Muskie trouble

[2 tone z71]

fellas I know there hard to catch but ive had 3 big skis on in the last month, cant get them to the boat,they always spit the hook,is there something im not doing or is this the nature of the beast,I try my hardest to set those trebles when they attack it and keep tension,I have braided and mono rigs and seem to catch all my fish on the mono never the braided is there two much stretch maybe ???

[Dutch]

What pound test mono are you using?

 

It may be an issue with stretch or not keeping tension on when they are fighting. Don't horse them. I have caught a grand total of 2 muskies, so by no means am I an expert, but the 2 I caught I was actually fishing for them. I use braided line with a wire leader. I have hooked some before (lighter line, smaller tackle), but like you, never landed any.

 

It may be an issue with your terminal tackle. In general, you need big, sharp hooks to pierce through tough jaws. With smaller tackle and, as a result, smaller hooks you are less likely to get a good hookset. With the smaller hooks they may pierce softer skin areas that may rip causing a thrown bait versus big trebles that will penetrate better.

[MuskyBill]

Wow, the endless possibilites....where to begin?

 

1. Wimpy rod?

2. Dull hooks?

3. Too much stretch with the mono?

 

Those would be the 3 most common ones....let's have some more info on your gear, like what lb test, reels, rods, the works.

 

GPS co-ordinates are helpful as well. Maybe it's the Muskies problem, not yours at all. Let me know where you're finding these elusive fish & I'll go have a chat with 'em...

Edited September 26, 2007 by MuskyBill

[Greencoachdog]

I can tell you exactly what it is, too much muscle and not enough stretch/give in your rigging. Those Muskies aren't spitting the hooks, you're pulling them out. Ease off on your drag some and be a little more patient when playing the fish.

 

I've had the same problem with some of my Deep Sea rigging.

[Sinker]

I was having the same trouble earlier in the season. I think GCD has the right idea. I switched to a rod with a little slower action and it seems to have helped me out. The extra flex in the rod seems to keep the hooks in, even on lightly hooked fish.

 

Sinker

[tbayboy]

Definitely no expert here but last weekend we had a couple hit close the boat and that meant the fish was horsed just by the reaction and the hooks came out. The one we landed hit further back and was played rather than horsed (thanks to some coaching from Mikeh - I would have just reefed on it tell the hooks popped). Just keep enough tension to hold the hooks there but let her play around a bit and tire herself a bit before attempting to drag her toward the net too much. So in other words what GCD said

[Musky or Specks]

Sharpen your hooks. Sharpen your hooks first thing when you wake up in the morning, sharpen your hooks on your lure before you start casting it, and sharpen your hooks everytime the lure hits bottom or gets snagged. Had a day in the Kawarthas where we went 1 for 14 the first day couldnt figure out why we couldnt boat the fish(My partner actually lost his temper after losing his 5th one and broke his rod over his knee) Went back to the cottage sharpened all our hooks and didnt lose a single fish over the next two days. It was a valueable lesson. Havent lost many fish since unless its been trolling but those are more like rips.

[2 tone z71]

Great replys fellas much appreciated,im gonna replace my trebles and not horse it as much when retrieving

[musky66]

Lost a nice one yesterday on Balsam. Seems like it just goes through those spells once in a while where nothing hooks up. My hooks are sharp, I got the right tackle, I've landd plenty of 'ski's before etc. etc. Having trouble this fall (so far ) with fish I'm targetting in deeper water- they must be clamping down on the lure and I just can't sink the barbs in- halfway to the boat they realize they don't want it as much as they thought and let 'er go!

[linweir]

I lost a good one 2 weeks ago. The reason was I set drag too tight, hehe.

Edited September 26, 2007 by linweir