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Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2015 9:04 am
by keng8554
In my experience, throwing a crank in or around cover will catch fish. As long as there are fish around you can get bites. However, some of my biggest fish have come from knocking a crank into something. It's a balance between choosing a bait that will deflect appropriately but not dig in to the cover so as to cause you to hang up.
For example, if you throw a DT16 in timber lying in 5 feet of water you are asking for trouble. However, if that timber is lying on the bottom in 12 or 13 feet you should hold on tight cause you may bring up a monster. The other thing to remember is that when targeting deeper structure, you should be positioned so that it is at about the middle of your cast when you're bait will be at its deepest.
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2015 10:00 am
by SteveSchmelzle
my advice.
try something a little different.
take your favourite crank and ultra slow roll it.
i mean, so slow its driving you crazy.
that's when these "evil" 5.1:1 reels excel.
i have a fishing partner who loves to throw jerk baits. i often slow roll riplin redfins or bagley top guns...he often catches "more" fish than me...as the erratic jerk retrieve gets the smaller aggressive bass....but that ultra slow retrieve of a balsa stick bait (or riplin redfin - the lure that has action at even the slowest speeds) will often coax the biggest bass into biting.
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2015 6:05 pm
by wingzero9969
I've had the best luck cranking when my bait makes constant contact with the bottom.
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Thu Mar 19, 2015 9:51 am
by mike304
stalking coyote wrote:Pick the crankbait to meet the technique your wanting to fish .. If I'm fishing laydowns and stickups .. I want a crankbait that will roll over and/or along the tree limbs very well without getting snagged .. And before someone says they don't exist .. Yes, they do I have several models that perform this function to almost perfection.
If i'm fishing rip rap .. I want a crankbait that is designed to have the bill bump into the rocks or brush without getting snagged to often .. and yes these do exist as well ..
I fish a lot of handmade crankbaits .. and I learn how the crankbaits fish and react to different types of cover .. and then I go out and use those crankbaits where they perform the best .. and I don't use them where they don't function optimally.
Example is with fishing crankbaits over weed beds .. I don't want a crankbait that is designed to have the nose digging down .. I want a crankbait that runs more horizontally ..
Learn your crankbaits and make them work for you .. I have a crankbait for every type of cover situation you can think of.
Do you feel like sharing some of your brands?
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Wed Dec 13, 2017 10:55 am
by Giqqo
Cranking rocks and deflecting is a great way by triggering reaction strikes from bass
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2018 7:18 am
by Nrowden27
You will get more bites if your crankbait is contacting the bottom.
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2018 11:23 am
by toporanger
I crank more than I probably should lol. But when I target structure I like to treat it like a laydown with a jig. I dont fire right into the meat of the laydown and scare everything off pulling one fish out, I work the edges first.
So say I am working some deep rocks or timber. I will throw a hardbait that will tick the tops of maybe a foot off the cover searching for active fish. THEN I will come back with something that really grinds into the stuff causing deflections. THEN I grab a jig and work the cover over slower.
I have had days where the cranks running a foot above the cover really fires up a school and then I can slowly mop up the rest with follow baits. But I believe that I have also burned spots by running big divers into the thick cover and maybe got one fish where there should have been several.
I also believe some of these things are dictated by type of bass, smallmouths and spot schools dont seem to get as spooked as say pure largemouth schools do when blasting cover with a 8xd or so.
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Wed May 16, 2018 8:08 pm
by hungry_cow
The only time you don't want a crankbait deflecting bottom is if fishing weeds. Any other time you always want deflection as it is what typically triggers strikes. Pick a crankbait that dives slightly deeper than the depth your fishing. If you go way deeper you will get hung up allot and will overwork the cover. So don't use a 20 ft diver it 10 feet of water or a 10 foot diver in 2 or 3 feet of water.
Also remember a crankbait can dive a foot or two shallower or deeper depending on
Line size
Line type
How high or low your rod is held
Speed of retreive
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Sun Aug 05, 2018 11:54 am
by bpettus2
Another thing about cranks is getting the right rod fine line between too much flex and not enough . And a good lower geared reel
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Tue Sep 18, 2018 3:33 pm
by BRONZEBACK32
I like mine to thump bottom and stay down while reeling.
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Tue Sep 18, 2018 9:16 pm
by wirinhar
Just to share about the crank bait thingy...
It works awesome every single time when the giant snakehead is in finicky/spooky mode.
Rapala DT10/14/20, Megabass 300, OSP Dr Blitz Max work very well here.
40lb braided line with 40lb fluoro carbon as a leader (more or less about 4 foot long)
Zillion SV TW (5.5:1)
Rapala DT10 (Fire Tiger)
St Croix Legend Tournament Big Cranker
Giant snakehead 14/16 lb
- seng3.jpg (242.25 KiB) Viewed 10882 times
Maybe they are different in US but this is how I have been fishing....
Hope it helps,
Regards,
WW
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2018 11:08 am
by mark poulson
wirinhar wrote:Just to share about the crank bait thingy...
It works awesome every single time when the giant snakehead is in finicky/spooky mode.
Rapala DT10/14/20, Megabass 300, OSP Dr Blitz Max work very well here.
40lb braided line with 40lb fluoro carbon as a leader (more or less about 4 foot long)
Zillion SV TW (5.5:1)
Rapala DT10 (Fire Tiger)
St Croix Legend Tournament Big Cranker
Giant snakehead 14/16 lb
seng3.jpg
Maybe they are different in US but this is how I have been fishing....
Hope it helps,
Regards,
WW
Wow! Congrats!!!
Re: Crankbait question
Posted: Sun Sep 23, 2018 8:39 am
by Jeffbro999
Awesome! Solid snakehead and nice setup!