Musky Swimbait Tactics: Fishing the Magnus at Any Depth
- Steven Paul
- 3 hours ago
- 5 min read
Magnus Swimbait: Design, Depth Control, and Advanced Musky Applications
In the first installment of Next Level Musky Fishing, many of the tactics and concepts surrounding swimbaits were covered with a focus on the lures widely available at the time of writing. For most of my musky fishing career, I adopted a European approach by self-rigging loose swimbait bodies. Due to a lack of versatility, I avoided most common North American swimbait offerings.
After completing the first book, I began scrutinizing the swimbaits available to modern muskie anglers and asking a simple question: are these truly the pinnacle of musky swimbaits, or is there still room for innovation?
When mass-produced swimbaits were examined critically, most revealed an Achilles heel. Some fouled constantly on leaders or their own tails. Others tore internally around wire harnesses during routine casting. Many were built from such dense plastic that the paddle tail barely moved unless retrieved at excessive speed.
Rather than complain endlessly, I chose to build something better.
After the success of the Titan, Titan Junior, and Kraken, the team at Livingston Lures was eager for my next design. While the Kraken represented near perfection from a functional standpoint, its internal complexity made production painful. After countless revisions and frustrated mold makers, I promised something simpler next time.
Instead, I designed the Livingston Lures Magnus.
Much like the Kraken, the Magnus features complex internal structures designed to exaggerate action and control movement. Despite production challenges, the end result justified the effort.
The Magnus combines a hard head with a pronounced head swing, a replaceable tail section, and an interchangeable weighting system. After completing the Magnus, I found myself unable to throw other swimbaits. Its ability to operate across depth ranges without sacrificing action set it apart immediately.
One of my greatest frustrations has always been needing multiple versions of a single lure to fish different depths. The Magnus eliminates that problem. Like the Titan and Kraken, it is depth-adjustable rather than depth-specific.
The Magnus is sold with a twenty-eight-gram insert weight installed, which places it squarely in the mid-depth range. Additional weights—or none at all—allow the same lure to function shallow, mid-depth, or deep.
Magnus Swimbait Design Philosophy
The Magnus was built to solve three problems common to musky swimbaits:• inconsistent action• poor durability• limited depth versatility
Its hard head drives a wide, exaggerated swing while the soft body and oversized paddle tail deliver consistent thump at both slow and fast speeds. The interchangeable weight system allows anglers to control depth without altering profile or action.
Magnus Shallow Water Musky Swimbait Concepts
One of my favorite ways to fish the Magnus is with no insert weight at all. This configuration creates the shallowest version of the lure and excels around shoreline cover such as weeds, timber, and rock.
With no weight installed, the Magnus sinks slowly in a slightly head-down posture. A high rod angle allows it to cruise over shallow vegetation with minimal fouling. Short pops and rod taps create forward surges and momentary acceleration in the paddle tail, increasing vibration.
When sufficient clearance exists, short pauses can be added. During these pauses, small upward rod pops cause the head to undulate as the lure rises and falls. Weed pockets and voids should always be addressed with extended pauses and sharp directional changes.
When fishing shallow weeds, parallel casts along outside edges are critical. I prefer a surge-reel retrieve, pulling the lure forward four to five feet before stopping completely. The Magnus continues to wobble as it falls, often triggering strikes along weed edges.
Stutter-reeling is another highly effective shallow-water technique. One or two full handle turns followed by brief pauses cause the Magnus to advance erratically in short bursts, presenting multiple visual angles to following fish.
When ripping the Magnus through dense weeds or cabbage, removing the rear hook dramatically reduces fouling with minimal loss in hook-up percentage. Most strikes on the Magnus are head shots, making this tradeoff worthwhile in extreme cover.
Magnus Mid-Depth Concepts for Musky Swimbaits
With the factory twenty-eight-gram insert weight installed, the Magnus becomes a true mid-depth tool capable of working five to ten feet while maintaining full action. Additional weight can be added if high-speed retrieves create excessive lift.
Mid-depth muskies are often staged tightly to structure such as outside weed edges, bars, points, and rock piles. In these scenarios, contouring is critical.
Boat positioning should emphasize parallel casts along structure. Casting parallel rather than perpendicular keeps the lure in the strike zone longer and increases exposure time.
During mid-depth retrieves, my priority is triggering strikes before the lure is forced to rise. This requires maintaining depth as long as possible through controlled retrieves and strategic pauses.
Effective mid-depth triggers include:• large upward rips followed by extended falls• sudden changes at structural transitions• erratic reeling bursts
One particularly effective trigger involves forcefully ripping the Magnus upward, quickly picking up slack, then engaging free spool. Thumb pressure controls fall rate while allowing flutter and stutter during descent. This technique can be repeated if a fish is visible on live imaging.
Another effective trigger is extremely short, fast stutter turns of the reel handle. Quarter-turns and half-turns cause the Magnus to struggle in place, often triggering reaction strikes from fish holding tight to structure.
Magnus Musky Swimbait Deep Water Concepts
Most musky anglers avoid depths greater than ten to twelve feet, despite muskies frequently using deeper areas. One reason is the lack of swimbaits capable of effectively operating at depth.
While designing the Magnus, I wanted it to be viable as a deep-water presentation. True deep applications require additional weight beyond factory inserts.
This is easily achieved by pressing a rubber-core sinker onto the through-wire between the head and tail section. This modification is inexpensive, reversible, and does not negatively affect action.
Rubber-core sinkers up to two ounces can be used. Larger sinkers may require widening the guide hole in the soft plastic tail with a small slit.
When fishing deep water, Magnus retrieves mirror mid-depth tactics with greater emphasis on extended bottom contact and controlled descent.
Bottom bouncing is particularly effective. Allow the Magnus to contact bottom, then use upward pops or short reel bursts to make it jump and fall along structure. This approach mimics feeding prey and kicks up sediment, adding a visual trigger.
Field Notes on the Magnus Swimbait
Swimbaits are among the most effective musky presentations available. The Magnus expands their usefulness by offering precision depth control without sacrificing action.
Its interchangeable weight system, exaggerated head swing, and oversized paddle tail allow anglers to adapt instantly to changing conditions.
Savvy musky anglers account for structure, seasonality, and real-time conditions. When precision depth control and erratic action are required, the Magnus delivers a level of versatility unavailable in traditional swimbaits.
Professional Musky Guide • Award-Winning Lure Designer • Author
