We don't have very big trout around here. All stocked and under 16" is the norm. I have tried every brand of tip up and you will get drops on the most sensitive of tip ups. I switched to an automatic hook set device for trout and quadrupled my flag to catch ratio. I found the polar type tip ups to be the most sensitive. Also make sure your spool is filled. I see lots of people only partially fill the spools and the smaller diameter of line , I think, is more noticeable to the fish. IMO.