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Posts: 393
Location: Hopefully on the water | What are some suggestions for a good starter reel for a kid (6 years old) to start with for musky fishing. My son enjoys fishing and wants to try/start Musky fishing this year. I purchased him a low profile bass reel and he took a couple of casts with it and birdsnest both times and doesn't want to try this reel again at this point but still wants to fish. I had the tension adjusted properly (much tighter then I would have for myself). What would be some good choices for for us or is it a matter of keep trying and being patiant with it? Also what is a good way to teach a beginner to use a baitcasting reel? Thank you for any info. |
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Posts: 1713
Location: Mt. Zion, IL | I have a 5600 AB (anti backlash reel) from garcia that I would be willing to part with. |
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Posts: 462
Location: Antioch, IL | 6 years old?!.....take him bluegill fishing. Don't make him associate fishing with bad experiences. |
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | i've got (4) kids and all of them started chuckin bait-casters at age 4 or 5 and learned pretty quickly. they love to cast and half the fun is the baits. as long as you keep it fun and give them a place to explore (tacklebox etc...) they'll be fine learning and enjoy musky fishing as much as anything else.
mine all started with my stuff ... but, i remember when david was like 6 or so and looks at me after grabbing a rod with a te on it .. he said "dad, this one is smoother and quieter ... can this be mine?" |
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Posts: 225
Location: Nordeast Minneapolis | Zebco makes some larger closed reels... I think they're marketed for saltwater use, and designed to handle heavier line. The 808 SW is one model I know of, and a quick ebay price search looks like they go for about $20-$30. I knew a guy who used them for muskies all the time... I know he caught fish with 'em. Seems a little funny, I know- but he was from Illinois, so we let it slide.  Might be a good in-between step, if the little guy is interested in muskies. Focus less on the casting, more on the fishing. Plus, accidents happen, and if it ends up in the bottom of the lake, well... no big loss. Good luck! |
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Posts: 159
Location: Stevens Point, WI | I can't find the thread right now, but Mr. Worrall recommended some for starters including some big spinning reels. I know he and Sue use easier to cast low profiles often too, hopefully he'll chime in here. I started with those big zebcos, but they get shredded too easily, sometimes even on one big fish making a run. Like Fish and Whistle said, if you're going to do it then i guess you should do it right. |
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Posts: 386
| ZEBCO! |
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | kids and women learn to use a bait-caster quicker than dudes do ...
let your kid throw a bait-caster right away. turn the brake on a little ... pick out some backlashes and before you know it they'll be on their own. most people put limits on kids instead of giving them a chance to learn to do something. you'd be surprised what a very young kid can learn to do if given the chance.
junk equipment is harder to learn on that good stuff. |
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Posts: 393
Location: Hopefully on the water | Jonnysled, thanks for the info. I will just do some picking andf praticing with him in the yard. He has his own tackle box already and a few baits for musky fishing of his own. He is great at looking through the box and picking out lures. Last year was a mix of bobber fishing and "cast it out reel it in". I got tired of swithing everything over every 20 minutes so this year he will have both so when he wants to swtich he can. He will get his share of bluegill fishing this year again but HE wants to fish for big fish this year. I am excited about it and want him to start out right. With his set up I got him I figure he will tie into northerns also to help ease the time. Yes there will be a lot of shortened trips and mixed bag of fishing but the kid loves fishing and not going to let the chance for this to pass by by not taking him out. He has become very good at ice fishing with walleyes and northerns and wants to fish more. As a parent who enjoys the outdoors when your kid wants to start and join in on the fun I would pass it up. He has improved greatly over the last 2 years with his rod he currently has.
For Fish and Whistle. It is a joy to have my kids with me on the lake or in the woods. Yes we mix it up to keep them interested but when they bring it to you and ask to "cast it out and reel it in". You better believe I am going to let him even if it is for a 1/2 hour before he wants to go back to bobber fishing. It is something we all enjoy as a family and get some good laughs and stories. Plus those are true smile when they catch their first fish of any species that is "Big" to them. Granted when we are fishing and catching fish what ever it may be there is no secret spot on the lake with the laughs and kids yelling with excitement.
Take a kid fishing to see the smiles and you will remeber who got you into the sport and maybe the excitement that person had and you might also have the same joy.
You will hopefully see his name in the Muskie Inc. logs in the near future. |
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | my kids learned on 400 calcuttas with the brake tension down a little bit. rod holding and thumb stressed and then key to help them understand that all they have to do is let the bait do the work and stop it when it splashes. a faster rod-tip does help so they don't have to worry about loading the rod so much. once they get a little success it will go much better and they'll figure out how important that thumb is. i think they get started thinking they have to throw so hard, but when you show them how far baits can be thrown by just changing position of the rod they'll learn quick. i can hear whether or not they have a loop so i'll ask ... "hey, everything ok back there ??" "just let me know if you need some help ok ??" ... and finally it's "hey dad ... take a look at this" ... then just pull it out, give it back without a word and smile. soon enough they're picking out there own and not making so many. and then before you know it they're voice is changing and they're looking you in the eye at 5'!!" ... and you wonder where the time went!!!!
i remember sitting on the beach with my friend john bette on trout lake while he was on vacation up here and my youngest david who would have been like 7 at the time just ploughed through the box moving bait by bait throwing them and learning his new-found skill. they don't have to catch fish to want to throw musky baits ... surprise them and let em dig right in.
patience for dad picking out backlashes is key cause it's fun and expected they are going to get lots of them starting. just keep encouraging him and show him ... he's going to learn by doing and not by what we say as parents. mine are 10, 11, 13 and 14 now and all pretty darn good anglers on the ice and on the water. last year we worked on finesse presentations for bass-fishing. it's a whole lot more fun than bobber fishing and when they start to learn technique and catch fish ... watch out!
these kids can use augers, 4-wheelers, boats, trolling motors, spinning, baitcasting and any other presentation. along the road there have been frustration and excitement and broken equipment but lots of fun the same way i was taught. |
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| Practicing in the yard with a casting weight is alot of fun for a kid. That is what I did my my sons. I would still find a decent low profile baitcaster like a garcia torno or a shmano. One thing that will keep them interested is functionality and ease of use. Don't let them be frustrated with stuff they cannot operate.
Kids love topwaters. Give them lures that arre easy to use. Topwaters and spinnerbaits tope the list. They don't have to throw big stuff, just stuff that will catch fish.
You can try a spincaster(pushbutton) reel. You can put superline on them too. I have tried fireline and power pro with success. One thing is to watch the spot where the line grabs in the reel for wear. The thing that is most important is line retrieve. The diawa, rhino and the expensive zebco have 4 to 1 retrieve speed. 3 to 1 on most of the zebcos won't cut it for lure fishing for a kid. |
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Posts: 2894
Location: Yahara River Chain | The only thing I can say if the kid is right handed use a left side crank and vice versa. The kid will be ale to work a bait better and set the hook quicker if you do this. |
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Posts: 8777
| It's probably easier for a 6 year old to learn than it was for a lot of us...
"Here, man, just make a nice easy cast, use your thumb on the spool to slow it down, like this... Once you get comfortable with that you can cast a little farther, try some different lures."
"Really, it's fine, dude. I got it. I can do this!"
*WhizzzzzzzzOTTTTTTT!!*
"Yeah, you got it alright. Want me to cut that $20 of line off the reel NOW, or wait 15 minutes until you give up trying to pull that %$^$& outta there?"
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Posts: 135
Location: Irvine, KY | In the back yard with bell sinkers. Let him start with a heavier sinker and more brake, when he feels good with that go to a smaller weight and less brake, and so on till he gets it.
This way you dont spend your time on the water picking out the backlashes teach him how to get the little ones out too.... you'll thank yourself later lol. |
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Posts: 31
Location: Fairfield, IA | My 8 yr old caught his first pike last year at Lake Namakagon on a light action spinning reel. This year he wants to go after musky but I am not keen on him tossing out a $15 lure and losing it. I am going to move him up to a bigger reel, match it to a 6' max length rod and put some 30# Power Pro on it. $60 tops will put a quality rig in a kid's hands.
He asked yesterday when he can get a baitcaster and I told him in a couple of years when he can control without backlashing.
I know there are some decent spincast reels but for the cost to get one that won't come apart under a heavy load, I think a spinning reel makes more sense and it more versatile.
Good Luck, Dave. |
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Posts: 550
Location: So. Illinois | Throw on a small top water prop bait, It will be more fun for the kids because they can see and hear the bait and you won't have to worry about getting snagged. There is the chance they will see a fish follwoing on the surface. THis might help keep their interest up for awhile. |
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Posts: 767
Location: Ames, Iowa | Put on some baits that will catch northern like smaller spoons, soft plastics, spinnerbaits, weedless stuff, and like Esoxaddict suggested in his interesting way, get the kid a closed face (slower) or a open faced spinning reel (faster), and let him have fun with that. He won't match your intensity for a number of years (trust me on this one- I have em at 11, 14, 17), so ease him into it. Keep it short and simple.
Take him trolling with muskie/northern baitcasting gear and let him drive the boat, or feel the thump of the rod in his hands. My youngest caught her first northern trolling, and then was ready to start throwing baits. This year she gets the 4601 C3. Its been handed down from both brothers. Good luck on this important job you have. Don |
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Posts: 393
Location: Hopefully on the water | Thanks for all the info guys. We will be in the yard praticing reel soon. He did that last year and made a big difference once season came. It is something we are both looking foward to and hope we can break the ice this year for him. Once fall gets here we will be out trolling again on the bay but he gets a little bored with trolling so those are shorter trips. He is good at looking into the tackle box to try different things out. Thanks again and for the people that do take their kids out or youngsters it is a great thing to pass along to the youth not just for the fishing but the outdoors. We try to find something neat even if the fish aren't bitting. Eagle, deer drinking from the lake, bears, turtles, or anything that can help make the time enjoyable. |
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Posts: 333
Location: menasha wi 54952 | I have been through this. I have three kids. Two daughters 11 and 8. The little guy is 5. All three of them started on spin casts. Diawa Gold Cast 120 spooled with 30lb Tuff XP green. I would think a Zebco 404 could handle this set up as well. Any medium 6' bass style grip rod will work. They cast in the yard with the rubber fish that comes on a Snoopy pole. I would never let a kid cast in the yard with a bell sinker...not a good idea...broken window will confirm that. They all can handle the rods and reels on their own without any equipment failure. It will be your benefit when fishing to have a floating lure on their rods or "You" will always be dealing with snags. Last year my oldest upgraded to a 7' medium with a low profile Shimano bait caster. The bait caster needs to have a magnetic brake as well as a manual spool brake. Once you get the spool brake dialed in you can use the magnetic brake to stop the spool when the lure hits the water. Use any lure without a backlash. It works for me. Good luck. None of them have caught a ski casting yet but some really nice pike. Only a matter of time.
MR
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| I have my 5 year old son and my girls throwing an ABU black max low profile bass reel spooled with 50lb TUFF Line. The size of the reel on a 6' rod makes it easier for their small hands and the combo is not very heavy. Good value also.
I find the hardest point of the cast for them to master is the thumbing the spool tight when they are in the back swing. This is where almost all of their backlashes come from...but they learn.
Throwing a top water on a lake with a good Pike population makes for a good time for them. |
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Posts: 462
Location: Antioch, IL | Hey Twells,
After my first post I got to thinking and I probably spoke before I let your post sink in (first time I've ever done that!.....uh, anyway). If the kids want to give it a shot, by all means go for it. I have seen time after time a father force their own passions on their children (fishing, sports, music...) and ultimately drive the child away from it. I made a mistake made and made a generalized statement. I think it is great when you can enjoy and share your interests with your child. My little guy is 3 and wants to do everything daddy does. I just want to make sure I don't over extend and let him have a bad experience that will make a lasting impression. I'd like to say that I won't speak before I think ever again, but hey.....(As long as I don't reply to any of the "What's your favorite color" posts I should be in the clear.  |
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Posts: 8777
| Just be careful... My dad took me fishin' when I was 4 and look what happened to me! |
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Posts: 393
Location: Hopefully on the water | Dave,
I can understand that. I have found on a few occasions that I have had to back off and go in or call it a day early because he is done for the day. I agree with pushing kids too fast and them loosing interest also. We have done that already with some of the other things they are involved with to not burn them out and not wanting to do it anymore.
The one thing that has helped me is letting him have his responsibilities for launching and loading along with picking out a few spots on the lake as where to fish. Some days he even surprises me with where he wants to fish. Good luck with your son coming up also. |
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