muskie rod

[mike rousseau]

 

I'm not a musky fisherman but other than really small stuff I've always pumped decent sized fish in during my nearly 60 years of angling, always viewed simply cranking as a sign of a noob especially while the drag is slipping, what is the reasoning behind reeling and not pumping fighting a musky?

Pumping increased the chances of giving the fish slack... Also your constantly changing the pressure on the hook which can cause it to tear a bigger hole and not only increase chances of losing a fish but increase the damage done to the fish...

 

Also I personally find with large fish if they feel a pressure decrease (when you drop your tip to reel) they understand it as an opportunity to get away and they run and head shake and go crazy again increasing the chance of losing your fish...

 

I agree if your drag is slipping you'll have to rod pump but if that's the case your reel isn't up to the job in my opinion... Most of my reels I use for any species are capable of straightening the hooks with their drag... So there is never a situation where I need to rod pump... Me lure will fail before my reel...

 

Now I'm talking freshwater here... A 500lb tuna may be different...