Trolling Line for Walleyes

Hello everyone I am just getting into basic trolling for walleyes and I have my rods and reels already my only question is what type of line should I get. I plan on just running crank baits and crawler harnesses behind planer boards and bottom bouncing in max depth of about 20 ft. So I don’t plan on doing anything difficult but just the basics. I was thinking about 10 or 12 pound berkley mono XT or XL line. If anyone would like to help me or tell me of a different line that would be great. Thanks.

I have run a 6/20 in Power Pro and Spiderwire Stealth for a long time. Thinner diameter will help achieve greater depth.

I run #30 Suffix 832 on all my trolling rods. Very durable and gets those expensive lures out of most snags.

I’m a Sufix fan. For mono sufix elite is my go to line, have not found anything stronger or last as long.
For braid 832 performance will do the job as well as any other braid. Power pro and spiderwire are good also
Looks like Sufix came out with a new braided line that sinks faster. 832D deep down. This sounds be good for trolling raps and bottom bouncers and 3 ways. Be intersting to see if this line be a happy medium between lead lining and long lining.

I primarily use mono but I do have 2 rods set up with braid and I’ll be giving the 832D a try.

no need for braid if running boards, it can actually be a pain. 10# xt gets the job done.

Using thin diameter braided line when using planer boards is alot harder than using a good tough mono or flouro. Clips have a hard time holding onto really thin diameter line. But braid would be good for everything else you described.

Maybe 15ft outside rods and 5ft inside rods with braid would work for you. Ditch the boards. Unless you are in really clear water and wanting to get them away from the boat??

I run big game 12lb (Same diamater as 10xt) because that’s waht the trolling book always used to base it’s test off of. There are some 10/4 fireline conversions, but the 10xt and 12 big game have treated me well for years. You can get like 1100 yards of 12 big game at wallyworld for like $8.

The guys bring up a good pont on board clips.

I have no issues running 6/20 line using an Off Shore OR18 release. It’s really not difficult by wrapping it once around the release.

I like these pictures with the board in the back ground.

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X2 If running Offshore boards with OR-16 releases, braid is no issue whatsoever. A single wrap around the front release will prevent any slipping.

I do prefer the simplicity of 10# mono for boards. However, boards are rarely NEEDED. I run a special rod for boards or downriggers.
I run braid for everything else and flouro leaders.

I hate the sensitivity loss of mono. I want to know if my cranks are running with a leaf on them, or free and clean. 10# Power Pro. Especially lindy/spinner rigging. I want that sensitivity to know when i’m ticking the bottom and when a fish is tapping the bait. Flouro is used for bite-off protection as well as visibility when that is of concern.

The Precision Trolling dive charts have the dive curves of most popular crankbaits for when using both 14/6 Fireline and 10# Trilene XT. I prefer braid so I use 14/6 Fireline or an equivalent diameter braid for trolling simply because it matches up exactly with the dive curves. In my mind following the Precision Trolling dive curve guidelines makes trolling crankbaits a whole lot simpler. Trolling with line counter reels, using either 14/6 Fireline or 10# Trilene XT and referring to the Precision Trolling dive charts to know how much line to let out works well for me.
Braid does work with boards also like others refer to.

The Fireline could be 10/4 instead of 14/6 on the dive curves now that I think about it. In any case, take a look at some dive curves, match your line to what is recommended (or an equivalent diameter) and you’ll have trolling depth figured out.

I run 10# mono on my 4 main trolling rods. Most of the time I’m trolling 5′-20′ down and I use boards a lot. If I want a little more depth, I use snap weights or lead core. I like the stretch of mono with treble hooks, I rarely dump a fish. I use braid for most of my non-trolling applications though.

i run all braid now. no serious problems with releases, but you do have to be sensitive to the design of the release. Not all can be used with thin diameter lines. The friction ones are the worst.

The other thing to consider is where you’re going to troll. If I only fished the river/pepin, I’d switch to braid. I fish clear water like Winnebago and Green Bay often enough that I just run the mono so I don’t have to have extra rods, or deal with leaders etc…