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I have 50lb 2 foot leader tied to a 30 lb power pro line which has an 80lb swivel and a stretch 25 attached. I was wondering how fast should I go to troll in around 22-30 feet of water?

4.32 mph

Thanks a bunch!

WE TROLL THE STRETCH 30 AROUND 5 TO 7 MPH ACCORDING TO THE GPS. KINGS LIKE IT EVEN FASTER.

CROCKER wrote:WE TROLL THE STRETCH 30 AROUND 5 TO 7 MPH ACCORDING TO THE GPS. KINGS LIKE IT EVEN FASTER.

That's a little fast in my opinion. I like 3-5 mph on the GPS.

Same as Tom it often depends on if your going with or against the current also

I like to pull stretches between 3 and 4..you get the wind and water pushing behind you its hard to hold it that slow..at least with my motor which doesn't idle that well.....90 merc...

put about 80- 100 feet of line out and 4-6 mph and you`ll be bumpin the bottom at 25 - 30 ft

jsuber wrote:4.32 mph

That is with a tail wind, but with a head wind, you need to speed up to 4.46 mph. Of course, this only works if you are measuring your speed with a GPS

My buddy hated trolling because he caught little or nothing, he jumped in with dude that was going much faster than he in the same area 6 to 8 mph an was killing them when he got back in his boat and picked up the pace he started wacking them. It ain't chiseled in stone but I have seen the difference. Also he got very particular about how much line he has out.

If you ain't never bouncing off the bottom once in a while you don't have the plug in the zone.

When he hooks up he stops which I have read you shouldn't you can double if you don't, the thing to do is turn but he won't. I grab the other rod and start to reel and pause I often will wack a big azzzz grouper usually a red. Hold on tight they will show out if you are standing still and they hit with the rod in your hand.

He won't keep rolling so I grab the other rod out of the holder and start reeling

What a mess wrote: If you ain't never bouncing off the bottom once in a while you don't have the plug in the zone.

I have not had much luck trolling out of Steinhatchee but then I have been staying near the surface. What type of lure do you troll with that you can "bounce off the bottom one in a while" and not get hung up? Anything with a lip is going to dig in(?) to the bottom?

I'm going out tomorrow about 12 -15 mi. to 30 - 40 ft. of water tomorrow, so any help this evening would be put to good use!

Lips don't dig, they act as bumpers and bounce the bait. You bounce a bait off a rock, you better hold on.

Stretch 25's, 30's and Rapala CD14's are the baits of choice.

Tom Keels wrote: Stretch 25's, 30's and Rapala CD14's are the baits of choice.

Thanks for the info, Tom. About what lb. test of leader and how much leader length would you run on these? We were going to try Steinhatchee Reef, first. Don't know if any grouper are holding there, but hope to find out.

mojokoko wrote:I have 50lb 2 foot leader tied to a 30 lb power pro line which has an 80lb swivel and a stretch 25 attached. I was wondering how fast should I go to troll in around 22-30 feet of water?

I have almost the same setup, LOOSE THE SWIVEL!! At least when macks/kings are around. I've lost too many plugs to macks hitting the bubble trail/swivel. I'm told it looks like a small baitfish fleeing the stretch so they hit the swivel.

I vary it from 3.5-5.5 on the GPS, I keep letting more line out or decreasing the amount out until I get strikes. Hope this helps.

KarstRanger wrote:

Tom Keels wrote: Stretch 25's, 30's and Rapala CD14's are the baits of choice.

Thanks for the info, Tom. About what lb. test of leader and how much leader length would you run on these? We were going to try Steinhatchee Reef, first. Don't know if any grouper are holding there, but hope to find out.

4-5 feet of 60-80 pound test should do. I've never lost a stretch to a king, so use the swivel. It helps to keep grass off the lure if you leave about an inch of the tagline hanging when you tie it on.

This is a rig I have used with much success in the past.