Musky "Rookie" Questions

[eyepatrol]

I'm not much of a musky fisherman per say, mostly because the lakes I fish don't have them. But, in late August this summer I'll be hitting a lake in the northern part of the state that has the toothy critters in it and have some basic "rookie" questions I was wondering if I could get some help and advice with.

To start out, the rod I have (use it for pike) is a 6'-6" medium heavy rod with a baitcast reel with gear ratio of 5.3:1. I have it spooled with 20lb mono. Is this setup big and heavy enough? I figure gear is the most important factor in starting out.

Secondly, I have some musky lures such as bucktails, topwater, suicks (sp?) and some 6" plastic shad and smelt type baits.

Lastly, I'm really not certain on where to look for musky in late summer. Should I be looking at rock points, rock humps, large weed flats or perhaps a rock & weed mix area? With the water being probably at it's warmest, or maybe even starting to cool down at that time of year, will the musky be located deep or will they be up shallow during early morning and late afternoon periods?

I've never caught a musky before so I don't know quite where and how to start out. If you guys could point me in the right direction, I'd appreciate it!

[MuskyBrian]

Hey basscatcher,

When I first start fishing for Muskies some years ago, I initially began with a medium heavy pike rod thinking that would be sufficient. Basically, you can easily handle anything under 40" just fine, Probably bigger fish as well if you play them right. The problem with those rods?? It's not so much fighting the fish as it is getting a good hook set with that heavy backbone you get with a musky rod. Muskies have an uncanny ability to get off that hook, which is why heavy braided line aids you in the hookset as well. So I wouldn't suggest going to buy a big expensive rod if you aren't sure you are into musky fishing yet, but keep it in mind.

Sounds like you got your lures in order, I would just say to try and bring a black silhoutted topwater a little on the larger side. Make your bucktails match the water ( natural baits for clear water, flashier colors for dark water)...

Sounds like you got the right idea for spots as well. Fish your points, look for mainlake humps/reefs, don't be afraid to fish deep. Rocks and Weeds are always a great combination, especially areas getting beat hard with wind. Look for tall GRASS, always a killer at any time of year. One thing I would avoid in late August is fishing the vast thick weedy bays though, they are hard to ignore especially if you fish pike but they are often very unproductive for Muskies that time of year, If you fish weeds look for smaller clumps or make sure you fish the outsides of the big beds only. And Again, Small clumps of weeds on a shoreline getting beaten to death by wind can be dynamite. Hope that kinda helps and good luck

[cjac]

Welcome to musky, I have to warn you, it truly will get into your blood!!

You'll get all kinds of input but I'll go first:

Your rod & reel, I'd say not enough, both not enough to handle a decent fish quickly and for your comfort and fatigue resistance casting. I recall your family addition and budget constraints, so an Abu 6600 and a IM6 will run you about $120-140. A spool of 80lb superline (Power Pro is what I use) and you are set, along with a couple good leaders.

Lures: 6 lures will get you buy, do a couple searches on this forum on "lures" and "favorites" and you'll see a pretty good list. Essentially, bucktails, topwater or two (glide and a prop), spinnerbait, jig 'n' pig, and a crank will get you started and you can cover the water column and match most conditions. The lure collection is where the addition part kicks in!

Mid summer location:

Think in terms of forage, they will go where the food goes. Speed trolling is always good, and night time too can be the ticket. Ask around and get a good map, look to points, bars, etc. If that sounded vague, it's because it is! It's the thrill of the hunt for muskies and unpredictibility that is what will hook you. Plan on putting in some effort! Just when you think all has failed, you'll be greeted with a boatside explosion!

Good luck!

[eyepatrol]

Thanks for the replies. I probably will go and get myself a new rod and reel setup as the one I have isn't quite to my liking. I'll look into the different fishing line also. I've been wanting to make a change in these categories anyway because I've lost some decent pike these past couple years and I think it was due to hookset capability along with stretch in the mono line (missed some fish at the end of some long casts).

I'll look to some additional topwater lures and perhaps even some deeper diving ones. Most of what I have stays either on the surface or within the top 6' of the water column.

The lake we'll be at is Vermilion. I've never been there before, but from what I understand, the water is a bit on the brown/stained side, so perhaps brightly colored and/or dark colored lures will be optimal?

I'm not expecting really to catch a musky as I know they are hard to get. Heck, I'd be happy just to get a follow! But, as long as I'll be on musky waters, I figure I just as well give 'em a try because I don't get that many opportunities to otherwise. Catch one or not, it'll be fun!

[MuskyBrian]

Vermilion....Plenty of muskies out there. You can go real simple and fish any of the main buoy markers out there as they mark reefs which hold fish. Fish the outsides of the weedbeds ( this will be more of a factor if you are fishing the West end), fish plenty of rocks and if all else fails explore or [PoorWordUsage] people off and fish their docks because they hide under there too

[eyepatrol]

Thanks MuskyBrian. We'll be on the west end. I'll try that type of structure. Will be getting a good map soon too, so I'll study that a little (actually a lot!)

[RK]

Hiya -

I'm going to offer a completely contrary opinion here...

If you have a bass flipping stick, you're more than ready to handle muskies.

I know most of the muskie fishing gear we all use is pretty heavy stuff. Mine is too a lot of the time. In reality though, that has as much to do with the lures we use as it does with the fish. Big baits in the 2.5-4 oz range require the heavy rods, and the heavy line to go with it, both to prevent break-offs (moreso on the cast if you backlash than fighting fish) and to make fishing half pleasant. Most of us use 65-100# superlines these days not because we need 100# test line, but because it's roughly the same diameter as the old 36# dacron we used to use, and a lot of lures just work better with that line diameter, plus it's easier to cast with. Anyone who's tried to cast a muskie lure with 30# superline knows what happens - you backlash, and it digs into the spool like mad, and the lure likely as not goes over the horizon besides...

Really though, the muskie hasn't been born that you can't whip with a flipping stick. Many of the muskies I catch every year are caught on one, either with superline or 20-25# mono.

If you're just trying this muskie thing out, I don't see a need to go buy a whole muskie setup unless you really think you're going to get into it for sure. With a flipping stick, you can handle many very good muskie lures (small to medium bucktails, most any topwater, small to mid-size crankbaits and twitch baits, and even jerkbaits like 9" suicks or Burts. They work great for plastics and jigs.

A bigger thing is the reel. If it's a bass reel, it may not have the stuff to handle muskies. I've seen bass reels gutted by hooked muskies more than once. If it's a high end reel with a quality drag, that's one thing, but if it's a cheaper model you're asking for trouble. Again, if you just want to try this thing out, look at something like a Garcia 5500 or 6500, a Shimano Corvalus, etc, that can do double duty for other species later. You can spool it with 25# mono, or 65# superline, though I would suggest the superline.

Just some thoughts. If you want to go all out and get a msukie setup, by almeans do, but really, a flipping stick paired with the right reel and line is enough to get you going...

Cheers,

RK

[MJBo]

Here's a vote for RK. Try not to be intimidated and don't blow all your money yet (therr will be plenty of time for that later). Remember, they are just fish. Big fish (sometimes) but fish none the less. If you hook into a 50" fish you may get a little manhandled but the odds are you'll do fine with the eqpt you've got and my bet is you catch one on V. Let us know.

[Maashkinoozhe]

I agree with MJBo. My biggest muskie(45") was caught on a bass-sized Johnson Silver Minnow on a Med/Hvy rod. Just make sure you have a leader.

Dave D.

[Maashkinoozhe]

Uhh... Let me clarify "bass-sized"... It was not the size OF a bass, it was the size that would catch a bass.

Dave D.

[Random guy]

Investing in musky gear is something I started years ago and haven't stopped since, luckily I love musky fishing.

Some guys may not take a liking to it right off the bat or just give it up or find something different to their liking or they could turn into a pumpkin at midnight. I bought a bunch of walleye gear six or seven years ago with the hopes of doing more walleye fishing. The stuff sat in my garage collecting dust until it got swiped, not a good investment at all.

A heavy bass rod or even a heavy walleye rod may be enough to give it try for awhile before you decide to take the big plunge into some musky specific gear. Plus a lighter rod will be fine as long as don't try to toss heavy baits with it or horse in a mad fish. Keep the baits smaller sized, back off the drag a little and see how that works. Once you have devolped that 1,000 yard stare and find yourself drawn to weed edges and lures with hair on them take the big plunge and buy the big reels and 8' rods that you use to push the boat around when the motor dies. My first musky rod was a cheap pure fiberglass 6'6" meduim heavy wallleye rod and a small baitcaster for Bass, I still use that rod for musky fishing sixteen years later.

[eyepatrol]

Just to be a little more specific on the equipment I have right now, the rod is a Fenwick HMXT medium heavy 6'-6" graphite rod. In my own personal experiences with pike, it's been a good rod for pike up to about 10 pounds, but the top of the rod appears to be a little too flimsy in my own opinion for making a good hook set when the lure is out there a ways. Lost some nice pike in situations like that...maybe they just didn't have it well (using a husky jerk), but I just feel the rod wasn't stiff enough on the top end to get a good hook set. It's a good rod, but maybe not the right one for bigger fish. Opinions?

The reel I have is an Abu Garcia Ambassadeur 5500C3 with a 5.3:1 gear ratio. I've lined it with 20# mono in the past, but will likely buy a super braid to remove the stretch factor of mono. Opinions on the reel and line?

My gut feeling is to go and buy a new rod. I understand that I could get by with the one I have now, but if or when that fish of a lifetime ever does strike, I would like to have the equipment necessary to give me the best opportunity to hook it, fight it and land it for a photo-op. The Fenwick I have says it's good for 1/4oz to 1 1/4oz lures and 10# - 20# test line, so that leads me to think I should go to a heavier rod. My thought is to buy a new, heavier rod for pike/musky and then convert this rod into a casting rod for walleye, which is something I am in need of too.

Any further opinions or suggestions?

Oh, and one other question....any suggestions on steel vs. titanium leaders? I've got both. Length of leader to use?

I appreciate the replies you've all given!

[Blowfish]

Rod - Not sure about the rod. Doesn't seem like a Musky rod with a 1/4 to 1 1/4 oz lure rating. I would got a store that targets muskies like Thorne Brothers and play with some of the rods and talk to folks there. They will help you out. One other thing - rods are generally built for a specific application or at least they tend to be used that way. A rod like I would use for jerk baits. Length wise I use nothing shorter then a 7 footer. I use 7'6 rods. Might try out an 8 footer down the road but not sure yet. Short rods bug me - hence I sold my 6 foot jerkbait rod a few weeks ago. Great rod but not my cup of tea.

Reel - the reel is fine. Keep up on the maintains and it will be just fine. You don't need to use a $300-400 reel. They are just a nicer reel. A Ford Escort will get you to work and back but if you want to spend the cash a BMW is certainly nicer but both do the same thing.

Line - I toss the mono. My preference is 80lb Power Pro. Easy to pick out backlashes, zero stretch and you don't have to worry about it getting snagged across a rock and it cuts on you.

Leaders - Again my preference is single strand or multi-strand steel leaders. I make my one single strands, 170lb and multi strand I buy from Thorne Brothers. Generally I only use multi strand for jigging. The crimp on multi strands acts as a nice cutting tool when going through the thick stuff in my experience. I will never buy the multi strand ones sold in the big box stores, those Titanium ones. You probably know the brand I mean. My experience when I got into this with them was not good. They just fell apart to often.

I generally use 10-12 inch leaders. I am going to try out some 6-7 inchers for gliders this year and see how it works.

Hope it helps. Everyone has different opinions and one thing I have learned is what works for someone else may not be comfortable for me.

[Angler Don]

My opinion, I also think your rod/reel will suffice for the trip. See if Musky fishing is something you will continue before investing a lot into it. Definitely toss the mono.!! I use 40# Spiderline with a 6'6" medium heavy Shimano & Shimano baitcaster, same setup for 17 years now. Yep, it still works great. Just as important, I think, if you don't already have a HUGE net, get one ! Without it , you have to play the fish too long, and risk harm to the fish and yourself. Hot summer water, low oxygen levels, dead fish. Have fun, good luck !

[8-Ball]

I will second Blowfishs take on this. 80 lb. Power Pro is the way to go- dump the mono for sure. I have a 5500C-3 on one of my Musky poles and it has done just fine. I picked up a St. Croix Premier 6'6" MH Musky rod for about 80 bucks and it has done the job. Save your $ for a second musky set-up if you get hooked on going after them after your trip to the Big V. I guess I should say WHEN you get hooked on going after 'em, not IF... 8-Ball.

[harvey lee]

Basscatcher

I have a couple set-ups that you could use if you would like.That way if you are only going for one trip you could save some cash

1-8 ft St.Croix Musky rod with Abu reel and 100# test with 170# leader.

2-7.5 Cabelas Musky rod with Abu reel and 80# test with 17o# leader.

Just talk to me at the get-together or call or e-mail.

[Steve Foss]

Hey Harvey, that's a darn generous offer. Give a guy a chance to see what a real musky setup fishes like without having to shell out if he doesn't want to.

[eyepatrol]

Just to bring this post back up momentarily, but can anyone either explain or put a picture up of how to tie a good knot with the Power Pro line? I bought some shopping last weekend, but really have never used this type of line before and could use some help on how to tie a good knot.

Thanks.

bc

[delmuts]

i use PP alot , and have had very good luck using the polamar knot. try searching , either here( i remember some one posting pictures) or on the web. that's how i found out how to tie a blood knot.

[HuskerTornado]

I use the uni knot. Haven't had a problem, not even trolling the 10" Believer.

[Jay R]

I second the advice of using the Palomar Knot. I have used fused lines for several years an found this to be the best knot I have used. It is easy to tie and retains a very high percentage of the line stregth in the knot I think I had read somewhere about 90%. I use the Palomar knot about 80% of the time when connecting to a lure/swivel/split ring etc... I also second the choice of Power Pro, but I am trying some Spiderwire Stealth this year to compare. All of my experience has been Walley and Smallmouth fishing as this will be my 1st true season chasing Musky. Good Luck

Jay

[Cooter]

I like a uni with heavy braid such as PP, I make a double wrap around the swivel ring initially - kinda like a Trilene knot but tighten up the double wrap.

[eyepatrol]

I'll give the Polamar knot a try and see how it goes. I'll be doing some pike fishing before I get to the Big V for muskies, so at least I'll have a few opportunities to test it out. Seems like a simple enough of a knot to tie also.

When shopping, I decided to go with the 50lb line instead of 80lb. Hope it won't be a problem, but I just couldn't get myself to spend $35 on a spool of line. Like many of you had mentioned, if you're not going to get serious into it, no need to spend all the money. And I don't fish hardly at all for musky, so I'm going to try and get by with what I got.

I want to thank each and every one of you for the replies, suggestions and information you provided. It's guys like you that make this such a wonderful site to be a part of!

[Random guy]

50lb line will work fine, just turn the drag down and and make sure you have a good leader. I auctaully use 65lb for all my musky fishing. I like the lighter line for casting and handling and I don't see the need to horse a fish in.

[eyepatrol]

Thanks Jon. I'll keep that in mind. I realize that my trip to the Big V will be a shot in the dark as I'm completely green on musky fishing, we'll only be there for 3 days, and I won't be targeting musky all day every day, but at least I can feel comfortable knowing that, if I do happen upon a fish, I at least have the equipment to do battle. But, the other thing is that this info and gear doesn't just apply to musky, I can use it for pike also.

Thanks again.