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Muskie Fishing -> Lures,Tackle, and Equipment -> Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle
 
Message Subject: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/15/2023 6:17 PM (#1018074)
Subject: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


I've recently been looking at getting three new lures. The leviathan from Lee Lures, the angry dragon from TNA tackle, and the chaos tackle mini tap dancer.
I wanted to get the leviathan because I like the dive and rise action, but it also has a unique wobble to it that I haven't seen in any suicks or other lures.
I was looking at the angry dragon because of the large presentation with a spinning blade on the front.
I was looking to get the mini tap dancer because of the belly roll action on it that I don't see in any other glide baits.
I wanted to get your guys opinions on these lures because I'm really hesitant to spent $80 on a leviathan and $50 on a mini tap dancer and I don't want to get anything that people haven't had good luck with. Thank you all for your input and advice.
7.62xJay
Posted 2/15/2023 10:58 PM (#1018085 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 466


Location: NW WI
Well in my personal experience and what I gather from previous chats on here, I'd state that "musky chatters are a tool worth having, but not mandatory, they do catch fish, but not tons. It's something u throw off of gut instinct or when your scratching head. It shines the most in rivers". Now I'd personally recommend getting the largest Swimmin Dragon and replacing the front hook with the largest treble ya got. Than T it. Than screw in a MI hook magnet to keep that T'd hook up tight to the body. Tail hook you can magnet or stick in to the rubber body. Now you got a chatter that doesn't foul on itself and an alternative presentation vs top water/bulging bucktails/spinner baits over shallow weeds.

The other 2 I can't comment on other than D&R baits are a tried and true staple and your not gunna go wrong. I'm very happy with my shum shum slim, a tap dancer im sure is a good move as well.
MartinTD
Posted 2/16/2023 6:13 AM (#1018089 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 1129


Location: NorthCentral WI
There are no magic lures and more expensive lures do not equal more fish. If I were you, I would spend a fraction of the money on a couple of Suicks and take the time to learn how to work them (I like the HI version). For the glide, pick up a Phantom softail or a Hellhound with a soft tail, plenty of belly roll with those. In my opinion, forget about the chatterbait altogether.
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/16/2023 6:38 AM (#1018090 - in reply to #1018089)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


MartinTD - 2/16/2023 6:13 AM

There are no magic lures and more expensive lures do not equal more fish. If I were you, I would spend a fraction of the money on a couple of Suicks and take the time to learn how to work them (I like the HI version). For the glide, pick up a Phantom softail or a Hellhound with a soft tail, plenty of belly roll with those. In my opinion, forget about the chatterbait altogether.

I do indeed have 1 suick and 3 phantom softails, although I haven't noticed a belly roll with those, I may have to look again once I get out there again. As far as suicks go, how do you get them to have a wobble to them?
I guess I'll just pick up a few more suicks (my only complaint with them is they're so light I have to throw them on my heavy bass rod, although I guess I could put some bell sinkers on the split rings). Maybe I'll get a few more crankbaits as I only have the slammer 6 inch deep diver and 6 inch minnow crankbait (which I don't like because it comes to the surface a lot when reeling it in). What do you think is my best bet as far as crankbaits go? Grandmas? Bucher? Jakes?
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/16/2023 6:46 AM (#1018091 - in reply to #1018085)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


7.62xJay - 2/15/2023 10:58 PM

Well in my personal experience and what I gather from previous chats on here, I'd state that "musky chatters are a tool worth having, but not mandatory, they do catch fish, but not tons. It's something u throw off of gut instinct or when your scratching head. It shines the most in rivers". Now I'd personally recommend getting the largest Swimmin Dragon and replacing the front hook with the largest treble ya got. Than T it. Than screw in a MI hook magnet to keep that T'd hook up tight to the body. Tail hook you can magnet or stick in to the rubber body. Now you got a chatter that doesn't foul on itself and an alternative presentation vs top water/bulging bucktails/spinner baits over shallow weeds.

The other 2 I can't comment on other than D&R baits are a tried and true staple and your not gunna go wrong. I'm very happy with my shum shum slim, a tap dancer im sure is a good move as well.

I don't really fish rivers a whole lot, mostly lakes because the rivers near me have current too strong for my little jon boat. I guess I'll skip on the chatterbait, too.
Marley420
Posted 2/16/2023 8:05 AM (#1018092 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 81


Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs
The great old question of expansive baits worth it? Yes, they are. Am I going to go out and buy 10 Lee lures flap tails, no. But over the years I have added a few to my arsenal. He makes some nice lures with nice paint jobs and they have worked for my. I buy one in a color I like to throw a lot and go from there on expansive lures. If I add others, I add them. I don't troll much, but I read and hear people love Supernatural baits. Some guys I talk to about those baits tell me it is like the second coming of Jesus.

I guy I always fish with has a truck $60,000, a Ranger boat $70,000 (add $12,000 electronics), he saw me throwing a Lee lures death pause minnow. He said "#*^@ that is a nice bait in the water". He asked me the brand and price. He could not believe I what I spent on it. Like I said to him, this sport isn't cheap. I added, you have $500 reel and $300 rod, what is wrong throwing a $50.00 bait or having a few of them.
Kirby Budrow
Posted 2/16/2023 8:09 AM (#1018093 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 2255


Location: Chisholm, MN
It kind of seems like you just want to buy some baits. Nothing wrong with that but what kind of baits do you catch most of your fish on? Confidence is key and buying another bait because it has belly roll or whatever little thing that seems attractive might not be the answer. I find myself throwing some of the cheapest baits after fishing muskies for 24 years. Once you learn those baits and how to make fish bite, you realize $70 jerkbaits aren't the answer. I Have no experience with any of the baits you mentioned, so I can't say if they are good or not. I do know that I have blown a lot of money on expensive baits that end up not producing.

You say you have a hard time throwing suicks with how light they are. What kind of rod are you using? I can throw little baits no problem with xh rods and 80 braid. I don't think a bass setup is necessary.
MartinTD
Posted 2/16/2023 8:19 AM (#1018094 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 1129


Location: NorthCentral WI
There is no doubt Supernatural baits have an awesome wander to them that most cranks just don't. The majority of the boutique baits today just don't impress me. Do you honestly think a muskie that eats a Leviathan wouldn't have eaten a Suick cast into the same spot? As the saying goes, perception is reality.
North of 8
Posted 2/16/2023 8:20 AM (#1018095 - in reply to #1018093)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Surprised that O.P. doesn't see any belly roll with Soft tail Phantom. Maybe not giving it true slack line after pull? I think they are a good value and can be fished a lot of diffeent ways. Also is a bait that makes for effective figure 8s, hanging it on the outside turn, the tail still wiggles and seems to get the fish excited.
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/16/2023 8:34 AM (#1018097 - in reply to #1018093)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


Kirby Budrow - 2/16/2023 8:09 AM

It kind of seems like you just want to buy some baits. Nothing wrong with that but what kind of baits do you catch most of your fish on? Confidence is key and buying another bait because it has belly roll or whatever little thing that seems attractive might not be the answer. I find myself throwing some of the cheapest baits after fishing muskies for 24 years. Once you learn those baits and how to make fish bite, you realize $70 jerkbaits aren't the answer. I Have no experience with any of the baits you mentioned, so I can't say if they are good or not. I do know that I have blown a lot of money on expensive baits that end up not producing.

You say you have a hard time throwing suicks with how light they are. What kind of rod are you using? I can throw little baits no problem with xh rods and 80 braid. I don't think a bass setup is necessary.

That's exactly it, I want to add a few new lures into my arsenal. As far as what I've gotten so far, I'm relatively new to muskie fishing and I'm not exactly in the best area for muskie. That said, I have gotten 1 on a white mini medussa, one on a white swimming dawg, 1 on a shiner, one on a small red bass crankbait, and 1 on a nightcrawler while fishing for suckers to use for bait. I also had a follow on my swimming dawg, but didn't manage to get it to bite. I find my local lake has an abundance of shad, so I often use white or gray colors to mimic that. My rod set up is a Dobyns Fury medium heavy casting rod rated for 1-5 ounces (I like to use smaller lures like the 7 inch) with a shimano tranx 401.
Marley420
Posted 2/16/2023 8:34 AM (#1018098 - in reply to #1018094)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 81


Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs
MartinTD - 2/16/2023 8:19 AM

There is no doubt Supernatural baits have an awesome wander to them that most cranks just don't. The majority of the boutique baits today just don't impress me. Do you honestly think a muskie that eats a Leviathan wouldn't have eaten a Suick cast into the same spot? As the saying goes, perception is reality.


I was just adding what I came to grip with. I was guy that never understood the expensive bait thing. Then I bought something that caught my eye. I love my Suicks. I am by no means an expert with them. But I think I do a pretty good job with them. With that said, do I think throwing one bait in a spot over another catching a fish, you never know.

I agree with Kirby, that confidence is needed when throwing baits.
jvlast15
Posted 2/16/2023 11:22 AM (#1018110 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 297


Personal results may vary - but I have thrown an angry dragon a lot - and I have yet to raise a single fish on the dang thing. And I have dedicated HOURS to fishing it in all sorts of conditions and seasons.
chuckski
Posted 2/16/2023 11:27 AM (#1018112 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 1152


It's all part of the chase we all have way too many lures, still go to the sport shows, tackle shops come to Muskie sights like this . What for? Because it's fun.
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/16/2023 12:34 PM (#1018115 - in reply to #1018110)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


jvlast15 - 2/16/2023 11:22 AM

Personal results may vary - but I have thrown an angry dragon a lot - and I have yet to raise a single fish on the dang thing. And I have dedicated HOURS to fishing it in all sorts of conditions and seasons.

Noted. As mentioned, on Todays Angler and other channels they're trying to promote them in an effort to sell the lure. Guess I'll stick to my crankbaits, glidebaits, and jerkbaits. Might have to try bucktails, too. I just had a hard time getting blades to spin on them and they get getting mangled.
Guzzler
Posted 2/16/2023 12:44 PM (#1018116 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: RE: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 34


As far as the chatterbait goes, if you get the single hook version, they are rather weedless and could be another tool for you to use? We were in on a week-long muskie trip two years ago before Canada reopened and moved several nice fish on these baits. We had never fished this particular body of water previously, and we found the fish shallow and in really thick cover. We could not get much else through the thick stuff with the baits we had. We were not prepared to fish the 4 foot deep water, filled with super thick matted cabbage, coon tail and junk weed mix. My buddy decided to see if the Chatterbait could work. That single hook chatterbait moved several fish (all mid to upper 40 inch fish) for my buddy to where I felt I needed to buy at least one if I ever ran in to those conditions again. We did not boat any fish, but he moved some and I did not. So I felt I needed to get another tool for the arsenal. It sits in my tackle box now awaiting the opportunity to get used if the need arises. The Supernatural Bait was mentioned in a different write up. I just have to say that the Hedlock as a casting bait, was awesome last year. It did a lot of things different than my normal crankbaits I throw. I got several nice fish on it, and it ran differently than the Matlock. I certainly would recommend spending the money on that bait as well. Yes, it is expensive! But it is another great tool. It was moving fish last year at a greater clip than anything else we were using. Just my 2 cents worth... Good luck!
TCESOX
Posted 2/16/2023 7:39 PM (#1018138 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 1168


If your looking for an inexpensive crank to throw or troll, hard to beat a shallow invader. Catches lots of fish.
FlyPiker
Posted 2/16/2023 8:02 PM (#1018141 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 385


If you want some cool baits and have the money to spend, do what makes you happy. Are there other baits out there that can serve the same purpose for less $ - yep. I will also chime in that the muskie chatterbaits are kind of - eh. They work, but I have had nothing over 40 even follow it,.and can't recall having seen any giants caught on them even on the social media's- probably just forgetting, I dunno. If you're on a system with a lot of fish less than 40s though, they do seem to dig them. I'm hanging on to mine to try the deal that 54 or bust had on YT recently, putting the chatterblade portion ahead of a paddletail swmbait. Just curious to see how it looks in the water.
Baby Mallard
Posted 2/17/2023 8:42 AM (#1018159 - in reply to #1018141)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Years ago I lost an absolute monster on Mille Lacs with a chatter bait.  Don't even own a chatter bait anymore but I remember how that thing would put out some vibration through your body lol.
Angling Oracle
Posted 2/17/2023 8:43 AM (#1018160 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 284


Location: Selkirk, Manitoba
Just reading between the lines you seem to be at the stage of musky fishing where you are spending too much time changing lures when you should spend more time fishing. The fish you have caught evaluate the where and why and how caught (or had follows) and try and duplicate that. Don't know what's in your arsenal but obviously blades and topwater are two that you don't mention you have had action on - meaning you probably are not throwing those enough assuming you have them. Your fish are biting rubber - I would up or downsize on those before expanding to other oddball (ie chatterbait) lure categories or different makers of the same lure category.
7.62xJay
Posted 2/17/2023 9:21 AM (#1018163 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 466


Location: NW WI
AO's right. Darn near all of us have "dusty baits". Ain't that there bad, they just didn't make our comfort and confidence roster. Like he was saying over time as you learn specific water throughout you'll enevitably develop patterns. ( X bait at X depth at X time and conditions) than you'll make your way through your starting lineup because it produced the most "points". The dusty fellas are your special teams. They hit the field when nothing is working. I also agree with em on expanding on what's already working, different weights and sizes allows you the versatility to change depth and retrieve speed/pause hang time=can be SUPER important.
You have any walk the dogs?
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/18/2023 7:48 AM (#1018177 - in reply to #1018160)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


Angling Oracle - 2/17/2023 8:43 AM

Just reading between the lines you seem to be at the stage of musky fishing where you are spending too much time changing lures when you should spend more time fishing. The fish you have caught evaluate the where and why and how caught (or had follows) and try and duplicate that. Don't know what's in your arsenal but obviously blades and topwater are two that you don't mention you have had action on - meaning you probably are not throwing those enough assuming you have them. Your fish are biting rubber - I would up or downsize on those before expanding to other oddball (ie chatterbait) lure categories or different makers of the same lure category.


That is correct. I'm young and in college so I don't have much time to fish aside from fall, winter, spring and summer breaks. I've only been targeting muskie for the past year or two. As far as what I've got, I have a deep and shallow 6 inch slammer crankbait, a baby beaver, one musky mania bucktail, 3 swimmin dawgs, 3 phantom soft tails, a 9 inch suick, and 3 mini medussas. As far as the why and how I caught those fish, it was just casting them out and retrieving them except for the medusas where I was jerking them through the water.
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/18/2023 7:49 AM (#1018178 - in reply to #1018163)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


7.62xJay - 2/17/2023 9:21 AM

AO's right. Darn near all of us have "dusty baits". Ain't that there bad, they just didn't make our comfort and confidence roster. Like he was saying over time as you learn specific water throughout you'll enevitably develop patterns. ( X bait at X depth at X time and conditions) than you'll make your way through your starting lineup because it produced the most "points". The dusty fellas are your special teams. They hit the field when nothing is working. I also agree with em on expanding on what's already working, different weights and sizes allows you the versatility to change depth and retrieve speed/pause hang time=can be SUPER important.
You have any walk the dogs?

Nope, only topwater I have is a whopper plopper 190, although I usually use the 90-110 because my local lake is known for bass.
7.62xJay
Posted 2/18/2023 10:39 AM (#1018193 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 466


Location: NW WI
Well, I'd say save ur money since ur in college. But if anything diversify your bucktail selection some by presentation and single/ double blades,if you got lots of shallow weeds single hook spinner baits are your friend but also do nicely slow rolled deep,nab a "finesse" top water like a smaller WTD in the 5" range,wake bait,creeper, flaptail. Some bass guys have been having good luck throwing finesse topwater deeper than typical where there's schooling shad. If the shad are there, and the bass are there, good chance there's a Musky looking up waiting for an easy meal.

Here's a big pointer. Muskys love "triggers" pretty much means non consistent retrieves. Change up between straight retrieve,jerks,pulls,pauses,and twitches. So like your shallow slammer that's blowing out- cast,crank it down,pause 1-2 seconds, crank it down for more distance, pause, 2 or 3 hard wrist jerks,pause, retrieve, pause (you can even let it surface and twitch it while it's surfaced), than crank it down...etc etc etc.
Your deep slammer, if you got sand or rock, same thing as the shallow mixed with bass technique. Crank it down, bang the bottom, pause, grind the F* out of the bottom pause, jerk, grind, etc etc etc.
Your beaver, go nuts, do what you want, as long as it's erratic.
Your Whopper, once your up to that golden speed, throughout that straight retrieve try throwing in 2-3 extra fast cranks,back to normal for 5 cranks, 1 fast crank, normal for 10, 5 fast cranks, pause and twitch mid retrieve for say 8 seconds, continue as b4. It doesn't have to be that EXACTLY. Your essentially just trying to make your presentation not so monotone.
What's your line n leader setups?
7.62xJay
Posted 2/18/2023 12:11 PM (#1018197 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 466


Location: NW WI
Oh and another thought. Amazing option for someone on a budget as well. JIGS! AKA CREATURE JIGS. LOTS of options to choose from for a cheap price. Doesn't require as heavy as gear and casts a mile. Great versatility, bottom bouncing, yo yoing,jerk bait style retrieve, your call. My go to is a 1.oz Burde Bait Big Jig, stupid tube rigged into a 7" Canyon plastics Giant Tora Tube stuffed full of Liquid Mayhem Scent .Obviously that's getting thrown into heavy cover,lay downs, and large rocks exclusively.
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/19/2023 9:12 AM (#1018207 - in reply to #1018193)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


7.62xJay - 2/18/2023 10:39 AM

Well, I'd say save ur money since ur in college. But if anything diversify your bucktail selection some by presentation and single/ double blades,if you got lots of shallow weeds single hook spinner baits are your friend but also do nicely slow rolled deep,nab a "finesse" top water like a smaller WTD in the 5" range,wake bait,creeper, flaptail. Some bass guys have been having good luck throwing finesse topwater deeper than typical where there's schooling shad. If the shad are there, and the bass are there, good chance there's a Musky looking up waiting for an easy meal.

Here's a big pointer. Muskys love "triggers" pretty much means non consistent retrieves. Change up between straight retrieve,jerks,pulls,pauses,and twitches. So like your shallow slammer that's blowing out- cast,crank it down,pause 1-2 seconds, crank it down for more distance, pause, 2 or 3 hard wrist jerks,pause, retrieve, pause (you can even let it surface and twitch it while it's surfaced), than crank it down...etc etc etc.
Your deep slammer, if you got sand or rock, same thing as the shallow mixed with bass technique. Crank it down, bang the bottom, pause, grind the F* out of the bottom pause, jerk, grind, etc etc etc.
Your beaver, go nuts, do what you want, as long as it's erratic.
Your Whopper, once your up to that golden speed, throughout that straight retrieve try throwing in 2-3 extra fast cranks,back to normal for 5 cranks, 1 fast crank, normal for 10, 5 fast cranks, pause and twitch mid retrieve for say 8 seconds, continue as b4. It doesn't have to be that EXACTLY. Your essentially just trying to make your presentation not so monotone.
What's your line n leader setups?


Thanks for the pointers! 80 lb suffix 832 and I have 174 lb piano wire and 130 lb fluoro
Ogandrews
Posted 2/21/2023 7:33 PM (#1018259 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 202


Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
I would recommend looking at the Kodiak navin dive and rise. I have the 8-10-12” ones and they each have a place. They are almost like halfway between a suick and the high end dive n rise baits custom made. The 8” is awesome for early season because once you tune it right it has almost as much side to side action as a glider, as well as diving. The 10” is really easy to get to suspend and get deep with not much lead in it. The 12” is what I reach for 95% of the time I want to throw a dive and rise. You can get it to run shallow through weeds with a little lead, or you can load it up to get a slow rise. With 3 oz of lead I was able to see it get 12-13’ down on my livescope in the middle of the cast, and still lot of have a really slow rise. The 12” has an incredible amount of body wiggle on the pull and the pause, the other 2 sizes wiggle really well too but it’s more pronounced with the 12”. Just know with the Navins that they are significantly bigger than a suick for the same length. The 10” has way more body displacement than a 10” suick. 12” navin is probably more comparable to the frankensuick although I haven’t thrown it. I know the leviathan has an even bigger profile than the navin.

If I were you, I’d get a 12” navin, a lee lures metal series standard flap, and a bomb squad mk65 flaptail, and a 10” Mattlock if you want to get a crank in there. I know that’s not the bait you were asking about but that’s all I really use for “designer” baits and don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything else.

The other thing I’ll say is before you buy any more baits, buy a real 9-10ft musky rod. I’ve used the dobyns champion swimbait rods and they aren’t musky rods. You need a rod that is designed to set the hook into a musky and work those baits correctly. Those dobyns are usually 8ft if I remember and are way too soft to do a proper figure 8
PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/22/2023 8:40 AM (#1018268 - in reply to #1018259)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


Ogandrews - 2/21/2023 7:33 PM

I would recommend looking at the Kodiak navin dive and rise. I have the 8-10-12” ones and they each have a place. They are almost like halfway between a suick and the high end dive n rise baits custom made. The 8” is awesome for early season because once you tune it right it has almost as much side to side action as a glider, as well as diving. The 10” is really easy to get to suspend and get deep with not much lead in it. The 12” is what I reach for 95% of the time I want to throw a dive and rise. You can get it to run shallow through weeds with a little lead, or you can load it up to get a slow rise. With 3 oz of lead I was able to see it get 12-13’ down on my livescope in the middle of the cast, and still lot of have a really slow rise. The 12” has an incredible amount of body wiggle on the pull and the pause, the other 2 sizes wiggle really well too but it’s more pronounced with the 12”. Just know with the Navins that they are significantly bigger than a suick for the same length. The 10” has way more body displacement than a 10” suick. 12” navin is probably more comparable to the frankensuick although I haven’t thrown it. I know the leviathan has an even bigger profile than the navin.

If I were you, I’d get a 12” navin, a lee lures metal series standard flap, and a bomb squad mk65 flaptail, and a 10” Mattlock if you want to get a crank in there. I know that’s not the bait you were asking about but that’s all I really use for “designer” baits and don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything else.

The other thing I’ll say is before you buy any more baits, buy a real 9-10ft musky rod. I’ve used the dobyns champion swimbait rods and they aren’t musky rods. You need a rod that is designed to set the hook into a musky and work those baits correctly. Those dobyns are usually 8ft if I remember and are way too soft to do a proper figure 8


I'll definitely check those out. Unfortunately, I mostly fish from the shore and have a hard time storing and using rods that big, so I don't know if I can really get a 9-10 foot rod because I won't be able to use it much. I'm also pretty new to muskie fishing so I could be wrong here, please correct me if I am. But I am in Pennsylvania (as my username implies, southeast PA specifically), so there's not a whole lot of muskies near me. Does this mean there won't be a whole lot of large muskies nearby? I know up north there are monster muskies, but I don't know if there's huge ones down here, so I don't know if throwing a 10-12 inch lure like a poseidon, dyin dawg, large medusa, etc. is exactly going to work giving where I'm fishing ( a highly pressured bass lake in southeast PA). I hope this makes sense, I might not be explaining it well.
RJ_692
Posted 2/22/2023 9:48 AM (#1018270 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 357


my 2 cents...for now don't spend the money on designer baits, regardless of how good they may be. and there are lots of good ones.

if you are getting into some incidental musky catches that means you are in areas where there is fish. this is good.

maximize what you can throw on the equipment you have. think bass size +. 6" magdrafts, spinnerbaits, meps musky killer bucktails, x raps etc. this will maximize the efficiency with what you have.

i have caught lots of all kinds of fish on suicks down to the 7" size. If you have trouble casting suicks you can add screw in weights to them. But there is also some technique in casting them. You need to try to get the release timing so that the tail is pointed in the direction you want when you release. Practicing that is free. adjust on the tail and you can get all kinds of wiggles

PennsylvaniaMuskie
Posted 2/26/2023 12:38 PM (#1018381 - in reply to #1018270)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle




Posts: 65


RJ_692 - 2/22/2023 9:48 AM

my 2 cents...for now don't spend the money on designer baits, regardless of how good they may be. and there are lots of good ones.

if you are getting into some incidental musky catches that means you are in areas where there is fish. this is good.

maximize what you can throw on the equipment you have. think bass size +. 6" magdrafts, spinnerbaits, meps musky killer bucktails, x raps etc. this will maximize the efficiency with what you have.

i have caught lots of all kinds of fish on suicks down to the 7" size. If you have trouble casting suicks you can add screw in weights to them. But there is also some technique in casting them. You need to try to get the release timing so that the tail is pointed in the direction you want when you release. Practicing that is free. adjust on the tail and you can get all kinds of wiggles



Ok, I'm getting a silver bucktail and a black bucktail. I think I'll get a light suick and a dark suick and maybe a boilermaker
7.62xJay
Posted 2/26/2023 3:51 PM (#1018384 - in reply to #1018074)
Subject: Re: Lee's lures, TNA Tackle, and chaos tackle





Posts: 466


Location: NW WI
Do you have alot of shallow weeds that your leaning towards a boiler maker for? Two other baits that are similar are Spanky Baits Pugsly series. And Kramer Bros Woodtick. In case you want to compare.
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