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Line test, drag, rod and patience =. What do these four things equal? They equal a better chance of not losing or landing that big fish you have at the side of the boat. When you use lighter mono line in the range of 6 or 8 or 10 pound test while "trolling" there are a few requirements that must be considered. If you are interested in trolling please read on. Very important is your reel's drag. Whether it's an entry level or a more expensive reel a smooth drag will take care of that last minute rush for the bottom most fish make when they see the boat. This is the time many anglers will lose that trophy, by not having their drag set properly. All eye's are on the fish at the surface and then disaster hits. The rod doubles over and SNAP. It probably has happened to the best of us at one point in time but you can prevent this from happening by a properly set drag. I tend to have mine set on the lighter side as I'm spooled up with 8 pound test and can quickly increase drag if needed. When you feel the weight of the fish that is when the decision to increase or decrease should be made and quickly. The same goes for snags. If the drag is not set properly and doesn't allow for an easy release of line when you get hooked up on bottom SNAP. Here I can picture someone holding on to the rod for dear life so it doesn't get pulled out of the back of the boat. One thing that is important to note here is to YELL out "snag" so the person operating the boat hears you and can get it into reverse fast enough and reel up his line at the same time before it creates a possible mess. Obviously if there are 3 or 4 people all fishing this becomes a little difficult to achieve especially if there are new anglers in the boat. In this case the most experienced angler should ensure all drags are set properly or just not troll with that many anglers. Another aspect to consider besides a properly set drag is you rod. What power is it? How long is it? A lot of anglers use a medium power rod around the 7 ft mark. An excellent choice. My trolling rod of choice is a medium fast 8ft 6in. I like to get my line out and away from the boat. From my experience though just about any rod will work and catch fish trolling but this will not fit into the "all things being equal" equation. The rod should have a fast or moderate action and the longer rods will bend easier under the fish's weight helping the drag system you reel has when that trophy is beside the boat. So the fish is actually bending the rod and pulling drag at the same time. This is a must and when a lighter set drag is better than being too tight when using light line. Also, when trolling, the longer rod should be at the front and the shorter length rods should be at the back if two lines are on the same side. This set-up will help keep lines from being tangled so position anglers accordingly. One other thing to remember is have "patience". Don't rush the fish. Look at how it's hooked. Is it a good hook-set or barely hooked on the lip. Try not to let it flop around and thrash on the surface. Many will be lost when that happens. Have the net ready. Remember the last minute rush to the bottom. It will happen so be prepared. It could be a fish of a lifetime. Have the camera handy. You can catch just about any weight fish with light line if you are prepared, all things being equal.

All great tips well said. The drag is so important especially if you take different species of fish into account. I troll theNipigon river with flat lines for salmon, and even a 5lb chinook will be keen on testing your equipment and peeling line off at an alarming rate, never mind that 20lb trophy!

Oh very interesting to know those facts thanks guys/gals!