Tipups for trout

[curtrein]

Hey guys:
Hoping that the hard water develops here in SW PA in the next 2 weeks so I’m starting to prep my gear now.
My question is this: how do you setup your tipups for trout. Right now I have standard 30lb braid with a swivel going to a 3-4 ft leader of 4lb mono. Is this a decent setup for trout? Back when I started I used to just have them all spoiled with 4lb mono amd no braid, seems like I had more bites then.  But as I started to fish more and go between trout/bass/pike I wanted more versatility to handle bigger species. Am I screwing myself for trout with the braid/4ft mono setup? Should I have a dedicated set with just mono for trout?

[DowneastPescador]

This is a good setup imho. The ice line/Dacron backing is a little thicker, that’s what I have on mine instead of the very thin braid.

[dipNrip]

I’d go with fluorocarbon in 2-4 lb with some micro split shots (black that are used in fly fishing). Typically trout water is clear and they can be line shy.
  Also make sure the spool is set up light or they’ll still your bait without tripping.
  Lastly I try to stay 1-2 feet off of the bottom and say 2-4 feet under the ice. Sometimes they are up high sometimes just off the bottom cruising. You can adjust as needed. I also have more luck in shallow water (5-10 ft) near points then out deeper.

[dkfry]

That setup is fine for trout. I usually use a 6-12 lb flurocarbon leader on my tipups and have braid or tip up line of various sizes on many tipups. I favor flurocarbon leader material on the little heavier side because of getting into other fish, especially pickeral. With the leader the weight of the tip up line doesn't really matter. I have many tip ups loaded with 50lb braid. A tear drop jig tipped with a minnow or packed with wax worms has caught a lot of trout for me over the years on a tip up.

[flagup!]

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.

[fishbone]

i would use 6lb test.....you will find in the cold 4 lb can snap