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Hey guys I am putting two outfits together for grouper trolling. I have never trolled a stretch 30 but it looks like it will pull like a 5 gal. bucket. what rods are ya'll using 30# 50# 80#?

I'm thinking of using the 65# power pro. Smaller dia. = deeper but will the lack of stretch cause a problem. Mono or Braid?

Are you using 4/0 penns or lever drags?

i use a penn 4/0 and a penn sentor rod with rollers!
i use 80lbs braided, with about 30yards of mono on the spool, to keep the braided from slipping on the spool!

Pretty much the same as CRC, except I use all mono. 60lb.

I have two 113H Seators on Seator rods with rollors/ 60# mono and a TLD20 40# mono on a Shakespeare Tidewater roller rod, that I use for trolling I also use the 113's for bottom fishing

I was planning on getting a couple of 113 penns for bottom fishing and I it looks like they can do double duty as trolling rigs.

My real question is how stiff a rod does it take to handle the stretch 30 lure. I like a little action in my bottom rods. Used to use solid glass 7' but it has too soft an action for trolling I think. I don't want a broomstick though.

You'd probably want to go with at least a 40# blank for trolling Stretch 25's and 30's. If you plan on trolling the Stretch 40's and 50's you might want to look into going heavier yet. I would recommend going with a glass rod also. Don't know how well a graphite rod would handle the vibrations and abuse of trolling Stretches.

Nathan

I use a senetor 60lb rod and also a Tidewater in the about the same weight. In fact they look Identical. The stiffer rod seems to make driving the boat easyer. I like to fish fish braid on one side and mono the other. Since they are at different depths you can turn better with less foul ups. And you never know what depth they want it. Unless you went fishing yesterday.

I have had nothing but problems with braid on a rod with rollers. Even one with Aftco rollers...it slips between the edge of the roller and the frame of the guide, then breaks off with your $11-15 lure. I use penn 15lds on a 6'6" standup penn glass rods. One with mono (50lb) and 65lb power pro on the other, like Sea Fox, it helps keep them from making a mess. I like the short butts for leverage. Also, look for a rod that has the solid rings in the reel seat. I had a 2 seats fail because of the stress, even with the back braces on. Hope that helps.

A couple of years ago Daiwa came out with a Sealine model SL-X50-HC trolling reel with a built in digital line counter. I bought two and now use them exclusively when I'm trolling. stretch 25'sor 30's. They are not big enough to handle the one stretch 50 I own. The line counter makes it very easy to know how much line you are letting out which can make it easy to step the lures up or down in the water column. The counter is built into the side of the reel and is out of the way yet still viewable. It's not big and clunky like some of the old mechanical line counters some reels have. Strangest thing about the reel is they are hard to find and even Daiwa doesn't seem to advertise the built in line counter part of the reel. The URL if you are interested in looking at the reel is "http://www.daiwa.com/tackle/reels/conv/slxhc/index.html". I bought mine from "www.jamestackle.com", paired them with a couple of Shimano 4/0 roods with rollers on the tips and am totally satisfied with the setup. The only problem is finding more time to go use them. Good fishing......doghouse[/url]

I like a lever drag and about a 50# rod so I can see the tip vibrating. When the tip is not vibrating then check for grass. I usually use 150' of power pro directly tied to the mono. I've tried permanent majic marker and fingernail polish to mark 150 without success.