Easiest retrieving Deep Diver

[Bassmar]

Which crankbaits in the 16 to 20 foot range do you find the easiest to retrieve? By this I mean which do you feel offers the least resistance on the retrieve. Some require a winch to retrieve and leave you feeling as if your arm is about to drop off after a few hours!
Although I often use cranks I have not really used the 16ft+ divers much and would like to hear your opinions.

[falcon]

I don't feel there is one. Best bet is a flat sided or slender bodied crank for less resistance other than that a slow rolled spinnerbait or crawling a jig.

[jonahsdad]

I bought a heavier action CB rod and it has made retrieving easier for me!! I like Lucky Craft deep divers, as well as River2Sea.

[Toadslayer72]

I have to agree with the above. If you are feeling that fatigued then it seems like your set up is under powered and a heavy action rod will help a lot. Back when I started using Rapala DT16s I tried throwing them on a Croix Avid MH CB rod and that bait was just too much IMO. It didn't take long to realize that a heavier rod was what I needed and I went and got a Loomis 847....huge improvement.
I admit that I don't have much experience with baits from a variety on manufacturers that dive this deep. If I had to guess though, I'd say that most of them will feel pretty similar. I would like to hear what someone who has a lot of experience with the real deep divers has to say.

[soua0363]

I like to deep crank alot and the ones that I find that comes through the water with the least amount of resistance are the Rapala DT's, Bomber Fat Free, and Strike King Series 6. They all have one thing in common...a narrower bill which has less drag. I love my Norman DD's and SPRO Little John DD's but their bills are wider and more pronounced so they have more resistance and after a couple hours of cranking them my arms are dead tired. (Although catching a few fish here and there helps to alleviate this problem. )

My setup for deep cranking is a Tour KVD 7'-4" MH rod with a Quantum Energy 5:1 reel.

[Finnz922]

I would agree on the Series 6 as being easier to retrieve. What rod and reel are you using? That also can make a differnce, you could be using too light of a setup.

[SPAZ]

Jackall Muscle cranks are easy to crank.

[Steve Williams]

i fish a lot of deep cranks. big macs, dd22, 3/4oz hotlips, 30+, 20+, DT20, DT16, bomber fat frees, bandit 700, bandit 400, 6XD, 5XD and some older poes.... out of those the easiest pulling is the bandit 700 followed by the dt 16. the hardest is 30+, 20+, followed by the big mac and then the dd22. not much difference in the rest.

the thing about the hard pulling baits for me is that they come through cover better than the others and will kick out more at times. when fish are aggressive they can be hard to beat. sometimes, the fish want that tighter action though and the easier pulling baits will get it done.

i use a 4.9:1 to 5:1 reel and a good 7'6-8' Hvy powered cranking rod with the right action and find that i don't get nearly as fatigued as i did when i was throwing a 7' rod with higher speed reel. just going from a 23" retrieve to a 19-20" retrieve has made a difference. not as much when i went from a 26" retrieve but still a difference.

[Steve Williams]

I don't feel there is one. Best bet is a flat sided or slender bodied crank for less resistance other than that a slow rolled spinnerbait or crawling a jig.

i'll second that also... a 1oz football with 5-6" hula grub on it can cover a lot of water fast.