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| today's high sky made for tough fishing (2 lazy follows) but good scouting.
it's frustrating when schools of these bad boys are following up every cast...think the muskies are well fed in this lake???
any advice for making your lures stand out from the crowd?
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Posts: 4266
| Hook that thing up on a Quick Strike rig. 
Beav |
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Posts: 146
Location: Wayzata, MN | A lip, and a couple of trebles, and it's a 'live Rapala Super Shad Rap....
Well fed... yup. |
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Posts: 2089
| Big baits in hot colors.Grandma's and Jakes come to mind.Unmatch the hatch. Steve |
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Posts: 1764
Location: Ogden, Ut | Speed, then try going faster. If that doesn't work, pick up the pace a bit.
Sometimes noise can illicit a response, try rattles in combination w/ speed.
Get their attention, but don't give 'em time to make a 'decision' (I hate attributing higher mental functions to fish, but it helps explain the idea).
K. |
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Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | I'd use a charturese, loud and nasty if it's sunny, and black/oragne if its cloudy. Sorenson has it right, IMHO. |
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Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | Gotta disagree with Dad on that one, match the hatch, with a little extra. A little extra shimmy (shakers), funky twitches (bomber), rubber action tails (shallow invader or a dawg), or big thump (the ghosttail, the voodoo spinnerbait).
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Posts: 4266
| Slamr, send me that 8" Shaker so I can fix it for you.
It makes me cry to see what you do to lures.
Beav90210 |
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Posts: 7123
Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | Stay away from my shaker, pal. You'll get it when its on the edge of un-useable, not a moment before. Fish gotta eat, too. |
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| You think the shakers bad .... u should see his skeg ........ |
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Posts: 152
| I had the same thing on Kinkaid this spring when the water temp. was in the mid 60's. I started throwing a 6.5 inch bucktail with blk., or., and char. hair and a #8 heavy colorado blade and started putting fish in the boat. I feel that if I have twelve or fifteen shad following my glide bait there isn't a active Musky around. |
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Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | 1000000000 baitfish, all silver and white, and your lure is too..... 
Actually, the lures we have suggested are far from even coming close to immitating anything alive. I'm shooting for maximum contrast. |
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Posts: 3518
Location: north central wisconsin | This may sound screwy, but try getting away from the shad for a spell. On petenwell the muskies feed heavily on White Trash....err Bass. when the Whites are running it is next to impossible to catch a good musky in the 'run zone' up river where the whites are thick as thieves. I like to target areas down stream at that point that are void of white bass, that hold a fish or two that can not only find my lure in the crowd but is hungry enough to eat it. Not usually what I do when I see ciscoes flopping around up north(love that scenario), but in your case, and that being a river system too(if it is the lake I am thinking), it may work to get away from the crowd a bit.
Just babbling....
Edited by Reef Hawg 5/25/2005 8:40 AM
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Posts: 7123
Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | Contrast? I think that a large flashy shaker, or spastic DDD, big thumping bucktail or spinnerbait.....its a contrast, but a contrast to the environment as it usually is presented to a muskie. Color means so little, but I feel more confident when I'm matching that to a small degree. When I'm fishing shad, I feel like if the bait STANDS OUT against the environment, and the usual placidly swimming/hovering shad, then I'm going to get bit. |
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| this is a great thread guys, thanks!!!
Reef Hawg - 5/25/2005 8:39 AM
This may sound screwy, but try getting away from the shad for a spell...I like to target areas...that hold a fish or two that can not only find my lure in the crowd but is hungry enough to eat it.
a talked to another guy out fishing, and he caught a 35"er and raised two others off a very steep main lake point. (goes from 5' - 60' w/in 50 yards). there are no weeds on it, and there were no shad when i worked across it.
he caught/saw those fish on a firetiger 8" jake...
so where are the 'skies likely to be that the shad are NOT?
i'm new to shad...what are their habits?
are there good times to fish where they ARE? (by doing things to stick out) |
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Posts: 7123
Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | Just a thought about Shad....they are definitely structure to fish.....but this is moving structure. And as much as we want to believe the picture of a school of shad being constantly stalked by a wolf pack of muskies.....I personally dont think the muskies actively keep tabs on them, where they are, or where they're going. SO, if shad have been somewhere, or have a habit of being in a few area, the muskies might either still be there, or will live in that area. Thusly why you catch fish in areas that the shad are not, where there is no discernable structure. |
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Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | any other views? had a great conversation last night in the chat room about color, and its got me thinking. |
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Location: Ogden, Ut | I thought our conversation was about lateral line senses; no wonder I was confused
Actually, lots of good info was discussed last night. Color, sound, vibration, hook sets, people falling in...
Good stuff.
Black - cuz it's all basically a silhouette... |
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| are you SERIOUSLY thinking about that. i thought of all the people in on it, you were the least "color" sensitive. sometimes i think everything makes sense, other times it's all BS and there are no fish in any body of water. lol.
i too enjoyed that chat though.
Edited by The Yeti 8/24/2005 10:31 PM
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| If the shad baits don't work, unmatching the hatch in terms of colors with brightly colored baits like Beer Belly Gliders, Hoosier Hand Made Gliders with Rattles, or Super Shad Raps, then unmatch the hatch in terms of shape with brightly colored Lil' Ernies, Tuff Shads, or 8" Believers (still matching the forage size but not shape nor color). If that doesn't work, and shad are deep, try bigger crank baits to further unmatch the hatch in terms of size. If shad are breaking the surface they try topwaters and bucktails, matching the action of the active forage. This progression has worked for me in shad-based systems.
Edited by muskyboy 8/24/2005 10:48 PM
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Posts: 459
Location: New Baden IL | I think MuskyBoy is on to something there, the size thing makes sense.
I too enjoyed the impromptu chat last night, I wish it would happen more here. There are too many good minds out there not to try and tap into them.
MuskieFirst is the BEST |
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Posts: 2112
Location: The Sportsman, home, or out on the water | I'm thinking a Manta! no matter what color it is. second, walleye Dawg. third, either a Double J, or DDD |
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Location: Des Moines IA | I fish Shabbona alot which has 12- 15 inch shad all over the place. One of my best tactics is if I can find a pod of shad, (usually relatively close to deep timber) I will basically sit on top of them and have 1 guy throw a bomber long a in a bright color , and the other guy try to "match the hatch". I usually throw either a crappie wabull or a 10 in squirrely jake in crappie. (only white stuff I have). Then work the bait very erraticly swimming it back INTO the pod. Sometimes the other way works too, sit off the pod and throw into it ,swimming the bait OUT of the pod. Have caught fish both ways on all 3 baits.If all else fails I break ou tthe reg. Blk/Org reg. bull dawg. Contrast! We have also caught fish where there are no baitfish to be seen? So I am not sure if it's luck? Or right time, right place? |
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Posts: 120
| I would stay with the color the bait fish are following. The shad are following for one reason to F&^% it. if the shad want to F it the Muskies want to eat it.
General rule
un match: fishin schools of bait. trolling
match: when fishin ambush aeras. weeds,timber.doc's
what i like is a "gaudy match" Shad: all white & silver with a chatr belly. Perch: natural,perch with a orange belly
you get the best of bolth worlds
What about the false eye???
Keith
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Location: Madtown, WI | Lambeau you already answered your own quesstion. Going where the bait isn't, I would look for classic muskie stuff....ie the point where the guy caught the fish(which is a good one if its the one I am thinking of) There are some spots like that in that lake. That lake is FULL of shad...so the muskies probably set up on the classic stuff and just wait......get there before the bait fills their belly and you catch fish. Tough lake though, at least mentally for sure. If you score on one of the monsters in that lake though it will NOT be a skinny one that is for sure!
Cory |
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