Please elaborate..........

[ebijack]

My 2 cents, Like mentioned, Big boards for running a lot of rods. But running 8 inlines and 2 down rods ( 10 rods total) really isn't a problem. A good friend of mine on his Islander runs 6 inlines per side most everyday on Sag Bay. Plus the down rods. (14 rods total) He mainly runs harnesses.
If you plan to run a lot of harnesses and using inline weights and running slower speeds where big boards can be more difficult to run unless you have a taller boat ( the main line stays out of the water much better) inline boards are the way to go.
Jets are kind of required for pulling harnesses as they have a dive curve where inline weights are speed sensitive, with jets speed does not affect your depth. Also your actual diving depth using big boards and inline weights is affected by the amount of line out of the water. Not a lot, but can be a factor.
If you set up your inlines to release the front clip, you never fight the board and the released board swings to the rear of the boat. Tattle flags when set up correctly can tell you when you have just a few weeds on your lure.
Now if your going to want to mainly troll with a lot of rods/people, run cranks or spoons for the most part. Big boards would be my choice. But 80+ % of my fishing involves pulling meat. So I stay with inline boards that I have modified to work for me.

[cooleyfarms]

Throwing in my 2 cents for what it's worth: I learned to troll using big boards and multiple rods on several kind mentors' boats. After I was able to get my own boat I started using big boards but switched to straight line jets & dipsey divers. I have rigged up so I can run 6 dipseys and 2 jets, but usually only have 2/3 people and run 2/4 dipseys & 2 jets. Really simple for once a year guests and the grandkids. Just drop the bait and let it unreel to the proper depth. No line hookups to small boards or clipping lines to big board tow lines. Whatever works best for your situation is the thing to use. Good luck to everyone this year.

[byrnejwb]

What size dipsey's do you run?

[wakina]

It is of my opinion that to run the big boards in an efficient manner you need at least 3 people. 1 person must be dedicated to boat handling when going into a head wind unless you have an auto pilot. Small boards can be brought in and then you can make a run back to your starting position and start over without trolling into the wind unless it is absolutely a necessity. Sure you can bring in the big boards and do the same thing but with a much greater effort.

I can run 4 small boards per side if needed and they don't require the space to store that big boards do. I am talking boats that have a limited amount of storage space available and not the big 27 ft.or larger boats with 10 ft. beams. To me 4 people & 8 lines would be about max to run small boards. But with the newer stern planers by Church Tackle you could run an additional 2 lines similar to flat lines but further back off the back corners making a total of 10 lines managable, that is if you have room for 4 people plus the driver comfortably, but once again boat size limits you to the number of people and lines.

So for me it is small boards everywhere with either jet 40s or the newer tru-trip 40s. I have never had a problem with them behind the small boards and they have worked just fine. Dipseys are out when I fish over the reefs as they like to sink on the inside when making turns allowing them to contact and snag in the rocks so to keep equipment to a minimum I have eliminated dipseys from my boat. Inline wts are also effective but like dipseys can and do sink when slowing down or making turns allowing them to contact and snag the bottom if the leads are greater than the water depth, so for me it is the floating divers, with the preference going to the tru-trip 40s. But I would add that I only fish in the western basin.

[PDnaz]

my 2 cents, I run a 16' starcraft 50 hp and love the big boards and love the small boards. depends on the day. I have run both and the bigger boards are easier to see junk fish on. the inline's are easier to manage turns and pick up and run. It is nice to just fight the fish and not the board with the big boards. I made my own big boards out of cedar and have no problem with storing them. I fish most of the time with just 2 of us in the boat. would just be happy, happy, happy to be fishing now instead of wishing i was fishing.

[Eyebanger22]

I've always wondered... Have any of you tried to run a dipsey with a 6 foot leader with a harness? Sometimes it seems like a pain to get the exact depth you want using snap weights. Or does anyone have a system that works best for you? In the past I have let out 20 ft. Of line, clipped on a 1 oz snap weight and gone from there. But sometimes it's tough knowing exactly how deep I'm running. Always thought of the dipsey method but never tried it.

[SPOONFEEDER]

I've always wondered... Have any of you tried to run a dipsey with a 6 foot leader with a harness? Sometimes it seems like a pain to get the exact depth you want using snap weights. Or does anyone have a system that works best for you? In the past I have let out 20 ft. Of line, clipped on a 1 oz snap weight and gone from there. But sometimes it's tough knowing exactly how deep I'm running. Always thought of the dipsey method but never tried it.

I run them dehind dipsys all the time. Works great.I run them with jets, dipsys, and weights.