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Posts: 1023
| Hooked and lost my first two really big topwater muskies on St Clair on weagles. The attacks were both vicious. They t boned the bait. Second one was at least a four footer and it missed then hit a second time.
Lost both:( few head shakes then off. I waited a bit then hit them - just like I would when frogging for bass. Maybe I should have waited longer or felt for weight first!!?? |
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Location: one foot over the line | Try not to let them get air-time, easier said than done, bury your rod tip and give them a power reel. |
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Posts: 397
Location: Wisconsin | Also try T-ing the trebles so they don't lay flat against the body of the bait |
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Posts: 2687
Location: Hayward, WI | It's CRITICAL to feel the fish first with topwater baits. Certainly easier said than done, but it's important. If you don't feel the fish they probably don't have the bait.
My biggest Weagle fish is a 48, and it slurped the bait down like a bluegill hitting a surface fly. Those are the fish that always seem to get hooked up solidly. |
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Posts: 1456
Location: Kronenwetter, WI | I love my weagles. It sure does hurt to lose big fish, that I know too well. Here is one that hit a weagle Thursday at dark and managed to stay pinned. If ur not throwing weagles when you have a big girl located you are missing out. Keep throwing them sometimes it's just dumb luck...oh yeah...when I work them I literally see how much water I can throw on each slack-line RIP....the bigger the commotion the better.
Edited by Cowboyhannah 6/22/2015 9:19 PM
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Posts: 32892
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | NICE muskie! Wait until you feel the fish before you pin her up. Sometimes folks set the hook WAY too early. |
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Posts: 1144
Location: Minnesota. | Holy smokes Rick that's one beast!!! NICE going man.
Landry, a simple suggestion...if it were me I'd put all Gamakatsu hooks on that bait. YMMV. |
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Location: Grand Rapids, MI | Landry - Waiting to feel weight probably isn't the best description since you really don't want to simply wait. What you want to do is to reel to get any slack out and when you connect with the fish hit them hard and keep lots of pressure on them. |
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Location: Contrarian Island | I concur w Will... just keep reeling is the best advice, and when you feel the fish sweep the rod and load up the rod to bury the hooks...more fish are lost by reacting to the sound or sight..and a lot are missed by waiting too long.... |
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Posts: 2687
Location: Hayward, WI | Brad and Will make good points. With any topwater, try to keep doing what you were doing. When the line tightens up and you feel the fish, set the hook. The other thing this does is allow a fish that did miss to possibly come back a second time rather than yanking the bait half way back to the boat if the fish missed. |
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Posts: 2024
| curleytail - 6/23/2015 10:51 AM
Brad and Will make good points. With any topwater, try to keep doing what you were doing. When the line tightens up and you feel the fish, set the hook. The other thing this does is allow a fish that did miss to possibly come back a second time rather than yanking the bait half way back to the boat if the fish missed.
Exactly! Lesson learned here... And claiming it wasn't very big anyway doesn't really help with the haunting memories... |
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Posts: 140
| I echo the other comments and often repeat this in my head anytime I'm fishing topwater-Wait for the Weight. |
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| I was shaking after. I have caught a lot of muskies in the last 8 years and this felt like my first again:)
I will work on my technique.
I have always felt topwaters were lower percentage baits?? Perhaps I was wrong.
Would u guys throw a weagle in sunny conditions too??
Do u think weagles move more fish than prop baits. |
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Posts: 410
Location: one foot over the line | Generally speaking,I throw on top (on lakes) early in the morning till around 8am-ish (WI time) and start throwing again in the evening around 8pm-ish. That is if it is going to be sunny out. If it is overcast and stormy, I may throw in the middle of the day. On rivers i will throw top-waters just about anytime. If i am searching for active fish or have not fished the particular body of water often or ever, i start with a prop style. If i have a history with a particular body of water and understand where the fish like to hang out, my WTD's come out to play or creepers, hawg-wobblers, etc. Sometimes i'll change things up if i think that there is considerable fishing pressure on a given body of water. I consider top-waters a high percentage bait, but i also throw them a lot.
Edited by beerforthemuskygods 6/23/2015 4:10 PM
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Location: Minnesota. | I used to be a 99% topwater guy simply because I have this thing for that topside explosion. For that I'd forgo taking fish below. My son gave me grief but I persisted because they're simply so much fun topside!
I still love it but have changed it up after last year and now mainly go below. I've not fished many Weagles as I'd lost too many on the older cigar-style WTD baits of a decade back. I think that may change now this season but it'll still take a backseat to a Suick until I find an active fish!
Ain't this stuff just a lot of fun!!!!! So many choices.
Again, NICE fish Landry!
Jeremy. |
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| Landry - I waited a bit then hit them - just like I would when frogging for bass. Maybe I should have waited longer or felt for weight first!!??
i'm in the wait to feel it camp.
take video of yourself fishing, seeing how you mess up and how you succeed will help you get better.
the first fish in this video i think i got just right (10" weagle) as i kept working the bait after a false hit and then waited a second to feel it on the real hit. the second fish (monster creeper) is one of those "oh crap hang on" varieties where i was sleeping and got surprised. just held on and leaned into the rod to keep pressure without being able to set much.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m61OjwwFFh
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Posts: 117
Location: Northern Illinois | M Winther - 6/23/2015 10:06 PM
Landry - I waited a bit then hit them - just like I would when frogging for bass. Maybe I should have waited longer or felt for weight first!!?? i'm in the wait to feel it camp. take video of yourself fishing, seeing how you mess up and how you succeed will help you get better. the first fish in this video i think i got just right (10" weagle ) as i kept working the bait after a false hit and then waited a second to feel it on the real hit. the second fish (monster creeper ) is one of those "oh crap hang on" varieties where i was sleeping and got surprised. just held on and leaned into the rod to keep pressure without being able to set much. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m61OjwwFFh <iframe width="560" height="315" xsrc="https://www.youtube.com/embed/m61OjwwFFh8?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>
Awesome video!!! |
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Posts: 897
| Super sharp hooks and don't watch the bait are my keys to catching fish on Weagles, and really most topwaters. If they hit the bait, they usually end up in the net for me. Seems like if I'm watching the bait I react to the bite/explosion and miss fish. |
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Posts: 1828
| M Winther - 6/23/2015 10:06 PM
the first fish in this video i think i got just right (10" weagle) as i kept working the bait after a false hit and then waited a second to feel it on the real hit. the second fish (monster creeper) is one of those "oh crap hang on" varieties where i was sleeping and got surprised. just held on and leaned into the rod to keep pressure without being able to set much.
I've seen that video before and thought it was the perfect demonstration. |
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Posts: 454
| Cranker - 6/23/2015 10:13 PM
M Winther - 6/23/2015 10:06 PM
Landry - I waited a bit then hit them - just like I would when frogging for bass. Maybe I should have waited longer or felt for weight first!!?? i'm in the wait to feel it camp. take video of yourself fishing, seeing how you mess up and how you succeed will help you get better. the first fish in this video i think i got just right (10" weagle ) as i kept working the bait after a false hit and then waited a second to feel it on the real hit. the second fish (monster creeper ) is one of those "oh crap hang on" varieties where i was sleeping and got surprised. just held on and leaned into the rod to keep pressure without being able to set much. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m61OjwwFFh <iframe width="560" height="315" xsrc="https://www.youtube.com/embed/m61OjwwFFh8?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>
Awesome video!!!
Cool video, thanks for sharing. I found it searching YouTube after the link wasn't working for me.
Edited by asteffes 6/24/2015 10:06 AM
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Posts: 5874
| whynot - 6/24/2015 8:58 AM Super sharp hooks and don't watch the bait are my keys to catching fish on Weagles, and really most topwaters. If they hit the bait, they usually end up in the net for me. Seems like if I'm watching the bait I react to the bite/explosion and miss fish. Ditto. I tend to react too quickly on top waters, so I try to just look beyond the bait. Worst is when that super tanker is pushing a wall of water when following, and starts nipping at it!
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Location: 31 | Shep - 6/24/2015 11:29 AM whynot - 6/24/2015 8:58 AM Super sharp hooks and don't watch the bait are my keys to catching fish on Weagles, and really most topwaters. If they hit the bait, they usually end up in the net for me. Seems like if I'm watching the bait I react to the bite/explosion and miss fish. Ditto. I tend to react too quickly on top waters, so I try to just look beyond the bait. Worst is when that super tanker is pushing a wall of water when following, and starts nipping at it!
For me the ...
BEST is when that super tanker is pushing a wall of water when following, and starts nipping at it! 
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Posts: 5874
| Best! Yes, that too!
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| When I first started using walk the dog top water baits, I read the good advice on this board about waiting until you feel the weight of the fish and that is great advice. But twice it didn't work with a Weagle. Once, I saw the fish strike at the lure close to the boat but knew it had hit well ahead of the lure. However, I felt a strong pull and set the hook anyway. No fish but when I got it to the boat, the solid wire leader had a 90 degree plus bend, just below where the line attached to the swivel. The fish had hit ahead of the lure as I thought, but must have caught its teeth in the leader for a couple seconds.
The second time happened last fall. All day I had moved fish on top water, but no hook ups. Right at dusk I was working the weagle and a shorty jumped completely out of the water along side the lure, missing it entirely. However, as it fell back the lure went under and I felt a solid pull on the line. I tried setting the hook but nothing there, as I expected. When I got the lure back, the solid wire was bent in a big crescent. Apparently the fish flopped down on the leader when going back into the water and took the lure down under water with it.
In both cases, the fish missed the lure, badly. But, both times I still had the fun of seeing them. Replacing the two leaders was well worth it. Top water are just fun. |
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Posts: 1023
| So the bait disappeared. I waited like I would if I was fishing a scum frog for largies. Then set the hook.
Is that wrong? |
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Posts: 1456
Location: Kronenwetter, WI | Don't overthink it ur gonna lose fish....part of the game.. |
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