getting the crappies to bite?

[Pig_sticka]

i have fished a few lakes now where the crappies seem to shoot up right under my bait and just chill. then they shoot right back down or dissapear. how do i get those fish to bite. they have to be active to be headin way up to sniff the bait. i tried just pulling really slowly up and then the fish sometimes head up but usually stop after a few feet. what things can i do to get these fish. i had 5-7 crappies down there sometimes under the hole. no matter what i did they wouldn't hit. if they just sat there it would be one thing but these fish would be runnin up n down chasin my bait a bit but then just going away. i was using a small northland red white glow jig, looks like a small banana kinda(crappie jig) and a crappie minnow. any ideas out there, should i have been using waxies?

[Guest]

They are probably sucking in the bait and you are not detecting it.

Try setting the hook a split secnd after the signals meet. If that doesn't work, try setting the hook 2 seconds....do another second until you find the count in which they are inhaling.

This is what works for me.

PCG

[Guest]

Are you sure they are crappies?

[SpikeRoberts]

sticka,
I know from the metro forum you've been fishing Bald Eagle -- red #8 hooks and tiny crappie minnows with a split shot 18" above the hook were the only thing they bit on for me last week.

[Guest]

For now, forget anything I ever said about horizontal jig fishing...That works alot better in the summertime for Crappies...

Now, take a 1/16th oz Northland Jigging spoon, gold and orange in darker water, and plain colors in clear water....

Hook one white maggot on one treble hook and hook one red maggot on another.

Drop the spoon down, stop 3-4 feet above the fish...When they are halfway to your spoon, slowly start to lift it about 1-2 feet, coordinating your lift so that you are 2 feet higher then your original depth once the fish has net the bait. When they line up, or sometimes even mili-seconds before, set the hook...I dont care if you feel anything or not...Set the hook!

If you don't hook one, try a one count...a two count..etc like I said before until you find the right count.

If that doesn't work try a plain shank hook, crimp a sinker to it, and drop it down plain. As SOON as the signals meet, set the hook. If this doesn't work, put a single white maggot on the hook.

If this still doesn't work, go to a purple teardrop with a red and white maggot combo. Do the same thing with hook-set timing as before.

If they still don't bite, wait til dusk, and try step one over again....

If they still don't bite, get a case of Michelob Golden Light and get drunk.

PCG

[Pig_sticka]

might take my little brother out and see if he can jig me up a few walleyes. he is deadly for it at 8 years old. i usually put him on fish and then he just starts catching. so then if i stink like always he can atleast have a meal on the ice. pcg we gonna head out sometime so you can show me how to get em

[Guest]

I also like the purple color.PCG have you ever used just the minnow head. I have for perch did good but never for crappies.

If they follow the bait up just get yourself a long handled panfish net and sweep for the red mark.

[Guest]

I was going to say the fish you may be dealing with are Perch but you did mention it was after dark and they were suspended. If they are crappies, its a classic case of fish that are possibly pressured too much. Small jigs like a marmooska or a small rat finke tipped with maggots should trigger a strike. Crappies love jigs tipped with maggots. If you are using a good sensitive rod with 1-2 pound test and the jig is just heavy enough to keep your line straight, you should be able to detect the bite almost always. The rod tip is going to bounce or the line will go slack. You then know the bait is in the fishes mouth and you wont spook them trying to guess if they are on by looking at your flasher. If you think you may have a biter on, sloooowly left your rod up, any resistence on the rod and hammer it home. There no sense in spooking inactive fish with guessing when they are on. If you are using the proper equiptment you WILL detect the bite, fish inhale the bait, they dont come up and swim into it with their mouth open and back off it again.

If they still dont bite, pack up and move. Not all schools of fish are the same in the same lake.

Good Luck

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[Guest]

I fish outside...Fishing a light jig like that with ANY amount of wind is almost impossible if they are biting that light unless I use the VEX to tell me when they have eaten the bait.

It usually only takes 1 or 2 fish to find the count...after that I hook 9 out of 10.

I do know that what works for one person may not work for another though....

D-man has good advice...Give it a try.

PCG

[Guest]

Last night I had to wait to a count of 93 after the signals lined up on the vex and I still couldn't get them. So... I grabbed my 24"graphite rod that can actually feel any bite and I didn't miss another one. Having the right equipment is a good place to start when the bite is really tough.

Sticka, if you are getting fish to chase like you mentioned and they are not biting something is wrong. Fish that chase should bite occasionally. Glow Jigs and very small crappie minnow or a rat finke with a wax worm should work. Scott Steil

[Swill]

Sticka...I like to use a horizontal jig called the Mamooska. They are my favorite ice fishing jig. Great color, small hooks, weighted perfect so they rise and fall smooth, and the ends glow so they can be deadly at night with a few colored eurolarve on them.
They seem to work great for all panfish as long as you are not using minnows. If I put a crappie minnow on them there is not enought hook left to catch mr. crappie.

I think HT makes em and who knows maybe the make ones that can hold a minnow.

[Guest]

Yep...what does it say then that I catch limits of Crappies on the cheapest rod you can find at Fleet Farm for $3.99 and is stiff as a board....My reels are Quantum SS-1... they cost $19. I use an OLD FASHIONED FL-8...Doesn't have the seperation of the 18..yet I can STILL see the fish suck the lure in just the same as before the 18 came out...I like the fact that some of you say thats impossible...It makes me feel good that I know something some of you don't.

It seems we do more CRITISIZING of others ideas and advice then we do actually trying it.

My buddy and pro fishing partner uses hand made, old re-used summer rods in the winter...He catches plenty of fish...We must be doing something wrong.

I THOUGHT when I registered the idea was to SHARE IDEAS, SHARE ADVICE, and HELP ONE ANOTHER OUT.

Maybe I mis-understood that just as some of you mis-understand my drive to post on this forum.

Quit critisizing my advice. If you don't like it don't use it. Quit interfering with those that want to learn and try new things.

PCG

[This message has been edited by Pro Crappie Guide (edited 01-09-2003).]

[Mike Smith]

toiche ]--- Pcg. I for one spend less money on equipment and more on getting to the lakes. Equipment doesn't always put fish in the bucket, it is knowledge of the species and the willingness to learn, fl-8's are tools but understanding them and putting them to use is an art. We can all learn from each other. If you would like to see how great a fisherman or fisherperson you are then join Iceteam and fish with them at a Trap Attack.
You will learn more with an open mind then a closed one.

[Guest]

Crappie Guide You said you can see a fish suck a bait in on your Vexilar? What does it show? What do i look for?

[Johnny B]

Sticka,
Have you tried using a spring-bobber?
I find them to be an invaluable tool for detecting those light biting crappies.
I also try alternating jigging techniques: sometimes they will hit when you do the nervous quiver then pause. Other times they have to see the “painfully-slow” rise or fall to hit. Either way, the spring bobber will let me know what works.

The other thing that I have to do more often: when things do slow down try switching from Waxies to Euro-larva or to a minnow head. It’s difficult to determine which presentation they will prefer and sometimes I just get too locked in on one to go with another.

<)))><

[stoneeyes317]

My fiancee says I should tell you to get set up, and just after your line is in the water, say "Here, fishee fisheee!!" (This is what she does, and invariably she catches the largest fish of the day, OF COURSE @%$#^@&*)

eyes317

[Guest]

Watch your Vex..Don't look at your rod tip when the fish come up...

What I look for is a quiver on the top side of the signal. You want your gain adjusted in this case so that it is just barely reading red. I know most like to have it green...Maybe that would work good for others with this technique..But I have found this to be the best way for me.

Alot of it is timing and anticipation..But the Vex makes a big difference for me.

I preach alot about timing and counts...That works alot of the time...But sometimes the fish will sit and stare long and hard...That's where the Vex really shines. When I spot that little quiver, WHAM, I put it to em'.

Good luck with it.

PCG

[Guest]

Interesting. I use one of the Genz rods and like being able to feel the bite. I still can't see how you can see a fish suck in your bait on a vexy? I have seen the fluter you are talking about. Is that the fishes mouth moving up and down as it is biting your lure? When i see what your describing on my vex, a split second later i cant feel the fish on my rod. Have you ever tried a Genz pole? You should they are great.Maybe thats why you arent feeling the bite possibly because you are using a fiberglass fleet farm model? I have tried them and dont like them.

[Guest]

The quiver on the vex is the minnow getting sucked into crappies mouth. If you wait for the rod to move in my opinion it might be to late and you guys might be missing a few fish. I have done it both ways and have lost more minnow waiting for the twich .And I find it interesting when someone asks for advice,they need the $100 rods&reels or the fancy jigs to get fish. There is a certain technique for catching light biting panfish. Where not talking about when there are hot and the kids can get them.
My theory not to be taken to heart or start a fight>

[Guest]

I rely less on a "twitch"...you may feel a "twitch" as they spit it out...

As I stated before, I fish outside almost 100% of the time. With light biting panfish, ultra light tackle, and breezes catching my line there will be slack most likely...

What about curls in your line? Maybe the bite takes up just the slack of your line thats down 20-30 feet and never makes it to the rod...? Why rely soley on a twitch when you don't have to.

I do sometimes monitor my line in the winter for bites, but mainly I STARE at the Vex the entire time. It works for me.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

PCG

[Guest]

Guess i have to disagree with the high cost equipment. You get what you pay for. I do agree there are times when a $5 rod/reel combo will work. Heck on many lakes it will. But when you have very shy fish like old large bluegills quality graphite makes a diffence in catching fish and not catching fish. I think the problem here is we are comparing too many different experiences that we have had. Because one guy caugh what he thinks are nice panfish on his technique,doesnt bode well for other people or other lakes. You can not use one pattern on one lake and compare it to overall fishing. You wouldn't believe how many times someone has told me they caught a one pound sunfish and after i have seen the fish it turns out to be a half pound sunfish. The point is we all have different views on our past experiences. Keep it fun.

Just my 2 cents

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[Guest]

PCG, i see what your saying. Wind can be a factor, i fish outside 100% of the time as well. You do need a quality low pound test mono. The smaller the # test, the easier the jig will decend. I fish on my knees all the time. I get the tip of the rod about an inch above the water to solve the wind problem. I face the wind and keep the snow/slush on that side of the hole for a wind brake. And consider its not always windy.

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[Guest]

A 1# Bluegill is roughly 10 inches...about 10.25 to be exact in most cases.

A 1# Crappie is about 12".

PCG

[Guest]

Exactly what iam talking about. They may be in the lakes you have fished. Most 1 pound bluegills i have caught were over 11 inches. And i have caught 11 inch Crappies that were over 1 pound. So it all varies.

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[Pig_sticka]

you do get what you pay for. my first few years ice fishing i just used a jiggle stick and it worked great. a few tangles here n there but nothing too bad. cheaper walmart rods do break down fast though. i got myself an ugly stick combo, and an older lightning rod or 2. and one frabill sensative rod with i donno what kind of reel but it works good.

didn't fish the spot i wanted too cuz of these ice conditions but my brother did catch a walleye and i got skunked again. i can find where the fish are, all i have to do is catch them. someone help me my 8 year old brother outfishes me for walleyes everytime out. but i think he would outfish everyone, for some reason he really catches the fish when they are down there. i tried fishing like him and it didn't work lol. just give me time though, pretty soon ill have it down. didn't use any small baits tonight though cuz i just figured getting an eye or 2.