Product Review: Huskie Muskie Leaders

by Exist To Fish | Nov 11, 2016 | Featured, Muskie, News, Pike, Product Reviews

Huskie Muskie Leaders is wholly owned by Bill Fuller, and is located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

As a member of Muskies Canada, Bill is a firm believer of catch and release.  The way we handle muskies and the equipment we use are important in ensuring live releases.  As a result, He had come to realize that good strong leaders are as essential as a good landing net and the proper tools for releasing a fish once caught.  We pay good money for our lures and do not leave them on an underwater obstruction, or heaven forbid in the mouth of a Muskie, because the weak link was a leader.

About ten years ago He was unable to find any quality leaders in the Ottawa area.  As a result He began researching and experimenting with different materials and leader building methods.  Most of the really good information He found was on various salt water sites, written by those who were fishing for game much larger than muskies  His general conclusion was, that if these materials and building methods could stand up to battles with some of the largest fish to be found in the sea, they would stand up to the rigors of fighting and landing muskies.

Bill started with trolling leaders using hard mono but after He discovered the ANDE fluorocarbon, He never went back.  He learned that crimping, done properly, was every bit as strong as knots if not stronger, but more importantly, it would provide strong loops more consistently than knots, especially with this thickness of fluorocarbon material.  He also learned the importance of loop protectors and how they really reduce the strain on loops.  From there He expanded his building to  single strand stainless steel.  Over a period of several years, of building, testing, giving leaders away to friends for second opinions and receiving lots of good advice in return, some of them convinced him to make them available commercially.

The methods and materials that go into Huskie Muskie Leaders are not unique.  They have been adapted from a variety of sources and in turn my designs have been copied by others.

Bill and Exist to Fish Canada believe is that Huskie Muskie Leaders have incorporated the best of materials with a melding of the best methodologies to produce the most Muskie friendly leaders on the market today.  We invite you to visit or contact one of his dealers to see for yourself  to see how good they really are.

Whenever you get two or more Muskie addicts together, you will get two or more opinions about anything to do with our sport.  The use of leaders is no exception.  We have knots vs crimps, stainless steel vs titanium, snaps vs split rings and on and on and on.  The intent of this page is to provide a basic primer on leaders, their use, and the materials used to make them.  The contents are based on extensive research, the experience of those who have been using Huskie Muskie Leaders for a number of years now.

First of all, is there one leader that will do it all?  Not really.  That said, some people do get away with it and for those that are using only one or two rod and reel combinations, it simply isn’t convenient to be constantly changing leaders and compromises need to be reached.  For example, the Huskie Muskie  fluorocarbon casting leader can be use for jerkbaits but is not as good as a single strand stainless steel leader. Where possible, and if your equipment allows, application specific leaders should be used to get the most out of your lures.

Why Leaders?

There are several reasons we use leaders.  Perhaps the major reason is to prevent line from being cut by a Muskie’s teeth or by underwater obstructions such as rocks.  Although the tensile strength of modern fishing line may be as high as the leader material we are be using, it is not very abrasion resistant and under strain can easily be cut by an edge that is even moderately sharp.  Therefore we need something between the line and the lure where all the abuse is going to be absorbed.  Leaders are made of materials that are much more abrasion resistant than line and will stand up to more contact with sharp objects.

The second reason for using leaders is to present the lure in the most natural way possible.  This is especially true with the use of fluorocarbon leaders.  The refraction index of fluorocarbon is virtually the same as water making it almost invisible under water.  Therefore it separates the lure from line and makes it appear to be swimming free.  The clearer the water, the more important this factor is.

The third reason is specific to the use of guide type jerk baits and walk-the-dog type top-waters.  In this application the leader pushes the line away from the bait to prevent fouling.  The resistance of the leader through the water will also tend to make it move in the opposite direction of the movement of the lure so that on the next jerk, the lure will move back across in its zig-zag path back to the boat.  Although this is possible with a more flexible leader, the stiff single strand leader will exaggerate the action.

The last, and one of the most important reasons, deals primarily with trolling.  Shortly after a muskie strikes and before the rod is out of the holder, muskies in their initial effort to free themselves, will often roll in the line.  If you are using one of the newer spectra fibre braided lines, wire line or even a long wire leader, this rolling action can cause serious cuts to the body of the Muskie.  To prevent this from happening, a thicker, softer, high tensile strength hard monofilament or fluorocarbon leader should be used.  For this reason, my fluorocarbon leaders are constructed with a heavier 150 pound strength and corresponding thickness.

If you are just starting out or have been fishing for muskies and Northern Pike as well as taking a trip down south or live on oceanic waters where leaders are mandatory for the fish you are pursuing I highly recommend Huskie Musky Leaders. For years there is always one discussion that arises when talking to fellow anglers and that is choices in leaders and what do you use.

Huskie Muskie stainless steel jerk bait leaders are constructed of Malin stainless wire, an industry leader.  The leader material is purchased directly from the factory, precut, unlike many other brands where the material is purchased in coils and then subjected to addition weakening stresses in the process of trying to straighten it out.

the new glide bait leader, which is essentially the jerk bait leader with out the swivel and snap.  We still use the same wire and shrink wrap the wraps to reduce weed fouling.  To use the glide bait leader, tie the line directly to end of the leader and attach the lure using a split ring.  For safety, do not use the same split ring for all of your glide baits.  The attaching and removal processes will weaken the split ring.  Instead, attach a separate split ring to each lure.

These leaders feature 180 lb Single Strand Malin Stainless Steel Wire, #5 Stringease Stay-lok Snap, and 143 lb ball bearing swivel.

We also take the time to shrink wrap the wire wraps to reduce weed fouling.   The snap is also shrink wrapped to ensure alignment of the snap and leader which is essential for the proper side to side action of glide type jerk baits walk the dog top waters.

Huskie Musky Leaders is a local to Ontario Company based in the Ottawa area that focuses solely on making leaders. Meticulously hand assembled and crimped using the highest grade components, these leaders are at the top of the industry and come highly recommended. Heading to Pro Tackle here in Belleville Ontario, in search for my first Muskie set up years ago I discovered Huskie Muskie Leaders which were highly recommend by store owner and avid Muskie fisherman and guide Stacy Ash. After experiencing multiple attacks and seeing the durability of Bill Fuller’s Huskie Musky Leaders I have never looked back.

Fluorocarbon

Having confidence and not worrying about your terminal tackle is one of the key factors in being successful while in pursuit of these toothy critters. Nothing hurts an angler more than losing a fish of a life time due to terminal tackle failing. Huskie Musky leaders come in a variety of selections such as Fluorocarbon and stainless steel in different lengths for different applications.

The fluorocarbon material used is 150lb ANDE a salt water grade material that is tough as hell and made to take the abuse of larger teeth barring fish. Husky Musky Leaders cater to their customers by providing a 3ft and 6ft fluorocarbon leader for trolling purposes paired with a 175lb barrel swivel and a heavy duty #6 Stringease Stay Loc snap suitable for all sizes of trolling baits which come in handy during the fall season. The casting version of this leader comes in a 12 inch version and can also be found in the 14-18 inch length if desired and come equipped with a 143lb barrel swivel and #5 Stay Loc snap. The stainless steel jerk bait leaders feature 180lb single strain main stainless steel wire paired with a #5 Stringease stay loc snap and a 143lb ball bearing swivel ideal for your walk the dog surface baits and all other jerk baits.

These leaders helps enhance the action of your lure and adding confidence to the angler while fishing for toothy critters. As the fall fishing is underway I highly recommend these leaders to all anglers who pursue Muskie, Northern Pike and all fish where a bite guard is needed.

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