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Posts: 371
Location: Northern Illinois | A couple of weeks ago, I was watching a wader reel in a catfish out of a deep hole in the river. He was using 4 lb test and it took him what seemed like 15 minutes to get the fish in. It looked like a lot of fun.
I think nowadays most most muskie fisherman horse the fish in. I generally get them in pretty fast too, unless I'm by myself in which case I don't like to try to net them while they are so hot, so I might play them out a little if conditions warrant.
Do you think horsing them in is that much better for them in most cases? I wonder too, it might be a shorter time in the fight for them, but it's more intense in that time period as well. So does that have any equalizing effect?
Do any of you miss the days of lighter gear and longer fights? Or, is getting it in the bag the most important thing?
Edited by mm3 9/8/2021 9:38 PM
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Posts: 1023
| Don’t miss the old days of lighter gear
Prolonged fights are worse for fish
Love the violent locking horns battle of heavy tackle more anyways. |
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Location: Athens, Ohio | Watch the pro bass guys if you want a lesson of hook-and-flip into the boat. m
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| I have always followed the advice to get them in the net as quickly as practical but sometimes I wonder. Couple of fish that ate on the 8 and were netted almost immediately thrashed and spun, slammed around, took a long time to revive. A very green fish in the net expends a lot of energy against that net. |
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Posts: 20180
Location: oswego, il | Unless you are using a crappie rod with 4lb test a muskie.fight isn't that long. I've caught some nice fish on bass gear and lucky if the fight lasts 3 minutes. I've caught them incidentally on walleye spinning gear and I can't say the fight was any longer. I don't horse fish. Never will. Good way to pull the hooks out of a poorly hooked fish. Let them go with some tension when they want and they come in pretty fast when they aren't thrashing and making short runs.
I agree with No8 green fish in the net isn't good for them or you. Even with what I said earlier the fish I catch still have plenty of energy. |
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Posts: 8720
| I've had that happen too. Had a 4 footer eat boatside, stayed on the surface, instant net job... As soon as it hit the net it rolled, spun the net right to the top of the bag, and managed to tie itself up in line, net, and hooks. It was probably only a few minutes, but is seemed like forever trying to unroll the net, untangle line, hooks, etc. just to get to the fish. By the time I released it, the #*^@ thing looked like it had been through a war. Always wondered if that fish would have been better off if I played it out a little. |
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Posts: 284
Location: Eagan, MN | What’s odd is that I’ve caught big muskies incidentally while bass, walleye, and crappie fishing - with long battles on light gear. None of them made my knees shake. However, hook and land a big muskie on a pounder bulldawg with a heavy 9’ rod and I’m gonna need to take a break afterwards to compose myself and stop shaking. Can’t figure out why that is…???
Edited by BrianF. 9/9/2021 2:22 PM
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| esoxaddict - 9/9/2021 12:30 PM
I've had that happen too. Had a 4 footer eat boatside, stayed on the surface, instant net job... As soon as it hit the net it rolled, spun the net right to the top of the bag, and managed to tie itself up in line, net, and hooks. It was probably only a few minutes, but is seemed like forever trying to unroll the net, untangle line, hooks, etc. just to get to the fish. By the time I released it, the #*^@ thing looked like it had been through a war. Always wondered if that fish would have been better off if I played it out a little.
This is what happened with one of the fish I was referencing in my post. Not as big, just over 40 but had a heck of time untangling it and in the process, just as I thought I finally had it to where I good get at it, it thrashed again and a hook cut the back of my finger all the way to the bone. Took gauze and lot of electrical tape to get the bleeding stopped. Front deck looked like I had dressed a deer up there. Had to leave the fish in the bag after unhooking and go in circles the the trolling motor to revive it. |
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Posts: 216
| Why put a fish in a net unless it is so hooked up on a bait so bad you can't shake it off at boatside? Get the fish next to the boat, and shake it off the hook.
Edited by Abu7000 9/9/2021 7:23 PM
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Posts: 1126
Location: Minnesota. | Well, me for one, I hear ya! I use a decent 7 1/2' med. hvy rod with either 65lb or 80lb braid so that's not going light but I do fish a lot of light-line tackle for other species, esp. in fly fishing.
I have taken to a med hvy. 7' spinning rod and 40 lb braid for a good bit of musky fishing the last year or two and hope to tangle with one on that outfit at some point.
For me, i like the fight and the excitement of all that that includes and after taken enough larger fish I'll opt to let many go boatside if need be, esp., if a buddy is along to see the fish...
Yeah, for me it's that fight, within reason... I'll keep the fish in the drink though if I'm thinking she's too pooped to risk a pic.
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Posts: 2280
Location: Chisholm, MN | Abu7000 - 9/9/2021 7:21 PM
Why put a fish in a net unless it is so hooked up on a bait so bad you can't shake it off at boatside? Get the fish next to the boat, and shake it off the hook.
Safety. For you and the fish. Odds of getting your hand hooked are far greater without a net. |
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Posts: 371
Location: Northern Illinois | Abu7000 - 9/9/2021 7:21 PM
Why put a fish in a net unless it is so hooked up on a bait so bad you can't shake it off at boatside? Get the fish next to the boat, and shake it off the hook.
If getting the fish next to the boat, but not getting it in the net, is considered catching a fish then I just caught a few more:) I didn't even have to shake the hook off, the fish did it for me.
Edited by mm3 9/10/2021 7:59 AM
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Location: Athens, Ohio | How big were they? m |
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Posts: 24
Location: Southern WI | I’ve noticed in a lot of the videos being posted to FB and YouTube the fight is over in 10 seconds. For how much work goes into it I want at least a minute or two. |
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Posts: 386
| For me, muskie fishing is more about the take then the fight. I want to get them in the net as soon as I can cuz I suck at fishing for them and get very few oppurtunities for a hero shot. If I was fishing for the fight, I personally would spend more time on carp, catfish, and sturgeon. Straight up brawl. |
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Posts: 3782
| If you want a good fight head to a river and hook a big steelhead on a long, light spin cast rod and 6# line. See how that goes.
I'm a horser, I guess, though I give line to a figure 8 fish to get 20-30' from the boat to tire out for maybe 90 seconds then I bring her back to the net. That applies to small fish, under 40". Bigger than that I play the fish as I feel the strength of the fish. Nobody horses a 46"+ fish; you let the fish decide when it's ready to calm down.
I was once in a boat when a person hooked a REALLY big fish. Maybe muskie and maybe flathead and maybe a carp. 30' of water, fishing on the bottom, presentation was a walleye jig tipped with a leach on 6# mono. We stayed over that #*^@ fish for almost 4 hours, never able to bring it up even a foot off the bottom. It moved around a bit, in an area about 30' square. That fish was never not in charge. Wind came up and in the whitecaps the line finally broke. Same rod/line the person used to catch a 20# pike a few days prior. It was a very small lake in SW MI and a local riparian master concluded we prol hooked one of the 30-40# flatheads he brought from the St. Joe river. Sure woulda liked to see that fish but it easily won the day,
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Posts: 1677
Location: Mt. Zion, IL | I have had 60+ lb flathead catfish (maxed out my 60 lb scale) eat regular Medusas and you are definitely not in charge even with 80 lb braid and an XH musky rod. Fight lasted more than 45 minutes and I was trying to horse the fish. Fish got in the net and bit my hand harder than any man could ever squeeze my hand. |
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Posts: 1194
| My dad caught low 30 pound class Muskie in 1950 with a bamboo Bass rod with a reel with no drag silk line and it took him over two hours to land it and the week before he got a 20 pound Muskie on the same outfit, not bad for a seventeen year old kid. Then all this talk of 50 inchers got to him (his fish was 49 1/2 )well dad the 50" replaced the 30 pounder (and not all 50" weight 30 pounds) 2003 he got fat square 53" (released) problem solved! And a note the 1950 Wisconsin fish was caught on the 4th of July American independence day his 53" was caught in Canada on July 1st Canadian independence day. Also he lost the twin of 53" in Wisconsin on July 1st 1977 twenty five years earlier to the day. |
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Posts: 32799
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | I've put quite a few muskies over 50 in the net on 17# test and what is now considered a heavy-action bass rod. rarely over a 2 minute deal. |
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Posts: 536
Location: deephaven mn | Kirby Budrow - 9/10/2021 7:29 AM
Abu7000 - 9/9/2021 7:21 PM
Why put a fish in a net unless it is so hooked up on a bait so bad you can't shake it off at boatside? Get the fish next to the boat, and shake it off the hook.
Safety. For you and the fish. Odds of getting your hand hooked are far greater without a net.
I do not use a net on smalller fish if i can see hook not swallowed.
Just like all northerns, no net just grab hook with pliers and flip it out.
can be much quicker and better for the fish. Hands never touch fish.
how ever if hooked good it may be worse on fish if you struggle with the hook.
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Posts: 1194
| Well back to my dad's fish story they had a chance to land it after a half hour but they had a thing called a snap gaff in the boat (this is now illegal) kind of spring loaded claw on the end of 4ft. pole. they hit the fish across the back behind the head and the fish was too wide and it just took off scales. The week before it worked on the 40" 20 pounder, this fish was caught on a spoon and it (the spoon was back in the gills and the fish did not fight) my dad just reeled it up and his uncle hit the fish with the gaff and put it in the boat. After the fish was off the gaff and no pressure on the spoon the green fish went nuts and they pushed under the set of the boat and it tried to jump out of the boat and broke the wooden seat out of the boat.
They finally hit it with a oar. Also when he had the big fish on he only had his 12 year old cousin with him. They finally landed it after bystander wadded out with a regular gaff and beached it. The day before my dad also lost a 30 pound hybrid! |
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| kap - 9/13/2021 8:15 AM
Kirby Budrow - 9/10/2021 7:29 AM
Abu7000 - 9/9/2021 7:21 PM
Why put a fish in a net unless it is so hooked up on a bait so bad you can't shake it off at boatside? Get the fish next to the boat, and shake it off the hook.
Safety. For you and the fish. Odds of getting your hand hooked are far greater without a net.
I do not use a net on smalller fish if i can see hook not swallowed.
Just like all northerns, no net just grab hook with pliers and flip it out.
can be much quicker and better for the fish. Hands never touch fish.
how ever if hooked good it may be worse on fish if you struggle with the hook.
To a degree, I do this is well with small fish but it carries risk. Had an upper 20s ski hit a Believer last year and when I got it to the boat saw it had one of the hooks from the front treble in side of mouth. Reached down and unhooked but what I didn't see was that one of the hooks on the back treble was hooked on outside of jaw, on the bottom. As I started to straighten up, the still hooked fish flipped and drove a hook into the knuckle on my thumb. Now I had a struggling fish attached to my thumb. I pulled it off and other than a sore thumb, no harm done. Could just as easily have buried it in the pad at base of thumb. |
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Posts: 20180
Location: oswego, il | I net them. Better control and better safety. I took my lightweight net I now use for lake trout up to Canada a couple weeks ago. My partner did not want to bring one of our big game nets because it's too heavy. I should have insisted. After a few super tight cocoon jobs the net was at the cabin and we used a small walleye net the supplied by the resort. Those small fish can be dangerous, they can jump and dart. |
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Posts: 1203
Location: Walker, MN | Under-played fish are frisky when handled, but swim away healthier in general. Less "playing out" and less handling is simply better for the fish.
I'll use a down-sizer rod in June when the water is still cool, in the fall the fish I target don't seem to care for smaller lures all that much, so we put the screws to them with heavier gear most of the time.
I like to target Lake Sturgeon in the spring, some of the best toe-to-toe fights with longer battles sometimes. With muskies it's more about the hunt, the strike, the release etc. than a long battle. |
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Posts: 68
| Masqui-ninja - 9/15/2021 6:01 AM
Under-played fish are frisky when handled, but swim away healthier in general. Less "playing out" and less handling is simply better for the fish.
I'll use a down-sizer rod in June when the water is still cool, in the fall the fish I target don't seem to care for smaller lures all that much, so we put the screws to them with heavier gear most of the time.
I like to target Lake Sturgeon in the spring, some of the best toe-to-toe fights with longer battles sometimes. With muskies it's more about the hunt, the strike, the release etc. than a long battle.
100% about the hunt. Satisfaction of hunting down the biggest muskies in a system and then being able to trigger a strike is what it's all about! That is the main reason I'm against some of the modern electronics. I'm fine with the SI, DI, and Sonar, but the live stuff really turns it into a driving around game versus a hunting game in my opinion. |
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Posts: 2280
Location: Chisholm, MN | North of 8 - 9/13/2021 12:46 PM
kap - 9/13/2021 8:15 AM
Kirby Budrow - 9/10/2021 7:29 AM
Abu7000 - 9/9/2021 7:21 PM
Why put a fish in a net unless it is so hooked up on a bait so bad you can't shake it off at boatside? Get the fish next to the boat, and shake it off the hook.
Safety. For you and the fish. Odds of getting your hand hooked are far greater without a net.
I do not use a net on smalller fish if i can see hook not swallowed.
Just like all northerns, no net just grab hook with pliers and flip it out.
can be much quicker and better for the fish. Hands never touch fish.
how ever if hooked good it may be worse on fish if you struggle with the hook.
To a degree, I do this is well with small fish but it carries risk. Had an upper 20s ski hit a Believer last year and when I got it to the boat saw it had one of the hooks from the front treble in side of mouth. Reached down and unhooked but what I didn't see was that one of the hooks on the back treble was hooked on outside of jaw, on the bottom. As I started to straighten up, the still hooked fish flipped and drove a hook into the knuckle on my thumb. Now I had a struggling fish attached to my thumb. I pulled it off and other than a sore thumb, no harm done. Could just as easily have buried it in the pad at base of thumb.
Yeah, it can still happen. Long pliers and hook cutters have saved me from ever getting a hook in the hand so far. I am extra cautious. I never want that to happen to me and I'll take every precaution possible to avoid it. Probably bound to happen though. |
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| Kirby Budrow - 9/15/2021 8:46 AM
North of 8 - 9/13/2021 12:46 PM
kap - 9/13/2021 8:15 AM
Kirby Budrow - 9/10/2021 7:29 AM
Abu7000 - 9/9/2021 7:21 PM
Why put a fish in a net unless it is so hooked up on a bait so bad you can't shake it off at boatside? Get the fish next to the boat, and shake it off the hook.
Safety. For you and the fish. Odds of getting your hand hooked are far greater without a net.
I do not use a net on smalller fish if i can see hook not swallowed.
Just like all northerns, no net just grab hook with pliers and flip it out.
can be much quicker and better for the fish. Hands never touch fish.
how ever if hooked good it may be worse on fish if you struggle with the hook.
To a degree, I do this is well with small fish but it carries risk. Had an upper 20s ski hit a Believer last year and when I got it to the boat saw it had one of the hooks from the front treble in side of mouth. Reached down and unhooked but what I didn't see was that one of the hooks on the back treble was hooked on outside of jaw, on the bottom. As I started to straighten up, the still hooked fish flipped and drove a hook into the knuckle on my thumb. Now I had a struggling fish attached to my thumb. I pulled it off and other than a sore thumb, no harm done. Could just as easily have buried it in the pad at base of thumb.
Yeah, it can still happen. Long pliers and hook cutters have saved me from ever getting a hook in the hand so far. I am extra cautious. I never want that to happen to me and I'll take every precaution possible to avoid it. Probably bound to happen though. |
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Posts: 20180
Location: oswego, il | I forget what famous Canadian Angler/guide told me smaller pike were the worst and knew several people who took hooks to the face because they darted or jumped when trying to grab them. |
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Posts: 2280
Location: Chisholm, MN | ToddM - 9/15/2021 1:02 PM
I forget what famous Canadian Angler/guide told me smaller pike were the worst and knew several people who took hooks to the face because they darted or jumped when trying to grab them.
Yup, little muskies are almost as bad. That's why they all go in the net. |
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| Kirby Budrow - 9/16/2021 9:23 AM
ToddM - 9/15/2021 1:02 PM
I forget what famous Canadian Angler/guide told me smaller pike were the worst and knew several people who took hooks to the face because they darted or jumped when trying to grab them.
Yup, little muskies are almost as bad. That's why they all go in the net.
Over a 40 year period, had two hooks in my hand, both from muskies that were shy of 30 inches. Both times I was trying to minimize handling/damage to the fish. |
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