Hi all. Odd question maybe but I was wondering if there are any alternatives to musky blanks for musky fishing?

A friend wants to introduce me to the sport, and said we can go to some "confidence" lakes where there are higher numbers of smaller fish. The average size fish in Ontario is between 10-20 pounds so I am going to guess the majority of the fish are in the 10-15 range where we would go.

I was at a fishing shop to check out the rods and they are, in my opinion, pool cues with guides which don't seem like a lot of fun to cast with all day. I've been told the action/power of these rods is primarily due to the massive baits you cast, not so much to handle the fish. Length is needed for control and figure eights by the boat.

But I can't help wondering if there are alternative blanks which are lighter in weight, designed to handle big fish and can cast the baits needed for musky fishing - in this case bucktails in the 2-3 ounce range.

For instance, Pac Bay has a salmon/steelhead blank (ASA1054-2) that is fast action, 8’9” in length, handles 12-25 line and casts lures 3/4-3 in weight. The max line weight is a bit lighter than what I have seen for medium and medium heavy musky blanks which usually max about 50, but otherwise couldn't this blank be used for most average size muskie applications?

Camilo,
You can use the heavy weight bass rods that are used for bass in the weeds and they will handle a musky bait just fine.

Take care

Just about any blank which could be used to cast for salt water fish up to 40# should work well for muskies.

Some to look at here: [www.mudhole.com]

Look at the Phenix Inshore blanks. I built a 9’ rated for 3-8oz and it’s a great rod for smaller baits- and it’s super light.

Jeremy

You need to look at the BA series of rod blanks from American Tackle. BA stands for Bad A**, and they are no Joke.. Beautiful and Strong...

Take a serious look at MHX blanks (MU series) sold by Mud Hole. That's all I use now. Favorites are 8', 8'6", and 9', depending on the baits I'm throwing. All are heavy power/fast action, but still "soft" enough to give you what you described. I throw baits from 2 oz to 8 oz on those. The first two rods I built were 8' that I took to Canada last Sept. The first fish on each of those rods were 50.75" and 48" muskies so I hit the jackpot last year. I might add that they threw the baits nicely and did a better job handling those two fish than any of the several commercial brands of muskie rods I have. I'm currently offloading all my commercial rods to make way for a 100% MHX lineup. When I build them for myself, there's a familiarity that just feels right when I pick up any one of them.