quick strike rigs

[hooky]

I have lost four muskies in the last three years on these rigs. I don't seem to set the hook at the right time. How long do you guys wait after the muskie hits the sucker? Thanks

[ASAP]

you need to set against the fish as best you can and ASAP. a lot has to do with the type of rig you are useing, not all are created equal. call Smokey's Musky shop and ask about the harpoon rig by FinAdk tails.

[MM]

Missing some fish on quick-strike rigs is going to happen, it's just part of musky fishing the same as losing them on artificials. But you can up your odds considerably by practicing good techniques:

1) Make sure the fish is swimming away from you when you set the hooks. This will ensure that hookset is back into the corner of the mouth and not out and away. If the fish grabs the sucker and just sits there, slowly move your boat directly over the fish - this will usually get them swimming away. If that doesn't, slowly increase the pressure on the fish by gently lifting the rod tip and cranking your reel.

2) Make two hooksets, the first one rips the hooks free from the sucker and makes contact with the musky. The second one is to ensure the hooks penetrate past the barbs. In correctly making multiple hooksets, it is necessary to not dip the rod and give the musky any slack. You have to rapidly crank the rod tip down making sure that there is constant contact with the fish.

Then it's up to the musky gods whether we are successful or the musky makes a clean getaway.

One final point, the rig is called a "quick-strike" rig and that is what is intended. Just as soon as it is certain that the fish is moving away, set the hooks. Normally 30 seconds or less.

Cheers and tight lines,
Musky Mike

[hooky]

I was told that even though it is called a quick strike rig that you still have to wait to set the hook. Muskies come up from the stomach area of the sucker and squeezes it to death, then he comes around and devours it head first. This could take up to five minutes or better. So, I have set the hook early and later and just can't seem to get the timing right, There are a lot of different ideas out there. I will try the double hook set though. Any more comments? Thanks

[Musky Mac]

A lot depends on the design of the rig. I build my own using three treble hooks and are adjustable so that they "fit" the size sucker I'm using. However, The most critical element in my estimation is the ability of the rigs to break free of the sucker. If you are not connecting the front hook with a rubber band through the suckers snout then that's the first thing I'd change. Since fish take a bait from the side, a hook through the suckers snout will restrict your ability to set the trailing hooks because you're pulling on the sucker and not the hooks. If you think about the grip that musky has on the sucker you can imagine the odds of pulling the whole thing far enough to get a good hookset. Also the middle & tail treble should have a smaller hook attached to the shank for securing it to the sucker rather than using one of the treble barbs. Since changing to this configuration my hookups have increased dramatically.

[MM]

hooky;

A few other things to do when fishing suckers on quick-strike rigs have to do with how you attach the rig to the sucker:

1) scrape a few scales away from the areas where you intend to insert the hooks.

2) slip the hook very lightly under the skin, do not hook it deep.

Both of these practices will aid you in making better hooksets as it makes it far easier to rip the hooks free from the sucker.

3) position the treble (or trebles depending on the type of rig used) so that it is about as far back on the sucker as the rear of the dorsal fin. If there are two trebles, place one slightly in front of the dorsal area and one slightly behind the dorsal area.

This practice should have one or both trebles located inside the musky's mouth when she t-bones the sucker.

4) Locate the treble(s) about midway down on the sucker's side, not up too high or down too low. The sucker is it's widest girth midway down and that's where you want your hooks located.

Perhaps you are already doing these very things, if not give them a try as they really do help an angler stick muskies.

Cheers and tight lines,
Mike

[Kingfisher1]

I agree with Musky Mac. the trick is getting the hooks to disengage from the sucker. Most so called quick strike rigs are jokes and in all truth there is no such thing as a quick strike rig. Quick striking is an action meaning to set the hook quickly. Do not let muskies take a so called quick strike rig off and munch on it for 5 minutes. I solved this problem of getting the hooks to tear free from the sucker by soldering #6 aberdeen trout hooks to the back side of a #5/0 treble hook. First t-bone the hook so all three barbs are facing away from the sucker then solder the small wire hook to the shank. I wire two of these to a piece of 90 lb 7 strand and also attach a small treble to the nose.80 lb braid will pull these out of the sucker very easily and drive the 5/0 into the muskies mouth. YOU MUST MAKE SURE THE MUSKY IS SWIMMING AWAY FROM YOU. Set the hook back into the fish . Placement of the hooks is key . I place one in the belly and one on the opposite side and the tiny treble in the snoot. We only missed one out of 7 this year and that one was not moving when my wife set the hook. The musky got the sucker. I build my own because all the other ones do not work for me. Striking quickly is the most important part of using live bait for muskies. We cant release these fish if we are feeding them any type of hardware. We know now from the Wisconsin D.N.R. that wire and hooks do not dissolve in a muskies stomach much lees in its mouth. Hit them quick and let em go, Kingfisher