The "Weight-Forward" Approach
Craig Sandell © 2006

This year has been tough fishing because of the heat. More so than usual, fish are seeking the comfort of cooler deeper water as they wait for an easy meal to enter their attack perimeter.

Over the years there has been evidence that, during the course of the Muskie season, relatively few Muskie within a population will venture shallow during the course of a season. The data collected in the Chippewa Flowage Musky Study (Year – 1) demonstrated that while most Muskie anglers are fishing in depths of 4 to 6 feet of water, most Muskie are in depths of around 13.5 feet.

It is also a Muskie truism that, during half of June, all of July and August, and half of September, the lure of choice is some version of a bucktail. Typically, bucktails are effective down to about 4 feet which leaves the depths untouched where Muskies are most likely to be.

Over the years there have been many attempts to modify the bucktail so that it would run deeper, but little success has ever been accomplished in that effort. A complicating factor is the matter of "Lure Confidence". Many of these modified bucktails did not inspire the angler confidence that would encourage their use and move the Muskie angler from the traditional shallows.

There is a new approach to bucktail configuration that may solve the problems of running depth and lure confidence. The bucktail configuration is a weight forward design. True, weight forward is not a new concept but the implementation has certainly come of age.

This Cisco-Spin Lure is, at first glance, a bit unusual in appearance. A closer look, however, demonstrates an innovative approach to the bucktail that supports the casting and trolling approaches to Muskie angling.

The body, which carries most of the 1½ ounce weight of the lure, is through wire construction around which is a weight. The weight is covered with a fabric that emulates scales. The glass eyes attached to the body give an appearance of realism. The body wrap and eyes are covered with an epoxy coating for durability.

Unlike traditional bucktails, the blade is at the back of the body. The single 2/0 treble is dressed in colored feather and is attached to the body with a split ring. This will allow the angler to easily change dressed hook configurations. The French blades come in solid copper or nickel colors. For the angler with a different color preference for the blade, the application of blade tape will provide the maximum in presentation flexibility.

The weight of the lure makes it easy to count down to a desired depth; allowing the angler to fish the 12 to 15 foot depths of shelf drop-offs and main lake areas where the studies indicate most Muskie reside during the course of the season.

Another deep water approach is a lure called The Abyss. It is 8 inches in length, weighs 3 ounces, has a # 8 French blade, and a 4/0 heavy duty treble Mustad hook. Its weighted head allows it to run at depths of 15 feet, and unlike some blade types, its heavy French blade will spin at any depth. Cast it over open water, parallel to deep weed edges, and across rocky points and humps. It is also a great trolling bait, as its keel-shaped head eliminates line twist. It is available in the six different blade and color combinations. It is designed primarily for suspended Muskies and northerns.

These lures are available online from the Jackson Lures Unlimited website at very reasonable prices.