The bigger spool will get you a bit more distance. What line do you use? I switched to nanofil 4 pound which casts a mile but does get caught in the wind a little more than the heavier stuff.

This reminds me of a story that I told my nephews years ago when they wondered why we were keeping the little fish and letting the big ones go. I said – imagine that you’re a cannibal and you have the choice of eating cousin Tommy or Grandpa. Which one would taste better? That’s why we keep the smaller fish but have lots of photos of the bigger ones. They still remind me of that gross story but they also release all the big ones.

Muskybassbaits101 on eBay out of Alex MN has 3.5″ and 5″ swimbaits that work great and cost about a third as much as the name brands.