Michigan Muskie Alliance

Im new to musky and Im thinking about getting a 8 foot rod. Then putting an Abu Garcia 6600 reel on it. I like casting and I want to through the big spinners and swimbaits. CAn somebody tell me if this would be the best Idea.
Thanks agian

8' is a good choice as longer rods help with casting, fighting fish and figure 8ing. How heavy of a rod were you thinking about getting? For throwing big swimbaits like magdawgs and pounders a XH or higher rod is needed but that probably wont be best for fishing bucktails. Bucktail rods are usually on the lighter end, which helps with casting and hooks sets. I would go with an MH or H actions as that could kind of meet the needs of both. Remember, with big swimbaits the rod is the important component but for big bucktails its more the reel

You may want to look at a 8'6" rod or even a 9' based on your experience. I would also be cautious about the ratings because the rating from my Lamiglass to my St. Croix to my other rods is all over the place. It would be best if you could see the rods first hand and if you make it to the LSC outing you would have a good opportunity to see various rod and reel combos and what the different actions feel like. Good luck!

But Ed, why stop at 9'? Go big or go home. Go for the 10 footer! HAHA!! I bet you can get some rediculously HUGE figure 8's with that thing! I guess I'll see for myself tomorrow!

On a more serious note, my brother and I both have Gander Mountain Tounament Musky Extreme rods. As Ed said, watch those ratings. Matt's is a 8'6 XH, and mine is a 8' HX. Mine throws Pounders easier than his throws Mags. His rod feels a whole lot lighter than mine.

I have an 8'6" Okuma its great for medium baits but it lacks hook setting power for big baits. I use it for medium Bucktails and medium cranks. Kingfisher

i just bought the gander XH rod 8.6 for 99.00 and love the figure eights and top water presentations.

Now I live right next to campau/kettle, so Im planning on doing alot of Tiger fishing. Should I just use my Pike setup (7ft,MH,caster)? But I also run mono for pike. For pike I just cast smaller bucktails, spinners, and some topwater jitterbugs. Would this all be good for Tigers?

Campau Tigers HUH!!

I don't think there're any tigers left, only true muskies!

Most muskie guys use superbraids because:

• It has low stretch, which allows for better hook-sets with larger baits, and muskies have tough, bony jaws;
  It's thinner for the same breaking strength;
  They want to use stronger line because they're tossing heavy baits, and strong-enough mono would be too thick;
  It has great abrasion resistance.

Having said that, you can still use mono with smaller baits, but don't forget the metal (preferably single-strand) or heavy (80-100#) fluorocarbon leader! Toothy critters and mono don't go well together.

I like my 8' MH Guide Series Pro Guide. I use it for everything except jerkbaits and WTD because I like a shorter rod because I'm short. I don't have too much trouble casting larger baits like pounders. $99 but if you can get a XH for the same why wouldn't you?

I didn't know Campau didn't have any tigers left. I used to live on it, and thats all I herd getting pulled from there

biiigfish32 wrote:Im new to musky and Im thinking about getting a 8 foot rod. Then putting an Abu Garcia 6600 reel on it. I like casting and I want to through the big spinners and swimbaits. CAn somebody tell me if this would be the best Idea.
Thanks agian

The best bang for the buck rod bar none, is a St. Croix PM80MHF. I personaly would not buy an Abu reel. I would consifer Pflueger Trion 66 or Gander Equiv, Okuma induron 400, or the priceier Daiwa Luna.

Chasin50 wrote:

biiigfish32 wrote:Im new to musky and Im thinking about getting a 8 foot rod. Then putting an Abu Garcia 6600 reel on it. I like casting and I want to through the big spinners and swimbaits. CAn somebody tell me if this would be the best Idea.
Thanks agian

The best bang for the buck rod bar none, is a St. Croix PM80MHF. I personaly would not buy an Abu reel. I would consifer Pflueger Trion 66 or Gander Equiv, Okuma induron 400, or the priceier Daiwa Luna.

St. Croix has awesome customer service, made in USA and you can upgrade the rod for something differnt later.

edalz wrote:St. Croix has awesome customer service, made in USA and you can upgrade the rod for something differnt later.

I'm not all that impressed. When I had a 45-day-old rod snap in half from a manufacturing defect, it cost me $30 (apparently they've reduced it to $20 now), and I'm not counting shipping... Take a look at their Warranty:

1. Write a note explaining the problem. Send the note, a check for $20* and your entire rod to St. Croix. We suggest using our Discount Shipping Program, which is described elsewhere on this page.
...
http://www.stcroixrods.com/content.asp?id=14

Their "Discount Shipping Program" cost me only an additional $10; so why does RETURN shipping (the reason I had to send the extra $30, presumably) cost 3X more? Suddenly, my brand new $170 rod cost me $210 just to get their defect serviced...

I'm very happy so far with the two Gander Mtn. 8.5' rods I have; I can just bring them back to the store if they're defective, and one was $70 (on sale) and the other $90.

[quote="The best bang for the buck rod bar none, is a St. Croix PM80MHF. I personaly would not buy an Abu reel. I would consifer Pflueger Trion 66 or Gander Equiv, Okuma induron 400, or the priceier Daiwa Luna.[/quote]

That suprises me that you like the Gander reels more than Abu. All I use is Abu reels and I've had no problems whatsoever. I have had 2 Gander reels that broke and since Gander was phasing out the GS66, they replaced my reels with Abu 6600 C3's.