Susky River Rat

Take a look into the telescopic assault sticks by chaos tackle.

I am a tranx fan boy.

@T-Billy I am not going to use it for musky. Just bass. I have no need to beef up. I will probably never musky fish in my home state again. I do not want to upsize and won’t have a need to. I want it to suspend/hover in the water column much like @Woody B described his do. i am going to follow the suggestion of use try it out but, probably end up planning on getting different gear.

That’s what I am worried about. The back bone of the rod is to stiff and won’t flex enough to get a good hook set. I’ll just rip the lips off instead or miss the bite completely.

@WRB I was using .75 oz wood suicks, .22 short SS which are 1oz, 1.5 oz mini angry dragons and 6” phantoms which are 3 oz on this rod. It was specifically bought for this purpose so I could load the rod up to cast those lures. I understand jt will flare open in the air much like a double cow girl.

@Delaware Valley Tackle thank you. I am not worried about fatigue because of the rod weight. Even my 65 year old dad can cast reg dawgs all day. It’s all in the mechanics of the cast and using the rod as leverage and letting it load. The issue with musky fishing isn’t the cast ever. It’s the retiring the ripping pull dragging big baits through the water. I will try this set up first and if I feel like it’s hindering my ability I will get a lighter rod. @A-Jay this was for my light musky lures. Some were only an ounce up to about 3. Throwing a small wooden suick on a XXheavy rod is about impossible. @Woody B I won’t be using live sonar. I already had it in my head to learn the sink rate of it to get it down to close to where I need to be.

That was my concern and that I would feel and detection. as far as wearing me out I have that set up balanced very well and I have learned to use the rod as a lever and let it load rather than horse it

@gimruis yeah I do as well. I just have no experience with the A rig. Seriously a 5-6lb bass is probably the biggest I would routinely catch on it. I’m not saying there aren’t bigger in that water because I am sure there is just like any body of water.

I am looking to start throwing A rigs for bass on this one lane where there is a tone of open water bait. I have a musky 8’6”assault stick musky rod fast medium heavy 3/4 - 4 oz paired with an abu revo toro beast I used to smaller musky baits. Would this be a good rod for this? For you gear heads out there what really is the difference between a musky specific rod vs a bass specific rod rated around the same rating? I do not have an issue buying a new set up for this adventure but, if I have something already that will do the job why not utilize that?

How many different bodies of water do you plan on hitting in 2024? Am looking at about 10 different places. I will be making multiple different stops on the susky. Some regular haunts as well as new ones. I know the susky is the same “body” but certain areas fish and are completely different. I will fish blue marsh but, might try my luck at raystown or lake wallenpaupack. I am not really a lake guy but, I want to get proficient at them. I know some people have multiple lake menderchucks they go to. So no one needs to mention anywhere by name. I am an open book as far as where I go. I don’t catch big or enough bass to have anyone chase me down.

All joking aside I lost around 130lbs. I was 335 I fluctuate between 203 and 209. It’s a struggle every single day for me to maintain the weight I do now. I don’t work out. I have no desire to. That stopped when I had to stop racing due to a back injury in my early 20s. Between work and my dog I walk 6-8 miles a day. I by no means think I am healthy or fit. I just refuse to put in the extra work to get any further. I also think I am better off than a lot of people. Some people enjoy working out. Some feel like they have to. I don’t on either regard. Here is a now and then. @ol'crickety with all the big bass you constantly pull in that should be enough work out for you.

I do 16oz and 22 oz curls.

@gimruis i have never personally saw a directly link between the bigger bait bigger fish. I’ve caught 26” fish on mag dawgs and double cow girls thr same as I’ve caught 45” on them. In fact I had a time where I was only throwing small stuff because I thought I was missing out from all thr pro small bait guys and did terribly I’m talking almost a season. Went back to my big stuff fished fast and aggressive my net started getting filled.

If he plans on burning double 10s and ripping mag dawgs I have no clue how bass equipment will hold up. I broke 3 musky rods a blew up two musky reels trying to keep up with this. My shock and awe rod is rated up to 24oz lure. The big dawg is rated 6-12oz.

Hardbaits I really do not have that much. I go slightly overkill on soft baits and terminal tackle. I have 8 rods/reels. Honestly compared to most of you I don’t have much. I just think I fish more than I do and will lose more than I do each trip. I didn’t musky fish at all last year don’t really have the interest to anymore. I do have enough equipment to feed a small family for a year.

Last year around Christmas the susky was almost completely locked up. No ice anywhere not even a skim. On the ponds. I do not particularly like fishing this time of year unless it’s through ice.

My dad is always the first person I ask to go with me. Honestly most times I don’t ask anyone else

I want to do the catch a bass every month challenge. January weather isn’t looking to promising

@gimruis that’s the lean manufacturing they preach. Which doesn’t work. My boat i ordered not many dealerships of that brand in the state. Now, a new vehicle you better have in stock or I’ll find someone who does.

No two wood baits run the same. There is probably a lighter or more dense part of that lure making it react that way. Musky wooden baits are hand made and most of them get tank or pond tested before sold. Even then they still have distinct wobbles of their own. You may get two of the exact same bait but one catches way more fish than the other. It is interesting how a little more or less movement makes or breaks it’s catching ability

So I clicked on this thread and believe I am the on person who’s never heard of this place. We have sheetz, WAWA, and Rutters in PA. Sounds like cheap knock offs to this place 😂😂

@Tennessee Boythis is very true. In motocross Suzuki hired Ricky Carmichael “the goat” ask anyone that isn’t an opinion. The slogan was what wins Sunday sells on Monday. That never happened with them despite him killing it. It wasn’t his personality either. People just didn’t want them.

@T-Billy those are great lures. Casting and trolling they are not a let down. T rigging pit bosses. I never T rigged anymore before this year. Spinners. I am trying to find the magic with them. I did have one good day but, never get on that pattern.

I constantly and working with river to training him and keep him occupied with activities. He walked up this log. Stopped so I could take the picture than had him turn around and walk back down it. This also helps him with his “fine motor skills” so to speak. 1.5 years ago he knew no commands and barely knew his name.

Ben is basically getting at you shop at lowes or you support your mom and pop hardware store. imagine if Microsoft bought bass resource. Do you think we would still have this family feeling we have now? It would just be about algorithms to increase profits. There would be more trouble, more personal attacks and more ads. Not a community built around bass fishing and its anglers. on a side note I currently work for a publicly traded company vs a family owned like I did before. I would never go back to a family owned one to work for. It’s great not feeling like a number but, finically I wouldnt be as well off.