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Does anyone here set the drag for muskies or do you guys just tighten it all the way up? The reason I'm asking is I lost a trophy class fish a couple days ago, he made a run on me and my drag was tight, I think the lure ripped out of his mouth. That's the first fish I have lost because of the drag being too tight, lost many more because it wasn't set at all lol I shore fish and have two ambassadeur baitcasting combos if that makes any difference.

Hey TBone, Having been lucky enough to boat several musky s that were fairly large , I have found via trial and error, to set the drag tight enough for a good hook set ...Usually means I can pull the line off the bait-caster with my hand, requiring considerable effort....Then as the battle goes I spin the drag with my thumb tighter as required, This method gets rather hectic at times...But hey that's part of the fun....

PS ,,,I do alot of trolling and the drag is set that if I hook up on a log or bottom etc..I wont loose the lure..I use 80lb braid and have the Ambassador C-4 reels .. Hope this helps....

Don

I'm not a big muskie guy at all, but I usually do exactly what the Don said.....tight enough for a good hook set and then adjust on the fly...that's the beauty of baitcasters.....you can adjust without taking your hand off the reel.

I think it depends on what your using as well..........some techniques barely even require hook sets......some require a good one.

All of which is just my opinion, and that only.

Sorry you missed a big one.......but I'm sure you'll meet again.

Cheers

Thanks for the tips guys, probably start setting it now for that extra insurance. If you watch musky shows though almost every single one of them the fisherman doesn't set the drag at all... curious for the reasoning behind this?

They are shows - half the stuff ends up on the cutting room floor and half the stuff they don't bother to film.

Sorry to hear you lost a good fish. Did you see how well he was hooked?

On pike and musky, I've had hooks tear out fairly often, or practically fall out when the fish is landed. For me, I think the tear around the hook happens when trying to turn a fish. I usually try to be a bit more gentle, letting the fish lead and keeping the rod tip in the direction that he is going (if that makes sense). If I need to turn a fish, I'll try and wait until it's done it's run, and turn it slowly.

In terms of tackle, I ended up going to a softer rod, which helps in keeping even pressure. I'm using braided line, and have had problems with the line digging into the spool and burying itself. When this happens, the next cast can result in a broken line and a lost lure, especially with heavier baits. Because of this, I keep the drag just loose enough so that the line isn't digging in. I will thumb the spool, or tighten drag if necessary when fighting a fish.

On my larger lures, I usually switch the hooks to round bend trebles which have a wider gap, shorter shank, and lighter gauge wire. I find these make hooksets easier, but they will straighten out easier too.

Good luck on the next one!