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Posts: 578
Location: Sheboygan Falls, WI | .
Edited by C_Nelson 6/7/2008 12:38 PM
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| Yes, I caught a fat 43" on Monday that ate an 18" 3lb. sucker. I had one more smaller sucker left after that and it never got a look. Before boating the 43" fish I had one other high 40s fish stalking the bigger sucker. |
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Posts: 723
| we have been doing well on both big and small, doesnt seem to matter too much this year, but, I have seen years where small is the way to go. In fact, on those years, if you arent using small stuff, you arent getting bit. period.
Gotta hit'em right away when youre using small suckers too, they roll them in their mouth once, feel hooks, and spit. happens reel quick. On the other hand, they love holding onto those big sausages, its like my lab with those 3ft long rawhides bones, he wont let'em go for nothin!  |
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Posts: 1188
Location: Iowa | I have one comment to this matter and I am pretty sure everyone can guess what is coming...so here it is...GO BIG OR GO HOME!!!...can anyone say 18"-20" suckers...
Big Perc
Edited by Big Perc 10/25/2006 7:28 AM
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Posts: 3242
Location: Racine, Wi |
Chuck, we've been just the opposite lately. The bigger suckers have been getting chewed. I guess the smaller baits have though, but smaller fish have been eating them. Go figure. Big Minnow baits have been working well though, so I have to say down here da bigger stuff is working right now, but that can obviously change. |
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Posts: 578
Location: Sheboygan Falls, WI | .
Edited by C_Nelson 6/7/2008 12:39 PM
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Location: Contrarian Island | the last month of fishing the fish that have made it into the net in my boat have all been on average sized baits..by that, 9" grandma's, mag dawgs (which I don't consider to be all that big), 12-13" suckers, big joes, and other avg sized stuff...guess I haven't really thrown anything too small..or anything too big...one thing I don't ever use are very large suckers...I guess I figure, sure a 50" fish might hit it, but the chances of hooking up go down the larger the sucker IMO. So for me, I still think that big fish will eat a 13" sucker so why use a monster sucker only to miss the fish? too many stories over the last few years of guys using monster suckers only to have that monster get off...no thanks..they eat 13"ers too...
Chuck, keep chuckin the mag dawgs! they work.... |
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Posts: 1316
Location: Lebanon,Mo | most of the fish caught this fall on pomme de terre lake here in missouri has been on baits six inches or less. rattle traps or spinnerbaits. but that doesnt change my way of fishing for them,im still going to throw bigger baits and troll small and big. somebody has to be as hungry as me!!?? |
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Posts: 2691
Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin | I am with Brad on this one. Most of the larger 15 to 18-inch suckers I will run will not get hit as much as the 10 to 12-inchers. One thisng to remember is to up size your hooks to fit the size sucker you will be running. Larger suckers require larger hooks to get a good percentage of hook ups.
I have caight larger fish on the smaller suckers that were swimming close to the larger suckers. I let the fish make the choice, they like the average suckers most of the time.
BUT, I will always run a "shack" sized sucker in my spread. |
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| I too have not had as much success with the larger suckers. Seems the only fish intrested in the monster meat are the little 30" fish. Must be a case of short mans syndrome for muskies.
Edited by The Nate 10/25/2006 1:31 PM
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Posts: 3518
Location: north central wisconsin | Pretty normal selection here lately with 7-8" stuff being bread and butter. 10" jakes were really hot a couple weeks ago, but have slowed some. Usually the opposite is true until ice up, though i guess we are precariously close to it this year at this time. I usually do see a tendancy to the small side days before the hard stuff appears. Last year, really small. |
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Posts: 2082
| If anyone is stuck on the BIG "craze" you are costing yourself alot of fish! I throw some big bait but the more I fish the more I wonder why!!! My three biggest 48"+ all on 5.5 to 7" baits! Biggest in my boat (54") 6" bait...............anyone remember what the O'brien fish was caught on in the fall? .....I dont mind catching more 36" - 45" fish - do you?? Big fish will eat whats in front of them! I have a hard time with people thinking it takes a 14"+ bait to "get trophies attention" |
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| Countdown Rapala, the size of your middle finger was what O'Briens was caught on. I can say that some of the biggest lures I fish with most often (13-16", not real big) have caught some of the smallest fish, and almost without exception, every fish up to and over fifty inches I've caught in the last three years has been on baits ten inches or less. Through the ice for pike, we're just as likely to get a 26 inch greaser as a 26 pounder on frozen herring between 1 and 1.5 pounds. In the case of Plows or Wishmasters, they're good because of how steep they dive, not the size. The old-style Lunge Locker Bubble Shads are 1/2 that size and they dive in a similar way and have been just as deadly for me. You throw or troll anything, muskies will eat it. Catch enough of them, and there will be big ones mixed in, just like small or mediums. |
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Posts: 578
Location: Sheboygan Falls, WI | .
Edited by C_Nelson 6/7/2008 12:40 PM
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| It has been touched on in passing here, but HOOKING %age on out-sized baits is a whole other issue for debate as well. Dick Pearson always talks about baits and their ability to elicit strikes vs. generate solid hook-ups. Big, big difference. |
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Posts: 1106
Location: Muskegon Michigan | 12 Inch Talonz Deepthreat any questions ?
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 deepthreat1.JPG (12KB - 120 downloads)
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Posts: 1106
Location: Muskegon Michigan | Thats one of my big baits producing for a friend of mine. He was bouncing bottom in 20 foot . The color is Chameleon Shad. He got that 45 inch fish and 48 incher on the next pass. also had a rip on another Deepthreat Copper Carp that day. Big Baits big water big fish. Kingfisher |
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| I never troll that deep, how did you get the guts to try that out just for my own info.
Thanks,
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| 45's nothing for 'big water,' that's way under-average on any trophy water on the list: OTT/ST.L, GBay, you name it. We shake those off  That's an excellent looking bait and a super pic though. |
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Posts: 1106
Location: Muskegon Michigan | True 45 not very big for big water. The 48 was a hog and fish up to 54 have eaten these that I know of. I could have lied and said it was a bigger fish. It shows that it would be pretty hard for anything smaller to get a hold of this lure. The guy who took the pic says he loves the lure because dinks get off but big fish stay hooked. Not many small fish even hit this bait. I was pleased to get this picture as many guys dont think of the builder after they buy one. We like to think we matter and build good lures Know what I mean? The bottom in this area was all small rock and gravel so no guts in sending one down there. Most guys wont go deep because they still believe that muskies never look down  . I know different from raising baby muskies. They will attack from above as often as from below. When you guys hit them on reefs and shoals where do you think they come from ? you will find as we have that the teeth marks drag from the belly up meaning the fish hit the lure from above. Sudden drops in temperature will put Muskies right tight to the bottom in many places. Sending the big baits deep is sometimes the only way to get them unless you like to JIG. Kingfisher
Edited by Kingfisher 10/28/2006 3:28 PM
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Posts: 1530
| big baits deep. ever wonder how a big one gets big. its cause many times they go belly down in cold fronts or after a major meal. we dredge in late fall 30 feet down in cold water 34-38 degrees nice and slow has produced some decent 50 inch class fish. kingfisher knows excatly what we mean. |
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