I'm planning a day-long getaway with a couple buddies of mine in the middle of spring. We're heading to Lake Webster here in Indiana. Along with what I hear is decent bass fishing in the summer, it's also a hotspot here locally for muskie in the fall, from what I hear it's some of the best non-northern states' muskie fishing around anywhere!

 

Knowing that, should I tip my line with a wire leader, for the "just in case" scenario? I'll be fishing for bass, with bass lures and such, but I've heard plenty say a muskie will hit larger cranks and topwaters.

 

Would it be possible to play and land a pretty good sized muskie using bass tackle? Knowing I'll be pitching into pads and such, I'll probably spool with 65lb braid. I presume the braid could handle it, but what about the rod/reel?

 

 

Heavy bass tackle should be fine if you hook an accidental muskie/pike. You'll want to run a leader of some kind. Jfranco might chime in, I believe he runs a heavy fluoro leader made for toothy critters.

Those toothy guys will steal your lures.  I prefer leaders.  I fish for musky occasionally.  I like these leaders and they are on sale!

 

http://www.aquateko.com/product_p/nt01430.htm

 

45 LB titanium leader, doesn't kink and is similar diameter as your 65 lb power pro.   You could downsize since your targeting bass.

I f you are fishing frogs/jigs/t-rigs/punch rigs I would not use a leader, 65lb braid should be fine, if you hook into a musky its a coin flip, but if you put a big heavy leader on especially if it is anything other than at most 30 lb floro it will negatively effect your bass fishing. I have seen muskies and pike up to 46" landed on 7' ML rods with 6 lb test and a #8 hook, if you catch them by accident its a lot of fun, but not at the expense of catching the species you are targeting. for moving baits a 30-50 LB floro leader could work and wont affect your presentation too much...

 

Mitch

If the bass are in any way skittish or not aggressive, forget the wire leader imo unless water is not clear.

Try it - if you don't get bit but your buddies do - take it off.

 

Several of my home waters have a very healthy pike population so I use a tie-able leader material most of the time there - check out "Toothy Critter.

 

Good Luck

 

A-Jay

I wouldn't use a leader.  I use mono and copoly line a lot of the time.  I've never had a muskie cut through the line, but I have had them ruin a few baits.  As stated above, a leader may spook off the bass.

I was there in the spring and used a leader.  Did not seem to affect my catch rate for bass, but used mostly fast moving baits.  Caught a ton of dinks and medium fish, but no big ones. The water is pretty stained, not dirty, just stained a tanic or syrup color so a black leader probably blended in pretty well.  We did not hook up with any muskies.  Did catch some pike, but not on Webster.  There was a musky tournament the week we were there with about 60 boats, but they only caught around 10 muskies the whole tournament over 3 days.  I have used toothy critter, but don't like the way that when you tie the knot on it the line kinks up by the knot so it is not nice and straight.  I will be going in the spring again and may look at using a heavier fluorocarbon or co-poly instead of a wire leader, and will go no leader for my slow moving baits.  Which probably means this will be the year that I hook into a 50" musky that breaks the line at the boat!!! 

I've found that perfection loops in leaders make any bait have good action.  I don't notice a decrease in the amount of fish caught when I use leaders.  I don't use wire leaders all the time, but if I'm throwing heavy swimbaits I do.  I don't want to lose them.  If I were in Musky or pike infested waters, I'd use them more too.

I'll admit that there are times when the fish really prefer a very finesse type presentation which would seem to indicate that a leader might be counter productive.

 

But considering fish will gobble up the baits off an A-Rig, with wires, and spinner blades hanging all over the place, I'd be less incline to concern myself with a short section of thin wire.

 

A-Jay

I don't use wire leaders even for fish with lots of teeth, like the ones in the photos.  IMO wire curtails the bite and getting cut off is just part of the game, I had about 30 lures cut off in a 3 week period.  If you aren't prepared to lose a lure, don't use it.