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Posts: 53
| Hello all, new to this forum. I have been a lifelong smallmouth and walleye fisherman on the Allegheny River. Over the years I have seen a few musky and have even caught a few small ones while targeting other species. This spring I decided to invest in some musky lures. I finally caught a real nice fish on a regular Bulldawg this spring with my St. Croix bass mojo. In short, I am now hooked. I need a musky setup.
Does anyone have any opinion on the Cabelas Musky Predator series? They are on sale right now. I was thinking the 8ft MH would be a good all around rod for me. My tackle is limited right now. I do have some of the essentials. (bulldawg, suik thriller, and a few bucktails) I also need a left handed reel. I have had great luck with the Lew Speed spool, but I'm not sure if they make something with low enough gearing.
open to any other suggestions but would like to keep the combo around $250 if possible.
-Greg |
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Posts: 4269
Location: Ashland WI | GFishes - 5/9/2016 8:35 AM
Hello all, new to this forum. I have been a lifelong smallmouth and walleye fisherman on the Allegheny River. Over the years I have seen a few musky and have even caught a few small ones while targeting other species. This spring I decided to invest in some musky lures. I finally caught a real nice fish on a regular Bulldawg this spring with my St. Croix bass mojo. In short, I am now hooked. I need a musky setup.
Does anyone have any opinion on the Cabelas Musky Predator series? They are on sale right now. I was thinking the 8ft MH would be a good all around rod for me. My tackle is limited right now. I do have some of the essentials. (bulldawg, suik thriller, and a few bucktails) I also need a left handed reel. I have had great luck with the Lew Speed spool, but I'm not sure if they make something with low enough gearing.
open to any other suggestions but would like to keep the combo around $250 if possible.
-Greg
I would look into TI rods. Excellent rods, price is right, service is great. |
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Posts: 1100
| I would go with a TI XH 9" should be a nice do it all rod. |
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Posts: 391
| I've had terrible luck with Cabelas branded rods. Not that particular model but 3 rods that broke within the first year and a half was enough for me to not trust their rods going forward. Agree with the TI stuff. I've also used Bulldawg rods and Gander Mtn rods in the $100-$125 range that have held up for one year and 4 years respectively with no issues. Grats on the fish btw. |
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Posts: 7092
Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | Another idea might be to go used instead of new. Much more bang for your buck and since you're somewhat new to this, you might get to try out different rod lengths and power before investing too much. |
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Posts: 53
| Thanks for the replies guys. I also saw a some of those Musky Innovation bull dawg rods at Field and Stream. However, they only had 8' and 8'6" in heavy action. I was kinda thinking that since this will be my "all purpose" rod that a MH action might be more appropriate. Most of my lures are under 4oz. Is this a wrong thought? Can I cast a Baby Girl or a Musky Killer with a such a stout rod? |
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Posts: 319
Location: Tomahawk,Wis | Go to TI web site James has any rod you will ever need and you can not beat his warranty. He really stands behind his products..
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Posts: 53
| Ok, I will contact them tomorrow. Thoughts on $150 dollar reel? I held one of the curados the other day. Felt pretty decent. I see that lews makes a super duty speed spool (not a 5:something ratio however). I also looked at the revo winch that people seemed to like. It looked really small. Are there two sizes for it? Unfortunately, I use a left handed reel.
Thanks for all of your help. I want to try and top my spring fish this summer! |
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Posts: 2027
| Lews are bass reels, good ones and I use them for bass, but not musky reels. Abu Revos are bass reels, Revo Toros are musky reels. Abu has a new Revo Toro S and Revo Toro Beast that are musky reels, anything not a Toro is for bass and will not stand up to musky baits. Curado and Lexa 300s will handle some musky baits, but not much and IMO not worth the minimal savings over a Toro S. TI is a great option, good sticks at a great price, and you won't find a better owner. TI 9' XH with a Toro S 60. Great all around setup for less than $350 if you look for a reel online and order from TI. |
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Posts: 53
| ARmuskyaddict, do most people get the 51 or the 61 model? The 61 has the single handle but a higher rate of retrieve. 29" vs 26" |
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Posts: 260
| Chose what size would feel best in your hand
If you want to change handle, you could always order more.
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Posts: 2027
| To me the 60/61 is more versatile. A little more speed can be a difference. |
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Posts: 1100
| I would go with the 60/61 size, but try them i your hands, the size difference on the Tbeast, isn't that big. |
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Posts: 431
| I just bought a Cabela Predator XH Spinning rod this winter. The handle is some sort of soft foam like material that's meant to look like a taped up baseball bat or something. Its kind of squishy and nice but I really didn't like it. I bought the rod anyway because it met my specs other than that and the price was right. When I pulled the plastic off a small chunk of this foam came off with it. I really don't care much but it doesn't seem like that handle is not going to last too long. The rod is light though and the blank feels pretty nice to me but I cant fish it until June so I cant report on how it works on the lake. |
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Posts: 45
| I have one Cabelas rod still, an 8' Fish Eagle II in Heavy action. I've caught some fish on it and it's still holding up just fine. My main complaint is that the grip isn't long enough on it, but the new predator rods seem better in that regard. I would go heavier than a MH, that's really not a very versatile muskie rod at all. For larger bucktails and "regular" sized rubber swimbaits you would want at least a H action, if not XH. I don't own a MH muskie rod and don't feel like I'd use it if I had one.
I'm happy with my Curado 300E for small stuff, but for an all around reel a Toro might be better. |
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Posts: 163
| GFishes - 5/9/2016 10:05 PM
Thanks for the replies guys. I also saw a some of those Musky Innovation bull dawg rods at Field and Stream. However, they only had 8' and 8'6" in heavy action. I was kinda thinking that since this will be my "all purpose" rod that a MH action might be more appropriate. Most of my lures are under 4oz. Is this a wrong thought? Can I cast a Baby Girl or a Musky Killer with a such a stout rod?
I have that rod. You can cast some pretty small baits when using a Nacl spooled with 50# pp. |
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Posts: 612
| I have the Cabela's Predator. It's light weight and great for the somewhat smaller toothy critter baits. No complaints yet, only had it a short while. |
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Posts: 53
| Thanks guys, I took all of your advice. I ended up with a TI 86 XH rod with a lefty Toro S in the 60 size. Can't wait to use it on Memorial day.
I spooled it up with about 20yd of 10# mono backing and 150 yard of Suffix 65#. I was surprised how that filled up the reel. I think there is too much line. Maybe it will pack tighter when I start fishing with it. The 150 yd spool is kinda odd. I generally will get two fills out of most spools of line I purchase. However, I didn't want to put only 75yd of the Suffix and have the rest be backing. |
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Posts: 1828
| That sounds like a great setup for a wide variety of baits. Nice work. And you did the right thing by loading it up with line. You can always strip some if you think it's too full, and you WILL want to strip some periodically if you notice the last few feet (near the leader) wearing/fraying. Plus, you'll find yourself making bomb casts over 60 yards and you'll be glad you're not at the end of your rope, so to speak. |
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