What Makes A Musky Reel?

As the name suggests, it’s a reel designed for tackling

large fish

in fresh or saltwater The 7/8 or 9/10 sizes are what most anglers prefer for musky, and the large arbor allows you to use a size heavier rod and line than the reel size.

What is a

good gear ratio

for musky fishing?

A Musky Reel Most of the reels that are on the market have a 5.3 to 1 gear ratio, which is fine for crankbaits, and bucktails but the higher 6.3 to 1 gear ratio is preferred for jerkbaits. The higher ratio will allow more line to be gathered during the pause of jerkbait fishing.

How much drag do you need for musky?

Look for reels that have a minimum of 12 pounds of drag, 15 pounds of drag is adequate, any more than that is probably a waste of money. Any less than 12 pounds, the reel won’t last very long before it needs repair.

Can I use a spinning reel for musky?

Spinning reels should be fairly large when fishing for musky The Daiwa Black Gold series was designed for saltwater and works great for musky fishing. It has quality components with excellent drag and bail systems. The 4500 is a

good match

for the St Croix rod above.

What rod should I use for muskie?

Rod Length for Musky For most applications a good fishing rod for muskie will generally fall into the range of between 7.5 feet and 9 feet in length Trolling rods for musky can be on the shorter end of this range whereas a baitcasting rod for musky would be in the higher end of the range.

What is a 8.1 gear ratio good for?

High gear ratio reels | 7.1:1 thru 8.1:1 High gear ratios are best for techniques where taking up slack and bringing a bait back to the boat are critical. Topwaters, jerkbaits, jigs, plastics and even lipless crankbaits warrant the use of a high-speed reel.

What is a 7.1 1 gear ratio good for?


medium speed baitcaster

Next, we’ve got medium speed reels, which includes models with a gear ratio from 7.1:1 to 7.9:1. This is a really good standard gear ratio for baitcasters that can be used for a wide variety of

fishing tactics

– anything involving spinnerbaits, chatter baits, or shallow diving crankbaits.

What is the best gear ratio for flipping and pitching?

By today’s standards 9.1:1 is worth consideration and there are several new reels with ratios above 10:1. Good Luck and Good Fishing!.

How long should a musky rod be?

We find that a rod length of around 8 feet is the “sweet spot” when fishing for musky. It gives you plenty of length and strength for casting the large lures, yet it’s much easier to handle than a 9-foot rod.

Can you use a medium heavy rod for musky?

Typically, shorter individuals that are on low decked boats or fishing from a bank, won’t need a rod over 7′ and beginners should stick to medium weight tackle so a Medium Heavy rod will do fine I recommend a Musky Shop Shield Rod or St. Croix Mojo Musky.

How do you set drag for musky fishing?

Set the drag with a positive aggressive attitude Don’t worry about breaking the line. Instead, concentrate on setting the hooks. While a drag set too tight might put too much pressure on a short line musky battle, a loosely set drag will not put enough pressure on a fish hooked at the end of a long cast.

Where is the best muskie fishing?

The three best big-water producers of giant muskies are Green Bay, Lake St. Clair, and the Ottawa River/St. Lawrence River systems Anglers have a legitimate shot at a 50- to 56-inch muskie nearly any day of the season there and it’s possible a record fish swims in at least two of these fisheries.

Why do muskies surface?

Musky like to be well acquainted with their surroundings and are surfacing to get a “better look around.” Muskellunge have also been seem “basking” and occasionally “porpoising” with their backs out of the water.

How much drag is needed for pike?

Having a drag system with a maximum drag of at least 15 pounds will help you land just about any pike that comes your way. When trolling for pike, we like to use reels that have a maximum drag of at least 25 pounds.

What does a 5 2 1 gear ratio mean?

Gear ratios vary from reel to reel, but they’re all represented in the same manner. Using a gear ratio of 5.2:1, for example, the 1 represents one complete turn, or one revolution (360 o ) of the handle For baitcasting reels, the 5.2 represents how many complete times the spool turns with one turn of the handle.

What gear ratio is best for chatterbait?

Generally speaking, chatterbaits require a fast retrieval, meaning anglers should be using gear ratios that are faster. The best gear ratio for people fishing chatterbaits is between 7.3:1, and 8.1:1.

What is a low gear ratio reel good for?

Low gear ratio reel | 5.1:1 thru 5.4:1 A lower fishing gear ratio reel is ideal for big baits that pull a lot, such as deep crankbaits These reels have the highest amount of torque, allowing you to put less effort into retrieving the bait and more energy towards finding the fish.

How hard is it to catch a muskie?

Because of this, they’re prized game fish throughout their range. Muskie are also famously hard to hook, hence the nickname “fish of a thousand casts.” They’re difficult to trick and impossible to predict Even so, there are a few go-to tactics for both species.

What is a 7.5 1 Baitcaster good for?

7.5:1 Reel – With my 7.5:1 gear-ratio reel, I like to use this reel when I’m fishing single-hook lures like a buzzbait, a spinner bait, bladed jigs and a frog.

What is a 7.3 1 gear ratio good for?

For example, take a reel that is labeled to be a 7.3:1 gear ratio. For each full rotation of the reel handle, the spool will turn 7.3 times. See the breakdown below for important information when considering which reel to use for different applications. These gear ratios are slower and are great for moving baits.

What’s a good gear ratio for crankbaits?

Crankbait specialists like the power of a low-speed reel such as a 5.0:1 model for winching deep-diving crankbaits to their maximum depths. Whereas guys who like to rip lipless crankbaits through vegetation or keep a buzz bait skittering across the surface prefer reels with 7.1:1 or higher gear ratios.

What is a 6.3 reel Good For?

Jerkbaits: Jerkbait fishing is optimized by using a reel that has a gear ratio of approximately 6.3:1 or slightly higher. This speed reel allows for enough power to straight retrieve deeper diving jerkbaits, but enough speed to take in line slack when going through the jerkbait retrieve cadence.

What is the best reel ratio?

The most common reel on the market has a 6.4:1 gear ratio. This will allow you to work both fast moving presentations as well as slow. However, for certain techniques and applications, a very high or low gear ratio will often work best. For instance, burning a spinnerbait or buzzbait is best done with a 7.1:1 reel.

What is a 6 4 1 gear ratio reel good for?

Medium reels are often referred to as the “workhorses” of bass anglers. Ratios of around 6:1 or 6:4 present a wide variety of baits and are often used with shallow spinnerbait presentations, square-billed crankbaits, medium-depth cranks in general, and castable umbrella rigs.

Can you Backlash a DC reel?

Is it impossible to backlash? No, but it is difficult to do so The Curado DC’s braking system is very good, but Mother Nature can still get the best of it in extreme situations, especially with heavier line.

What line is Carolina rig on?

For a more finesse technique on a spinning combo, use 6 to 10-pound test line Likewise, for a bait casting combo, use heavier 10 to 15-pound test as the size of the Carolina fishing rig increases. We recommend straight fluorocarbon or braid as a main line with a fluorocarbon leader.

What is a good glide bait reel?

  • Abu Garcia REVO Toro Beast Casting Reel
  • Abu Garcia REVO Toro Rocket Casting Reel
  • Daiwa Lexa 400 HD Casting Reel
  • Daiwa Tatula 300 Casting Reel
  • Lew’s Super Duty 300 LFS Casting Reel.

How old is a 50 inch muskie?

Growth and ultimate size can vary among bodies of water, depending on factors such as lake productivity, forage and genetics. Depending on the body of water, muskellunge in Minnesota could take 13 to 21 years to reach 50 inches.

Citations


Pike and Musky Reels


https://fish.shimano.com/content/fish/northamerica/us/en/homepage/Muskie_Rods.html


https://www.amazon.com/Musky-Reels/s?k=Musky+Reels