Product Reviews for Musky Fishing

[Mike Hulbert]

Winter has definately settled in and I thought this would be a good time for all of us to dicuss, post and educate people on the MANY MANY different products out there for musky fishing. There is a lot of choices out there when it comes to baits, rods, reels, line, sunglasses, release tools, cameras, rain gear, terminal tackle, etc...the list can go on and on...

So I thought it would be cool and educational for all of us to post some of our favorite gear and why...and on the flip side discuss some other products we weren't to happy with.

Remember this can be ANYTHING musky related....so if you have something good to share, please do. If you have a question about a certain product please log in and ask, as I am sure there will be somebody or several people with info for you to share. I personally feel the best info is true and honesty info, so feel feel to highly praise a product or discuss why you didn't like or wouldn't recommend a product. We can all learn a thing or two from this...so I will start.

Knipex has become the staple hook cutters in Musky fishing and for good reason, they rock. About 4 years ago, I tried a new type of hook cutters and actually perfer them over my Knipex. I still carry two pair of Knipex cutters in my boat but my Felco C7 cutters work the best in my opinion. Easy to use, spring handles and they cut 7 and 8-O hooks like butter. Like I said, I carry 2 pair of Knipex with me and 2 pair of these Felco's as well, and everytime I have to cut hooks, I am grabbing the Felco's over the Knipex. I have both the Felco C7's and the Felco C3.

There is also alot of questions out there about polarized sunglasses. I have tried about 4 zillion pair in my life from cheap $10.00 ones to the pair I use today, the Oceanwaves in Backwater Green lenses. I feel these glasses out perform any other glasses I have used and I have had them now for at least 4 seasons. They are great in low light as well as bright sunny days. Again, they are not the cheapest pair out there, but with sunglasses I have learned that you get what you pay for.

So there are my first two reviews...hook cutters and sunglasses...both VERY imporant when it comes to musky fishing...so what products do you like or would you recommend or what products would you tell people to stay away from? Remember, this can be anything musky related. I also want to add that any product that I recommend or endorse doesn't mean I am sponsered by them. It simply means, that product works! IE: I am not sponsered by Oceanwaves nor Felco...they are just awesome products that I would highly recommend.

[Mike Hulbert]

Oh now come on...you mean to tell me some of you don't have anything good or bad to say about anything???? Nothing to help the fellow musky guy out?? Well then, I guess I'll add another and hope some of you chime in.

When it comes to reels I again have used pretty much everything that is out here...some of it is junk some is not...I perfer the Calcutta TE 400 with a power handle on it. The Caluctta 400 B's aren't a bad reel either, but it's not the same as it's big brother the TE. With many reels I have serious anti-reverse issues and I have found that the TE and B's will hold up longer than any other reel I use. Not only will the anti reverse hold up longer, but so will the gears and other small pieces that break on a consistant basis. I have ohter reels as back ups as my Calcutta's do break down from time to time, but I pefer the Calcutta TE 400 over any other reel that I have used for everyday fishing.

Trolling Motors....
I have had a Minn Kota Terrova since they first came out and I couldn't be happier. I used to use the Power Drives and would go through foot pedals about every 30 to 40 days on the water on average. They just didn't hold up...I remember one year I went through 13 pedals....not a happy person! I have not yet gone through one Terrova pedal, and I have used it for two seasons. I am glad they beefed up the pedals and made them more friendly to those of us that fish alot. The new pedal is very easy to opperate and even for a electric steer trolling motor, the response time isn't to bad...nothing can match the response time of a cable driven trolling motor....but I HATE the big bulky pedals and being stuck fishing out of the front of a boat. If you are in need of a new trolling motor, I would definatley look into a Terrova. Skip right past the newer Power Drives and opt for the Terrova...they are great and super easy to use!

[Ifishtolive]

Well if your looking at nets and wanting to save money you can't. I bought a Frabill Muskie/Salmon from Cabela's. You get the good hoop, but the net bag and handle suck. I ended up buying the $70 dollar 42" deep knotless-tangle free in June. Lesson learned, cough up the $134-170 for a Frabill upfront that is money for properly landing muskies you have to spend!

Buddy Ellenburg

Take a kid fishing they'll have a lifetime of memories!!

[Mike Hulbert]

Thanks Buddy! That's exactally what I was looking for!

I also use Frabill nets. I perfer the Frabill Big Kahuna. The hoop size and bag size are huge...which in my opinion is perfect. I have used Beckman's and Frabill's Big Game but I perfer the Big Kahuna. Both Frabill and Beckman make great nets, I just perfer the larger loops of the Frabill nets. When a fish rolls in the net and you have the smaller mesh like on the Beckman, it can be an annoying and frustrating experience trying to untangle a 7-O hook from the smaller net mesh.

The one thing to remember is to use a dipped bag which comes standard on Frabill's Big Game and Big Kahuna as well as Beckman's musky nets. Regular nylon nets will cause serious problems to both you and the fish you intend to release!

[Ifishtolive]

I also learned an extremely a$$ kicking lesson DO NOT buy Matzuo 4/0 red trebles from Bass Pro Shops for musky I lost my largest fish this year 45-48 Fattie on a bent hook at boatside heading to the net! That was a basll buster! On the subject of reels I did find on ffo-tackle.com (one of my favarite places to buy reels) they have last years models of Revo Premiers and STX reels in righties and lefties (for us weirdos) for 151.00 on the STX's. I bought 2, one for my Musky Armor and one for a Pro Edge. These are just for everything but Pounders and 10's. I 'm having trouble with my hands and need the smaller profile reels. If I was throwing 10's alot more I'd get a Toro, but I'll use my Trion for another year and see how productive the 10's are this year! Those STX reels cast as freakin' mile and are super smooth perfect fro the shadillac and my hell hounds and mag dawgs and new top waters. I ended up getting a TI Medusa Globe in Glow Loon and a Leviathan in Orange Tiger, they look really awsome and I just ordered several Dominatrix'es and a couple dbl 13 Booty Tails, If get a Boomer and maybe a Shadillac in the Carp I think I about set for open water!


Buddy Ellenburg

Take a kid fishing they'll have a lifetime of memories!

[imob34]

I've always used abu's C3 reels, but this year i found out the anti-reverse will fail everytime your out in the rain. the reels must be stripped down, dried, and lubed after every wet trip which becomes a pain when you get home late and would like to be on the lake before sun up the next morning. They are not bad reels for the price but this year i'll be purchasing a new set of reels once i decide on the model i want.

Last year a purchased a couple of the P-Line pliers w/ cutters on the side. They attach to your belt which has been a plus, i never have to look for pliers no matter whos boat i'm in and the cutters did fine each time i needed to cut a hook. They also cut braid no problem. The only model i've seen around here has the browning logo on it but i believe they are the same

I fish alone about 1/2 of the time and find netting difficult at times so last fall i purchased the Bulldog net. The 6' handle has really made reaching fish easier I also wrap my net handles with baseball bat grip tape to give my one had on it the best grip possible

Also became a big fan of chatterbaits last year, nothing out there creates near the vibration they put out. I observed shad swiming along side them on more than one occasion. Live decoys have to be a good thing don't they