Most of the time I don’t fish even that heavy, however. I know I’m out of favorable fashion strutting down the runway these past seasons of the giant baits, but I still fish small bucktails (1 to 2.25 ounces), and my favorite J-mac and 6-inch Lunker City Shaker combo (maximum 1.5 ounces) about half the time. It is specifically the tackle I use to fish these lures that the Right Honorable Mr. Pearson considers less than manly.
In combination with 50- or 65-pound superline, one can fish very comfortably and create great dread in any muskie population with a flippin’ stick and a wide-spool low-profile reel. For TV fishing the last five seasons, I’ve used an All Star graphite rod (the P907FS) and a Pflueger President widespool reel (the PRESIDENTWLP). The P907 is their upper-end graphite flippin’ stick. They also make a less expensive Team All Star option that performs just as well, although it’s slightly heavier in weight.
Every good company makes a great flippin’ stick that works. Then just find a good reel to match. The tradition is to fish with round reels, which is fine. But as I’ve said, wide-spool low profiles work just fine. These combinations are readily available and are not expensive.
The confidence I have in going Muskie Lite comes from long experience in using the tackle to land big fish, many of them saltwater fish that fight much harder than muskies. With the superbraids you can pull much harder on fish than most anglers think.
In freshwater, I fish with the drag tightened down so it barely gives. It takes a really big fish at boatside to require giving any line. If required, I pull hard, putting a total bend in the rod, which gives me enough time to hit the freespool bar, allowing me to thumb off some line. You can’t do that with fish in saltwater.
How light is really light? My biggest fish of last season weighed 30-something and was bested by 14-pound Berkley FireLine, a 7-foot medium-action All Star spinning rod, and a 30-Class Pflueger Supreme reel. I was fishing for walleyes and whatever else would bite on Mille Lacs with a 5-inch Berkley Swim Shad on a 3/4-ounce Owner Saltwater Bullet Ultra Head Jig.
It was very windy and the fish was up on a portion of a weedflat about 8 feet deep. When fish are up and feeding in heavy wind, waves often wash them to the surface. “Wind rollers” aren’t like the lollygaggers you see frolicking in calmer conditions. The wind rollers often bite. We pulled off the area where the fish was, came back down the adjacent weededge, and hooked up.
Lucky? Only in getting the fish to bite and not getting bit off, not in playing and landing the fish after the fact. Lots of situations exist where medium-duty spinning tackle is adequate for muskies. I know the immediate industry spotlight is on fishing bigger and badder, but muskie lite still is right much of the time.
