|
|
| Hey just curious what everone considers there best wtd topwater. I had some good success withe the 8 in weagle but missed alot of fish. I'm thinking of trying the smaller one for better hookups. |
|
| |
|
Location: Sawyer County, WI |
Last I checked, the 8 inch was the smaller one. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 4080
Location: Elko - Lake Vermilion | 10" & 8" Weagle has worked the best for me over the years.
Jerome |
|
| |
|
Posts: 279
| Phat boy from musky buster or jackpot.
Edited by ttrap 3/17/2011 11:22 PM
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 32880
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Weagle for me. Excellent hookup ratio. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 3240
Location: Racine, Wi | Weagles for me as well. Fish seem to get hooked up for me good as well on both the 8s and 10s.
|
|
| |
|
Location: Contrarian Island | I tend to only throw about 4 wtd's....fish stick, 1 eye willy, weagle 8 and 10, fish stick hd...buy those and you'll be set |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1185
Location: Wishin I Was Fishin' | My bunch of musky friends call WTD baits Dream Crushers because so many fish wiff them. They do get alot of fish sparked up, but most times I would rather not have my dreams crushed and use a different style which will hook up when I get a musky interested.
I have heard from many people that the Eagle Claw curved point helps hook ups on WTD baits....I just can't get myself to try it though. I'm a hook nazi and perfer a sticky sharp 774 or mustad wide bend. |
|
| |
|
Location: Contrarian Island | ? personally have had good hook up percentage with those baits listed above...3 hook WTD seem to be far better than 2 hook WTD, could very well be the way a guy holds the rod and sets the hook as to how many he hooks up with or not...imo working the rod to the side and not down like so many guys do dramatically will improve your hookups from the sheer fact there is no delay and you are able to sweep the rod to the side upon a strike....those that I see work the baits w the rod down miss a lot more than I do or others that have figured out the advantage to working the rod to the side...
|
|
| |
|
| a slower cadence helps hooking odds too...it's less likely the bait will zig when the fish zags. of course, if a faster cadence is the right trigger, well, then you're screwed. for a more subtle presentation i really like the One-Eye Junior. it's smaller than the standard Weagle but still big enough to swoosh instead of head-bobbing. when it's go-time, the 10" Weagle is the one i grab. i actually find this bait to be very easy to work, especially with a slow cadence. the length helps it to create a lot of swing and commotion to the side with very little forward movement. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 2687
Location: Hayward, WI | I really like Weagles. Haven't used many other WTD baits but I have a lot of confidence in Weagles. I have caught a lot on the 8". I have a 10 but haven't used it much yet. I think nearly every fish that has actually HIT the bait has hit the net as well.
A slower cadence does help a lot with fish connecting.
Tucker |
|
| |
|
Posts: 944
| One Eyed willy from Monster Lures.
Jr. in the spring
Reg. size rest of year.
Great hook ups
Jeff Hanson
madisonmuskyguide.com |
|
| |
|
Posts: 185
Location: On the water | Politician from American Hardwood Lures. Thru wire construction and great action! |
|
| |
|
Posts: 582
| Personally, i don't use many WTD baits anymore. The hookup ratio seems to be far less with any of them. Even the weagle. But the weagle is prob one of the better ones. I now use floating crank baits and twitch them in place of WTD baits and my hookup ratio has go up. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1270
| I still like the Giant JackPot. I have several Weagle's and they have a nice action and I like how they sit lower in the water but for me they are to slow to fish. I just like being able to work a WTD style bait faster than I can with a Weagle. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1906
Location: Oconto Falls, WI | As Lambeau said a slow cadence makes a HUGE difference in hook ups, as well as getting them to eat compared to follows. Also as Nelson mentioned the three hook designed WTD have much better hooking ability as the fish usually head hunt the bait, and keeps the bait a little lower in the water (limited head-bobbing).
Fish Stick HD is my go to. Works in all water conitions (calm to rollers).
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 1030
Location: APPLETON, WI | Phantom Viper is my go-to. It sits lower in the water similar to a Weagle but as much more pronounced belly roll (IMO) |
|
| |
|
Posts: 727
| Baby weagle, weagle, 10 inch weagle. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 774
Location: South East Wisconsin | Havana Jack! Eagle Claw 774s 5/0 front hook t'd! Love it! |
|
| |
|
Posts: 93
| Doc |
|
| |
|
| I wonder if just the erratic nature of the retrieve is not responsible for fewer hook ups. One of those things where the very thing that gets fish to hit, contributes to misses. Last fall, the last day I fished a WTD I was just about ready to quit and go in for lunch when I had a fish hit and miss. It was close enough that I saw it hit from the side. It was a nice fish and hit ahead of the lure, bending the solid wire leader. Nothing about the lure resulted in a miss, just the fish missed the entire lure by about 3 or 4 inches. |
|
| |
|
| Gotta go with the Viper from Phantom Lures. Been using them since the late 90's. The ride lower in the water than most other WTD baits and I get more hookups as a result.
Duane Serck
www.illinoismuskies.com
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 292
Location: SW MI | Docs and Weagles. I am thinking about trying a Fish stick HD this year though. Plus I've given some thought to making my own. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 71
Location: Loves Park, IL | My very own homemade "Stoned Pickle". I could never find one I really liked, so I started making my own until I came up with one I like. And the "Stoned Pickle" is it! |
|
| |
|
| Both sizes of one-eye willy. Ride high but heavy enough to provide good hook sets. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 294
Location: Bloomer, Wi | the JC Slasher. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 56
Location: Southern MN | I used a Doc alot for big pike last summer, they loved it; never got a Muskie on it though. Picked up a 10" Weagle this winter and that'll get plenty of time for both pike and ski's.
I've probably missed more pike than I've hooked on the Doc. This was mostly in 3-5 feet of water and frequently they'd launch out of the water and completely miss the bait. Hookups seemed much worse the shallower we were fishing. One night in particular I found the cadence they wanted and got hit 7 casts in a row and 12 out of 13 before getting hooks in one; some of those were my fault and some they just totally missed it. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1224
Location: Okoboji | J's muskie customs maple big baby |
|
| |
|
| Lee Lures Fish Stick and Fish Stick HD |
|
| |
|
Posts: 17
| American Hardwoods POLITICIAN, There a little heavier than other top waters but when they get blown up on they tend not to get pushed away and you would be hard pressed to find a stronger built topwater, |
|
| |
|
Posts: 32880
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Why are you shouting? |
|
| |
|
| What I don't understand is that a bait that is perhaps 1oz. or so heavier than the next bait would NOT get blown out of the water as easy as a 1oz. lighter bait? So that 1oz. more will prevent the bait from blowing out of the water when a fish is moving 5, 10,15, or more miles per hour to hit it?
Just a thought. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 64
| Stidham z180...... Best fish caller I have used, crap for hookups, I have had 2 muskies chase this bait at the same time 7 or 8 times. For hookups a Doc is my favorite, doesn't foul up and have yet to lose one on it. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 743
| A black Weagle has been the best for me. This year I have a new unnamed WTD that I can't wait to try.
Attachments
----------------
 Picture 815.jpg (158KB - 171 downloads)
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 1425
Location: St. Lawrence River | weagle for sure
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 21
| Jackpot |
|
| |
|
| Salmo Maas Marauder. Replaced the hooks with Eagle Claw 4/0, and have had excellent hook ups. Rides higher than the Weagle (similar to the jackpot) and is great when you need to stay over the high weeds. Very easy to work. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 286
Location: VA | Smoker Tackle Smoke Top. The blunt nose pushes a lot of water. |
|
| |
