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| Well , you always hear the expression "To catch big fish you need to use big baits." I was curious whether most musky fanatics agree with this saying or totally disagree?
If you had to put a number on the number of fish caught, lost, or moved on all baits would it be proportionately higher with the larger baits? When I say big baits, I mean baits 10" or larger such as Jakes, Believers, and Grandmas.
If you're targeting trophy fish should you focus on the size of the baits being thrown or should you not be concerned with throwing the large stuff? Is it more the water and areas that you're fishing rather than the size of bait that matters the most?
For the guys that toss the big stuff, what's your confidence big fish bait?
Thanks in advance to all these questions. I'm going through "a phase" in my musky fishing tactics that may incorporate more big baits to contact the bigger fish. But I wanted to see the concensus of big baits vs. small baits for catching bigger fish.
catch ya later,
Krappie |
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| I do catch fish on some large baits..but almost 90% of the muskies in my boat are on baits no bigger then 7". And I use baits as small as 3". Sometimes its easier to trigger a large lunge with a small snack.. then a large one, at least in my area.. |
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| My largest Wisconsin fish came on a creature; in fact I had a dozen over thirty pounds on jigs before I even picked up my first bucktail.
I have caught 54" fish on medium spinnerbaits, and 34" fish on MAGNUM lures.
My favorite topwater is only 5" long. Is small better? No, I just throw small stuff alot!
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| I think you have to look at the fish activity level. When they're in an active mood, go with a big loud bait. They're going to hit something when in that mood so I give them something they can see and feel. I got my largest (in the boat) fish this year on a day like that on a 10" fire tiger Jake. On days that are ho-hum muskie days I downsize to around the 7" range. On the real tough ones, I'll through some smaller stickbaits like little Jakes, 6" bombers, and small bucktails. |
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| If I put on a bait of at least 8" this is what I caught on them small northern and bass. I caught a 16" bass and a 26" northern throwing a viper this year. On another trip I was throwing a squirley burt and caught a 12" bass and a small northern. There are plenty more where that came from. For me large baits=small fish. |
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| One of my largest fish I have caught (48" about 31 pounds) came on a 22 inch sucker. A few years later I got one the same size on a #5 Mepps. I don't thik that you ALWAYS have to use big baits to catch big fish. I have also caught a 31 incher on a 14 inch Slammer, so who knows? Generally, I don't use baits larger than 10 inches. Not that I don't think that big fish will not eat the big stuff, but I'm getting to old and my body can't take that kind of abuse anymore. |
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| Krappie,using big baits is a seasonal and locational thing.They can be used in the summer but in the right place.Come fall bigger baits stand out,little baits catch lots of big ones too.Alternating throughout the season will lead you to the right times to use giant baits.Combine a small bait with a big bait,let the fish tell you what they want.
Take care
marc |
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| I generally start out the season with smaller, wider wobbling baits like a small Believer or a 7" Trinity jointed. As the season progresses, I'll go to larger baits with a tighter wobble, like a 10" Jake. After a cold front, I'll go back to smaller baits for a day or two till the weather stabilizes and the fish are back to normal. |
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| I must say my biggest fish come on lures that are between 5" abd 6.5". |
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| Hiya,
As with most everything in muskie fishing, the answer probably is 'it depends...'
I think you have to take bait size into account when considering other factors besides just size. The one that comes immediately to mind is speed. Speed is a trigger all its own, and it's a lot easier (talking casting here at any rate) to move a small bait fast than it is a big one. I love 10" believers and 10" Suicks, but most of the bucktails I throw are, by most people's standards, pretty small. I do this because the speed range that's available to me without dislocating my shoulders is wider with a 5" tail with a French blade than it is with a 9" tail and a magnum fluted Indiana.
Another good example is small erratic twitch baits. Stuff like a Mann's stretch minus 1 are tremendous fish catchers, and can be worked rapidly and erratically - great tough conditions baits. Same with Little Ernies.
One situation where small baits really shine is pressured water - note Jason Smith's claim he catches most of his fish on small baits, then consider the water he guided on... On systems where fish see an endless rain of full-size muskie baits crashing down from sunup to sundown, small baits make a difference. One of the flat-out best pressured water baits is a large bass-sized spinnerbait - not a muskie bait for most except in the spring.
Finally, as Marc pointed out, is the seasonal factor...he's right on.
Cheers,
RK |
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| I've caught my biggest (44") on a lure smaller than 5 inches. I don't think there are certain sizes that catch certain sizes of fish. Any muskie lure can catch any size fish. |
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| Thanks guys for your time and answers. Very much appreciated!!! I was just curious since I had a tough time in Wisconsin to break the 40" mark on my fish. I contacted alot of mid to upper 30" fish throughout the year. I was thinking it was because I was tossing predominately mid-size cranks and gliders. I usually don't throw too many baits smaller than 6", and I in fact toss predominately 8" or better cranks and jerkbaits. I was wondering if I should be throwing the jumbo stuff like Big Cats, Trophy Divers, Legend Plows,Big Daddies etc.etc? Again thanks for you input.
catch ya later,
Krappie |
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| Krappie, for the most part is sounds like you are already tossin' the big stuff by Wisconsin standards. Might need to add some 6" baits to your box this winter. I'd start with a baby depth raider (straight) and a Mann's Minus 1.
Without checking my poorly kept logs, I'd be willing to bet that I've caught more small fish on big baits than big fish on big baits. Yah, you catch more small fish in a season.... but you get the point. You gotta FIND the big girls first... then figure out if they want big or small baits. I'd be willing to bet that your shortage of big fish in Wisconsin isn't due to your presentation (bait size) at all, but the fact that you are knocking on the wrong door. Just a thought.
jlong
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| I think that if you are fishing in a lake that has a good population of large fish (40" and bigger) that you will be better off using large lures.
I read someplace that a muskies prefered food is somewhere around 10% of it's weight.
This doesn't mean that you can't catch large fish with small lures, nor does it mean that you can't catch small fish with big lures, both happen all the time.
Needless to say that I've caught most of the large fish that I've caught have been on large lures, but then, I use large lures most of the time.
Never base results on a small sample size!
Doug Johnson |
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| I once read a very convincing article by a fisheries biologist on this topic. In summary, he said really big fish prefer to eat baits that are about 30% of the length of the eater. (So a 60" fish would prefer a 18-20" bait.) He said it had to do with a big fish's natural tendency to conserve its energy. Catching a 20" fish is much more efficient than catching four 5" fish.
Ranger |
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| Hi , interesting question. I am presently in the middle of an article on that question. I have interviewd about a dozen well know and respected guides. I have a few more to go go . I am surprised by the difference in the feedback I am getting. I will post a note a note when it is published and where......... Don Pfeiffer |
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| Well my answer is yes it is true. Now I don't fish with small lures ( under 10" ) but a very small pencentage of the time. I then move on to 12 to 15 inch lures in the fall.
That is not the only reason I catch bigger then average fish but location and paterns as well. I tried to target bigger fish for an entire year some years ago and raised my average size by almost 4 inches and my hours per fish were up by only 1, I tought it was a great trade off.
I am sure I can downsize my baits and catch more fish and even a few big ones but I can also garantee you I would be catching a lot of bait as well. I would rather go after the bigger ones then shaking off 30 inchers and bait all day long.[:sun:] |
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| Hey Don I'm really looking forward to that article. I'm pretty curious what most anglers feel is the answer. It's one of those age old questions, that may never have clear cut answers. I bet that many of the different responses would be related to the geographical region that they fish. It would be neat to know how much bearing fishing pressure, forage base and general nature of that regions fish(that particular muskie strain) reacted to big baits.
But then again it's probably not rocket science and any musky will prefer bigger baits. Doug Johnson's cut and dry comment may be all I need to hear.
I had an off year in seeing some real tankers, so of course I'm going to reevaluate what I'm doing wrong. But maybe it's not that, and just having an off year.
What's peculiar is it appears that more tackle shops carry more smaller baits (smaller than 10") than larger baits. This may be due to the fact that there's a smaller demand in big baits, thus a smaller selection. Or do you guys think it's because those big baits have a large overhead price? Never-the-less maybe that's even more of a reason to toss the big stuff...less people are throwing it.
Hey Richard C. , what's the biggest fish you caught on your biggest bait? Do you think that casting these big baits all summer will have major wear and tear on my equipment(especially reels)?...Don't worry about me getting tired I don't mind tossing Mag Bulldawgs for 12 hours.he,he,he.
Do you typically troll the big stuff or cast with it too. I'm one of the Wisconsinites that doesn't have the option of trolling.
catch ya later,
Krappie |
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On 12/21/2001 10:53:11 PM
Hey Richard C. , what's the biggest fish you caught on your biggest bait? Do you think that casting these big baits all summer will have major wear and tear on my equipment(especially reels)?...Don't worry about me getting tired I don't mind tossing Mag Bulldawgs for 12 hours.he,he,he.
Do you typically troll the big stuff or cast with it too. I'm one of the Wisconsinites that doesn't have the option of trolling.
catch ya later,
Krappie
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My biggest fish ever was a 55 X 26 caught trolling a custom 15 inch bait ( it's second time seeing water, the first resolted in a 49 incher ) that averaged 51.5 inches it's first year. I think thats what sold me to the big bait = big fish theory.
If you can toss mag dawgs all day long then there won't be a problem tossing 12" hawgs or any 10" jerkbait out there. The 12" reef hawgs are made from a lighter wood and do not weight much more then the 10" ones. All my other 12"+ lures are the trolling kind. Don't be afraid of casting 10" Jakes and believers as well. I may try to cast/twitch some 13 inch grandmas next summer.
[:sun:]
BTW them there mag dawgs catch big fish.[;)] |
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| I believe that if you follow the size of the prey they you stand a better chance. I also believe in following profiles of the baitfish in lure choices. Fat bodied lures in waters that have a bluegill/crappie forage base and thinner bodied lures in streams that have a sucker/creek chub base.
Just my something to think about the next time your out.
Mauser[:bigsmile:] |
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Old Wives tale or Not?