JackstrawIII

Haha, nice!!

Very good, thanks Mike L, looking forward to this forum getting even better.

My favorite lure for spots like that is a paddletail swimbait on a weighted swimbait hook. They're incredibly weedless and can be worked across the top, dropped into pockets, or swam around cover. Texas rig is also a go-to in spots like this, if you want to fish more vertically or need more weight to get through the cover.

When I started fishing baitcasters, I bought really slow reels to force myself to slow down my presentations... but I'm slowly moving to faster reels for most things, because I can always reel slower at times if needed, but I'm realizing that faster reels help a lot for: 1. retrieving your bait after it leaves the strike zone faster 2. reeling down on fish after a bite so you can set the hook 3. keeping tension on the line when fighting a fish that's headed straight towards you So, I still use 6.3:1 for crankbaits (which I rarely fish) and slow rolling spinnerbaits and chatterbaits... but have moved up to 7.1 or 8.1 for everything else. Swimming baits get 7.1 and topwaters and bottom baits get 8.1 most often.

Hey Catt, this is an old post, but can you explain why you use EWGs for toad style baits? I've been using swimbait style hooks with decent results, but curious to hear your thought process to see if I've been approaching this the wrong way. Thanks.

6'10 MH Tatula rod 40lb braid with a leader Owner weighted Twistlok hook (usually 3/0 size with 1/8oz weight) I've also had good results with EWG hooks, but the twistlok makes baits last much longer and has an even better hookup ratio, in my experience.

I've been very pleased with the Daiwa Tatula line of baitcasting rods. They are an incredible value. The 7'1 H would be a good option for you, or the 6'10 MH. Honestly, I caught my first musky on the 6'10 MH the other day and it was plenty strong to pull that guy around. I'm currently using it to throw flukes and other such baits on weighted swimbait hooks. I've also used it for frogs in the past, with good results, as long as the bait wasn't too far from the boat. If you're making long casts, a longer rod helps with hooksets and managing the fish. I've used heavy spinning rods before, and I'd take a baitcaster any day of the week when there is heavy vegetation involved.

My longest spinning rod is also 7'0 and I don't really see any need for extra length. The place I see added rod length being a benefit is on hooksets farther from the boat, where the extra length can help overcome the added stretch and resistance from having more line between you and the lure. Since I don't really make long casts with a spinning rod ever... this is a non factor.

You are correct, I made an over generalization. A more accurate statement would have been that most of the serious musky fishermen I know do a lot of trolling.

I'd just keep what you you know you enjoy using regularly. You can always buy more if you decide you want it sometime down the road. I once got on a minimalism kick and there was a rule that said something like "if you don't use it regularly and it costs less than $20 to replace, don't keep it." Good advice.

On the flip side... My favorite smelling baits are from the Strike King caffeine series. I'm not a coffee drinker, but I really do love cracking those bags open haha. Fish seem to like it too.

I did an experiment the other morning at a lake where catching bass is usually pretty easy. I fished the same lure (Keitech Swing Impact Fat) in 3 different colors: green pumpkin shad (matches the forage in this lake), junebug, and white. Caught fish on all 3... but significantly more on the natural "match the hatch" color. So does it matter? No, since you can catch fish on anything but ultimately yes, cuz you'll catch more if the color is right. Regarding the OP, the only type of lures where I really like junebug type colors are stickbaits and craws.

I use 832 braid of at least 40lb on my baitcasters and the only time I have braid digging in is when I really yank on a snag or something like that. I think your solution might be as simple as going up to 50lb braid. Easy peasy.

That's what it's like up here in NY most days. The guys that are serious always troll.

I bought a pair on Amazon after reading this thread. They're decent. Will be good to throw on the boat and use when I forget my daily wearers.

Bummer. Sorry you lost your anchor, man. I had an interesting anchor situation the other day. Bought a new anchor rope over the winter and stashed it in the boat... and forgot about it. I don't use my anchor much when fishing, but I had the kids out on the boat to swim the other day and pulled out the anchor and the new rope... only to realize I didn't have a carabiner of any sort anywhere in the boat and I couldn't fit the new anchor line through the hole in the anchor. This was a problem. I scoured the boat and the only option I could come up with was some paracord. I tied my anchor to the eyelet on the end of the anchor rope with the paracord and very nervously dropped the anchor overboard. Much to my relief, when we finished swimming an hour later and I pulled on the rope, the anchor came up still attached! Sweet relief.

I've been fishing a fluke style being on a 1/8oz weighted swimbait hook. Very happy with the action and the fall rate.

I would have no problem using a red hook if the need arose. Heck, a lot of old school guys swap out the trebles on their crankbaits with red... so it certainly wouldn't bother me. But, as has been said, confidence is everything. If you feel good about it, the fish won't care.

I have a 17' open bow and it's big enough for 3 guys to fish in comfortably. My buddy and I used to fish in his 14 foot and it worked. You could go smaller if you knew you were always going to fish alone, but 14' is a nice starting point... 17' is better. The only reason to go smaller would be if you need to fit your boat in really tight spaces. To me, the biggest benefit as you go bigger is the ability to fish in choppier water. Some big lakes can get pretty choppy. Bigger boats are MUCH more stable.

I love your style. Hope you get the chance to get back into it someday 👍🏻

My experience at most dealerships echoed this sentiment. Very poor salesmanship.

6’6” St Croix MF 6’10 Daiwa MHF 7’ Dobyns HF

Post deleted after reading the rest of the thread. Should have done that first haha.

I’m no T-Billy, but I caught my first tiger musky yesterday!! I was so exited that I forgot to measure, weigh, or even take a decent picture… but here he is. I’d say about 30-35”. Awesome fish.

The only thing I do with plants is mow my yard. Even trying to get grass to grow is… hard for me. My other main hobby is knife making. Did it for years, took a break for the last 5 years, but I’m back at it now and loving it!