In-Fisherman's Top Musky rods/reels

[brickNblock]

This in 'In-Fisherman's 2008 Pike and Musky Guide.

Big Ticket Combo's

 

1) DAIWA VIP rod ...w/DAIWA Luna reel

2) Fenwick Techna rod ...w/AbuGarcia 6600EXT

3) Thorne Bros. rod...w/Penn's 965 International

4) Quantum PT Superlite...w/Quantum Cabo PT

5) Shimano Compre...w/Calcutta TE....(is what Ive got...2 of them)

6) St.Croix Legend Tournament...w/St.Croix's Avid Series AC300A

7) G.Loomis ...w/AbuGarcia 7000 Syncro...(got the reel anyway)

 

Superlines/Braids

 

1) Berkley Fireline Crystal and Big Game Braid

2) Cajun Master Braid

3) Spectron Musky Master

4) P-Line Spectrex IV

5) PowerPro

6) Rapala Titanium Braid

7) SpiderWire Ultracast Invisi Braid

8) Spiderwire Stealth

9) Suffix Performance

10) Suffix Neon Fluorencent Frie braid

11) Tuff-Line XP

 

This from the pros at In-Fisherman.

Whatcha all think?

Pretty close I think........but I also think its a matter of personal preference from use of.

Money is never an issue when your talking about your PRIVATE arsenal of musky equipment in this household or anyone elses I know that fishes these 'lunge with the same passion.

 

Just curious to what ya'll think.

[Musky or Specks]

Never trust anything a magazine or pro tells you about equipment they have a stake in the outcome. Talk to everyday fisherman at clubs or out on the water. You'll get a better idea of what the best stuff is.

[musky66]

Never had a problem with my Shimano Calcutta's, St Croix rods, power pro line and home tied floro leaders. Might be better stuff out there but no one pays me to use this stuff.

[glen]

I bet any of that gear would be good if you dont get out much. If you only catch a few fish a year. A muskie guide thats on the water every day would know what the best of the best is.

 

I just thought about the old reels and rods people used to use. Click Click Click your reeling in. How did they ever catch fish.

[Crazyhook]

I will take a Loomis rod with a Penn 965 baitcaster spooled with Sufix performance please!

[Rich]

Well I do like Spiderwire Stealth..

[jace]

What a weird way to bunch the stuff together and rank them paired. I think a better review would be for rods and reels separately and why they thought so. I trust tackletour because they don't ahve much stake in their review results, although i do see a lot of personal slant to shimano, they are clearly beaten out by Daiwa in many shootout type reviews.

 

I can personally vouch for the Luna and St Croix Avid reels as I own 2 TD lunas and 1 stcroix avid reel (which is actually a rebranded Daiwa Cv-Z millionaire).

 

As far as the lines go, i don't have too much to say about any of the brands because most seem to be about the same. I've tried about 1/2 the ones listed. What I can say though is I prefer the braided products over the fusions whatever the brand is even though braids are noisy. I'm surprised jerry brown lines aren't in the list.

Edited May 24, 2008 by j ace

[outllaw]

every rod-reel lure is a tool. they are all a basic start to your day. i would mot use a reel with a hi gear ratio for trolling, or a slow for casting. lure depths equate to where you fish , hi or lo. experience and time on the water will dictate to your style. oh ya those old reels like penn 109-309 series are still staples of the industry.. its great to be able to mix new tech with old.

[brickNblock]

This lineup of equipment was put together by guides from all over.

It was a poll that was taken then broken down by a select group of pro's.

There is actually a writeup on each combo and what its uses are better for and for what conditions...its pretty decent informatiopn that may be available at : www.In-Fisherman.com

Same amount of info on the line, also the good and bad about each but how this particular lineup made the top.

The 2008 M/P guide edition of their magazine is a decent read about new trends in trolling/casting/WTD etc...

I dont subscribe to the mag...but couldnt resist buying it off the shelf.

[lew]

I always find it interesting Pete, that the guys on the TV shows are often pushing products and saying how good they are, yet regular fish'n folks who aren't getting payed to advertise items will often have a totally different opinion on things.

 

Right at the top of your list for Superlines/Braids is Berkely Fireline Crystal.

 

I saw this stuff advertised on the tube awhile back and thought a semi-transparent braid may be worth looking at, yet when I asked here on OFC what everybody thought of it, most of the boyz didn't have anything good to say about it.

 

Same as Berkely Vanish......alot of the TV hosts use this line on their shows and are always saying how great it is, but ask about Vanish here on the board and you'll hardly ever hear anything good said about it, infact most folks will say to stay totally away from it.

 

Charlie Ray for many years pushed Honda outboards as the best thing to hit the fishing world since hooks were invented, but I see now he's using Mercs

 

I spose it all depends on who's hat their wearing at the time the show is made

 

I must admit though, the Calcutta TE is an awesome reel, even though I haven't had a chance to use my new one yet but I've used friends and it's pretty impressive and I'm anxiously waiting for June 7th to arrive

[muskymike]

Hey guys, one thing Pete forgot to mention was that the numbering system is just there as bullets, nothing more. These are not in order from best to worst or vice versa. They are just listed as combos that should be considered. Same goes with the line, they are just stating which lines are the most popular among them, not in order.

 

Just for FYI.

[Musky or Specks]

But it is kind of funny that same company's reel is on its rod dont you think? Most of the musky guys I know mix and match to come up with what they beleive is the best combo. But the writer or judges of this equipment cannot offend the magazines sponsers by doing that. Anything that a magazine trys to tell you about equipment is compromised by the very advertising dollars that they generate. In Fisherman is probably my favourite magazine for the how and the why but thats about it.

[Raf]

while i am not familiar with many of the products, i am sure they are quality. spend the dollars and the manufacturer's label likely doesn't mean so much and it comes down to application and personal preference. having said that, there are only two reels available in lefty on that list and in-fisherman has been pushing berkley for as long as i can remember remember al pulling down the tree with xt?

Edited May 24, 2008 by Raf

[bigbuck]

Just remember to take it all with a grain of salt. Always read the message boards to see what everyone is saying about a particular item. Most of the magazines get their equipment for free in exchange for constant plugs.

I can't wait to test drive my new Calcutta TE400 spooled with 80lb PP. That was my first E-Bay purchase and it was well worth it, I saved about $150-200 on it depending where you shop.

Now I need to save up for a St Croix Legend muskie rod to pair it with.

You can't go wrong with a Calcutta, that seems to be the consensus. As for Daiwa, I've heard some bad stories about their service. Abu makes a decent reel but for everyday use, they tend to wear quickly. For a weekend warrior, they are fine. Like Lew says, "Abus are like a Chevy". They work fine but are not fancy. Penn reels are tough to find here and what do you do for service?? St Croix reels are made by Daiwa so they are essentially a Luna that has been changed a bit.

As for rods, they are all pretty good, St Croix, Shimano, Thorne Bros (I've heard some great stuff but once again, service......???), Daiwa, Quantum, Fenwick, etc.... I'll stick to what I can buy locally because at least at a local store, you can always exchange or have them send out broken rods/reels for service.

Actually, what looks interesting is the Okuma line of muskie rods, they start at under a $100 and look to be quite stout and are very, very light. I'd like to hear what folks have to say about them.

Fishing lines are all in the eye of the beholder, there are good ones and even they have the odd bad batch and there are those that just plain suck. Either a good braid (PP or TuflineXP for me) or Trilene XL mono, that's all for me.

[brickNblock]

Exellent replies folks.

MuskyMike...you got that right...the rods/reels were in no particular order.

I just threw this list out from the magazine for the new to musky fishing folk..just to let them know there are many combos out there...sure there is a lot of favouritism from advertising..that s a given.

I believe it was Raf who said it all comes down to personal preferrence..Thats 100% correct.

Myself.

2 Calcutta TE's 401 both seated on Compre's...(bucktail/jerkbait).#80/100PP w/130 seagur.

Abu 7000 on a St.Croix legend...(for trolling)..Berkley fireline crystal w/130 seagur

2 Abu c-3's 6501 on Compre's...(everyday search an destroy)..they were my first...#65 PP w/steel leaders.

I know many others with easily twice as many combos...but most all are for different applications and waters or bait size...

Im OK with what I have as I dont get out nearly as much as I'd liike to therefore my arsenal is ample.

 

ps...(I keep the 6501's out and maintained for guests aboard....ahahaha? dont toucha my calcutta's)