Long line gurus.

[Travisd]

When long line fishing( trolling ?) how long do let line out and what size jig head do you use. Also how fast? I found a formula to figure out when pulling crank baits for summer. But not really anything on long line. There was boat I was following last year and he was catching fish all day long I only caught 5. I past him and asked what he was using for color and he gave me some jigs but I still didn't catch any more. Then he said I was going to fast.

[cookieman]

try 1.5 to 2

[Gabepeeps]

Not long lining jigs. More like .8 to 1.2. Go to the South Carolina board and search long lining. There's an on going very informative thread there that can help you out a lot!

[Fishorhunt]

I don't long line the traditional way.... at least I hardly ever see anyone doing it the way that I do where I fish.

I long line with floats and start setting 1-2 feet shallower than what ever the depth of the water I'm fishing in and each rod is set at different depths. I feel that I keep the bait in the strike zone much better this way. Some days the fish are hugging the bottom and other days their in the middle of the water column. You just have to find what depth that their at.

In cold water (30's and 40's) I fish .04 - .06 mph on my Terrova and as the water temp moves into the high 40's and 50's I'll run up to .08 and so on but, I usually troll on the slower side.


I use 2, 1/16 oz fly or tube jig and I use different colors on each rod until I find the color that they like the best. I"ll even change colors to the one that I'm catching the bigger fish.

Something else that I do is that I pull a drift sock so that I can keep a steady speed and my boat won't get blown side to side to bad in a strong wind.

The wind determines how much line I "pay" out. No wind I'll run them back 50 yards or so but, in wind I my have them as close as 10 feet to the boat.

I also set facing the motor of the boat so that I can watch all my floats and rods and I keep all my rods within arms reach.

When I troll I set the terrova to run me in a line but, I still work the side to side buttons a lot. I call it "zig zagging" and say I'm running a straight line at a steady speed I'll hit the button and make slight turn and what this does is increases the speed of the out side lines and decreases the speeds on the inside lines. This slight increase or decrease in lure speed and small depth change triggers a TON of bites. I hope this helps you some what.

[usafret99]

You want to go .8 to 1.2. Usually the slower the better. Throw back behind you about 40 feet using 1/16 oz jig heads. I prefer southern pro curly tail jig bodies, but most will work. Usually darker colors in morning a little lighter in full sun. Black body chartreuse tail is my go to. I use yo fish wateree and caught most on that color. What lake you fish. Feb to April in South Carolina if you get in the coves with the other boats and do the above you will catch fish. Depending on funds you want a few different color jig heads and a small variety of jig bodies. Def want some black and red jig heads at min others would be white and chartreuse. Any more questions I'll help you best I can.

[drill instructor]

Vary the amount of line out on your rods, a good long cast and a few feet further will do just fine. I mostly start out with 1/16oz jigheads and 6lb test line. The biggest problem ive seen with new longliners is using too heavy of line, then speed control. Depending on the time of the year your speed should be .8 to 1.2MPH, i never have been slower or faster that this range. Your in a state that has tons of longliners and most will help you out. I learned from some tournament fisherman and visiting crappie stores. There was an article on this site called, "The Art of Trolling" find that article and it will help for sure.

[bluedrifter]

long lining is all about drag when it comes to getting your bait to the right depth. the best formula to figure this out is time on the water.

[CrappiePappy]

Uhhhh ... I'm thinking you guys saying that you're moving/trolling at 0.04 - 0.08mph ..... REALLY MEAN 0.4 - 0.8mph.

.04mph = approx 3/4 of an INCH per second ( or about 3.8ft per minute)
0.4mph = approx 7 inches per second (or about 35ft per minute)

... cp

[Fishorhunt]

Yes, sorry... I meant 0.4 mph

[Travisd]

Thanks guys. This site has been extremely helpful. A lot of the questions I've been asking is kinda close to offshore salt water fishing. Except we fish at 3.5-6 knots in mph that's 4.2- 7.2. And our lines start at 75 yards- 500 yards behind the boat. Now that I have an idea it shouldn't be that hard to figure out. Once again thank you all for the info.