Handheld Trolling and Casting Setup advice needed

[reedmantra]

Hi All,


Looking for suggestions/advice for a trip to LOW Ontario (Miles Bay and North). Typically we do handheld trolling with cranks up to 15 feet deep and then some pitching along banks and rocks. We also will have separate Vertical Jigging setups (which I am happy with and will not post here).


Here are my rod/reel options:
7' Lews Crankbait MH/M
7' BPS Carbonlite MH/F
BPS ProQualifier 7.5:1

Lews Tournament MP 5.6:1


Questions: What would you pair together and with what line and why? Can one setup work for both trolling and casting, or would you still do two setups?


Thanks for any thoughts!

[adempsey2.0]

Moderate rod for trolling. Reel depends on how fast you want to move your lure and what lure you use. I would probably go with the higher gear ratio for casting though. Line would be braid, 20lb for both, but 10 to 15 for casting should be fine.

I think any combo would be just fine for both situations though. If I chose 1, would be moderate with 5.6 if I mostly trolled and the fast (although the mod is still a good choice unless its for jerkbaits) with 7.2 if mostly casting.

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[mixedbag]

Most any rod that is marketed as a "bounce and troll" or some version thereof will be well suited. 7' is a good length.

[Kevin23]

What are you wanting to pitch/cast? Crankbaits or jigs or what.

Reel speed wont matter for trolling, so whatever you prefer for casting. Just has to hold enough line to get your baits down the depth you want.

Ideally you want a Medium power MF or Mod for basic every day trolling. The MH Mod would work but may be a bit stiff, you'll have to keep telling yourself not to set the hook when you feel a fish jump on. You probably won't want this rod if you are casting plastics or jigs. I don't even use MH rods for walleye anymore, I use Med for everything now be it glass for trolling and graphite for casting hard baits (rippin raps, heavy blade baits) and bottom bouncers in hand. MH is just too much power for basically everything I do when fishing walleye.



Can you take two rods and one reel? the extra casting rod won't take up much room at all, then you can just switch reels quickly. I'd take them both, with the pro qualifier. Then you'll have a rod for trolling and casting cranks, and one for jigs or plastics. If you are just going to cast crankbaits, you only need a Moderate or ModFast action rod.

Line, 12lb big game if your reel can hold that much. Otherwise 15-20lb braid to get more line for trolling.

[reedmantra]

I predominately will be trolling and pitching just cranks. I've got a spinning setup solely for jigging. My main concern is not in selecting what to take...I'll have both baitcasting rods and reels with me...just trying to figure out which to pair together - and what line on each.


Would you set up one for trolling cranks and the other for casting cranks...or could I find a setup that would work both fairly well. My initial thought was to use the Lews Rod and Reel with 15-20lb braid...but was afraid of the lack of stretch...so would set the drag lightly. But if it would be better to troll with 12#mono and cast with braid...then I would do two setups.

[Kevin23]

Use the slower action rod, braid is fine.. just dont set the hook. Slower action will keep the fish hooked without pulling hooks, and will help give you a whipping action to aid in casting cranks