Go to Muskie Baits

[Millhouse2020]

This is for the muskie hunter's on the board. What are you go to muskie baits? What bait, colour, size etc and why??? Like if you had to pick only your top 3-5 baits to fish with for the whole season, what would they be and why?

 

 

I find myself always leaning to my bucktails, and specifically safety pin style bucktails. I fish in weedy relatively shallow lakes and tend to troll more than cast and they are as close to weedless as you can get. Hauling big baits with lots of trebles tends to have me spending more time pulling salad off my lures. Also, my fishing partners and I have caught all but one of our fish on bucktails the past several years so I am confident in them. I can also fish these baits bulged on the surface, at mid depth or let them sink before retreiving so I can cover more of the water column. I have no clear winner with respect to colour but tend to vary from natural to bright depending on light and weather conditions.

 

 

 

I have plenty more lures on my arsenal which need to get wet much more and many that have yet to see the water so my goal this year is to experiement more and get more proficient using other baits. Curious to see what everyone's preferences are.

Cheers,

 

Millhouse

[Dan668]

Last year I couldn't keep the muskie off my live target frog as odd as that seems lol. I also prefer bucktails. Getting a few new setups going to experiment with other lures this year

[Raf]

I could fish all season with a bootail, a suick and a believer.

[mike rousseau]

black/orange -stalker

black/orange -10 inch jake

perch -stalker

black or white or pink 10 inch red october tubes

 

 

i mostly troll so i lean to cranks...but also on the st.lawrence the water is clear and its good to get down a bit... so i actually cast with the 10 inch jakes...

 

and the tubes are a great alternative to other soft plastics... they actually last pretty long... last one i replaced was chewed on by 7-8 musky... not bad for a soft plastic... you can cast em...troll em... jig em...

 

 

id put money on these baits to catch a fish any day... where i fish anyways...

[BucktownAngler]

Bucktails, Believers, Grandma/Jakes

[mike rousseau]

for you believer guys....

 

if your trolling em... how fast are you trolling....?

and

if your casting em... how are you working em...?

 

and what sizes work for you...?

 

 

i havent got a ski on a believer/swim wizz in years.... but it was a swim wizz that really opened my eyes to using lures for musky over live bait when i was younger.... first time i ever trolled musky i got 3 in an hour on a swim wizz

[Handlebarz]

Woodies have put more fish in my boat then any other bait 6 1/4" are my favorite but all sizes have there Place colors perch white belly black perch and fog patterns.

 

8" 10" jakes are awesome. Walleye perch black perch are my goto.

 

Shameful plug for my Handlebarz as all musky hunters know big bladed flashabou has been killer for many years. Both my inline and closed loop safety pin egg heads rock the musky. My favorite colors bleeding pearl electric black with musky red blades copper walleye confusion and something bright like fire tiger perch or lemon lime.

Edited June 1, 2012 by Mike P.

[Raf]

for you believer guys....

 

if your trolling em... how fast are you trolling....?

and

if your casting em... how are you working em...?

 

and what sizes work for you...?

 

 

 

i use 10" & 13" jointed models

 

i troll on the shallow eye and on the deep eye. speeds 4-7 mph in the summer - mostly on the shallow eye (some believers will blow out at high speeds even after adjusting so if you find one that tracks good its a keeper). 3.5-5 in the fall mostly on the deep eye. i cast the 10" and retrieve slowly ie. use them as a topwater lure at or after dark

Edited June 1, 2012 by Raf

[Andrew Grant]

.

Edited January 30, 2014 by XxX

[fishindevil]

a perch color suspending shad rap or my usual trolling a nice red bead worm harness,and siver blades,gets me lots of muskies every year, of course im fishing for walleyes when it happens have got 3 so far this year trolling for eyes !!! if i were to target them i would probly not catch one !!! haha

[mike rousseau]

i use 10" & 13" jointed models

 

i troll on the shallow eye and on the deep eye. speeds 4-7 mph in the summer - mostly on the shallow eye (some believers will blow out at high speeds even after adjusting so if you find one that tracks good its a keeper). 3.5-5 in the fall mostly on the deep eye. i cast the 10" and retrieve slowly ie. use them as a topwater lure at or after dark

 

 

i guess i just lost my confidence in them...

 

i may have to try em again soon....

[Raf]

i guess i just lost my confidence in them...

 

i may have to try em again soon....

 

gotta have a believer and jake in the arsenal for trolling. grandma too.

[Handlebarz]

I have several believers 8-10" but have yet to get a ski on them. Speedyroll got two one day withe and I think someone else got 1 but that's it on my boats

Edited June 1, 2012 by Mike P.

[landry]

Soft plastics mostly - super d's, dawgs, tubes, bondy baits, swim jigs with rubber

[Live2fish85]

Hey guys, great thread.

 

I have only been Musky fishing once at the end of last year. I got all my fish on the same lure lol. So with that and one trip, I know nothing but what I have read lol.

 

I have a question though. The lip on my grandma is loose and falls out at will, what should I do to fix it?

 

Will super glue work or is there a trick to it.

 

Thanks.

[lew]

This is an old picture but their all still my top 5 baits and the best producers....consistently.

 

LARGE orange/black Grim Reaper #950....best spinnerbait I've ever used. I replace the bottom single hook with a 7/0 treble and leave the single hook on the top.

 

Strawberry weighted Sledge...excellent over top of weeds

 

Bumble Bee Double "D" for twitching....I remove the middle treble and upsize the front treble from a 5/0 to a 7/0...deadly bait.

 

These 3 baits are ALWAYS clipped on to rods when I start my day.

 

 

For trolling ****

 

 

10" Bumble Bee Believer...I remove the rattles from most of my Believers and you can see on top of this one where I patched the hole.

 

10" Jake in a Sunfish pattern...one of the most productive colours I've ever come across.

 

[mike rousseau]

 

10" Jake in a Sunfish pattern...one of the most productive colours I've ever come across.

 

 

 

i have a 8 inch sunfish jake and it has seen a LOT of time in the water... NEVER had a take on it.... :wallbash: :wallbash:

 

and i catch musky on other 8 inch jakes...

[lew]

i have a 8 inch sunfish jake and it has seen a LOT of time in the water... NEVER had a take on it.... :wallbash: :wallbash:

 

and i catch musky on other 8 inch jakes...

 

Mike, the 3 muskies I got on the St. Lawrence the day I met you all came on that 10" sunfish Jake trolled about 25' back of the boat.

[mike rousseau]

Mike, the 3 muskies I got on the St. Lawrence the day I met you all came on that 10" sunfish Jake trolled about 25' back of the boat.

 

 

COME ON!!!!!

 

ive used it at that spot countless times... :wallbash:

 

theyre probably just afraid of you and your big skeeter and figure they should have a last meal...lol...yeah...thats it

[lew]

It's all in the way you smile at the fish Mike

[mike rousseau]

It's all in the way you smile at the fish Mike

 

 

judging by your pics im showing too much teeth...lol

 

 

 

 

...

Edited June 1, 2012 by Musky Mike

[backbay]

This Believer, a white holo Suick, and and orange/black Bucher bucktail.

[Spiel]

judging by your picks im showing too much teeth...lol

 

Hahahaha, he's got you there Lew.

[jedimaster]

#1 Jointed believer

#2 Big Orange Spinner Bait

#3 You gotta be on the water to see #3

[lew]

judging by your pics im showing too much teeth...lol

 

 

I dunno what you & Spiel are talkin about Mike, I'm always smiling when I'm fishing.