely.

    As a rule, I keep my drags pretty snug….not screwed down tight, but snug. Because of the larger system I tend to use, I don’t lose many fish at all…probably a couple of handfuls or less during the course of a season, and I pull a LOT of lead in rivers, reserviors and lakes. We didn’t stick any monster eyes last year on lead, but had no trouble handling fish into the mid 20s with my overall lead system, in addition to muskies, pike, two kinds of cats (including an 18 lb channel), all sorts of smallies, etc.

    VSRangerMan
    Chippewa Falls,WI
    Posts: 554
    February 26, 2009 at 5:51 am #752613

    Quote:

    Quote:

    Jason advised me to keep my drag tighter with lead core…that solved my problem.

    The drag issue is another of those “art” pieces to the leadcore trolling puzzle. You can’t only consider the reel drag….you need to think about drag as part of the larger system….rod length, action, power; leader length and material; water depth; boat speed. For some anglers, their system demands a loose drag on their lead reels; for others, a snug drag performs nicely.

    Great pointers Jason. Finding that perfect combination of give,between rod flex,drag adjustment, leader type & length which depend on conditions your fishing along with line sag which becomes part of fishing lead core.A person wouldnt set their drag the same fishing similar rods with mono vs. braid or you probably wouldnt use the same rod alltogether.This is where technique specific gear fits into the larger piece of the leadcore puzzle.Finding that sweet spot drag setting is part of the puzzle left out depending on all other variables. Now if we could get through the hardwater season & use some of this shared info! Waiting for another great read. Best of luck fishing all! WHITE TIP

    Brad Juaire
    Maple Grove, MN
    Posts: 6101
    March 2, 2009 at 1:10 am #753854

    Quote:

    Quote:

    Jason advised me to keep my drag tighter with lead core…that solved my problem.

    The drag issue is another of those “art” pieces to the leadcore trolling puzzle. You can’t only consider the reel drag….you need to think about drag as part of the larger system….rod length, action, power; leader length and material; water depth; boat speed. For some anglers, their system demands a loose drag on their lead reels; for others, a snug drag performs nicely.

    As a rule, I keep my drags pretty snug….not screwed down tight, but snug. Because of the larger system I tend to use, I don’t lose many fish at all…probably a couple of handfuls or less during the course of a season, and I pull a LOT of lead in rivers, reserviors and lakes. We didn’t stick any monster eyes last year on lead, but had no trouble handling fish into the mid 20s with my overall lead system, in addition to muskies, pike, two kinds of cats (including an 18 lb channel), all sorts of smallies, etc.

    Excellent point Jason – the amount of drag has many dependecies. My leadcore rods have a very soft tip which would allows me to tighten my drag just a little bit more (compared to my planer board rods). The key with leadcore is to have a consistent pull on the fish – not too light and not too agressive. You don’t want to pull the hooks out of its mouth nor do you want that fish to swim freely either. Consistent pressure and I also do not take my boat out of gear – I may slow down but never come to a stop. When my leadcore rods are in the rod holders, I also use the clicker only because I want to hear if a fish hits the line. However once a fish is on, that clicker goes off immediately because is some line counter reels it can have a negative effect (not as smooth) on the overall drag system.

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