Cranking for LargeMouth's

[Mr Special]

I'm still new to this Bassin thing, only about a season and a half into it. But how many people here use crankbaits for largemouth bass? I however can't seem to buy a bite with one. I can run a crank over a spot and nothing. Pick up finesse rig and catch a fish, HELP. When, where, and how would be much appreicated.

Thanks

IronMike can ya help???j/k

[ironmike]

I have a suggestion. Leave the cranks at home and use what works for you. That is what I have come to do. I can't catch fish on cranks either. Except for Jerk Baits. I could crank my reel til it was worn out and get nothing. David Fritts could maybe help you. I know you don't want to throw it out and reel it in. You want to stop your retrieve at times and bump the lure off weeds and sticks or whatever the cover is. It is an art that I am yet to master. More tournaments are one on soft plastics than anything else so stick with that. Screw the cranks.

[Mr Special]

Wow, 95 cranks x $5 a piece that's like $500 with tax. But yes i like crankbaits, and I used them with great succes for smallies, walleye, saugers, pike, muskie, whitebass, even some dogfish and cats at times. But for some reason I've never been able to catch a Largemouth. Now I'm armed with new and improved info so those hogs better watch out. Oh what make do you guys prefer? I'm a big Rapala fan and just bought some of those DT series ones. Can't wait till opener.

Thanks again everyone

[Deitz Dittrich]

The DT series are good cranks... I like Bandits, Poe's, Fat Free shads, Yo Zuri, Lucky Craft... One of my fave are tennisee toughy or Tennisee Killer.. they are a flat sided cedar crank...

[dan sexton]

Can I throw my hat in the ring?

Crankbaits are Big Fish baits! If you don't believe me watch Bassmasters or FLW events on the TV. One or all of the top 10 guys are throwing them.

20 years ago I started out fishing the Bagley deep divers & Poe 400 divers and thats all I fished in the lakes to catch awesome limits.

The Tackle "I" prefer:

1)8lb (green) P-Line
2)any multi-ball bearing reel (6.3:1 ratio)You can always slow the retrieve (which I do for max depth)
3)6-1/2' to 7' medium rod (glass is best) because with graphite or fiberglass you feel the bite to early and you set to fast. Lamiglass offers nice glass crank rods.
4)most often times I change the stock hooks with Gammy's, Owner or anything but stock..usually one size bigger.

Bait selection (agian, my preferance):

1)Shallow water with grass wood and rock situation
a)Number 1 bait choice is the Speed Trap from Luhr Jensen. White, Red Craw and Silver w/blue back colors. I throw this bait to the bank and rip it threw the weeds and bump the rocks and stumps. I use 50# power pro for this though! For off shore humps I use 8# P-Line.

2)Mid depth choices would be:

a)post-spawn suspended bass are easier to catch on cranks as well. I use 8# with 1/2 oz "Fat Free Shad" in the blue and chartruese color on every main lake point or points adjacent to deep water. Don't be afraid to make multiple casts (15 to 25) to the middle of the lake off these points either.

Last year I was catching suspended bass in 80' to 100' by just fan casting points over deep water. These fish would suspend in 10' to 15' chasing schools of bait.

Points are the Location, location, location from my experience with cranks for the most part. A point can be the end of a weed line, a tip of an island hump, or the end of a lay down tree. This is where the fish will set up to feed.....Everyday is a different pattern.

Your Set...
Dan

[Ray Esboldt]

Exude,

I'll agree with you. I fish them mindless in the sense that I don't watch the line or need to detect a super light bite. I do think about where I'm going to throw them.

Sure, I've had days where I have hammered fish on them. And, I have caught some King-Kongs on them.

But, I really like them as the "oops, I just tipped the hand of the rest of the school" bait. Huh? Does that make any sense?

And, I agree 100% that for every 10 I buy, one is a consistent fish bagger. And that includes having two that are the same size, same color. One sticks fish, the other gets left in someone elses boat.

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Ray Esboldt

Catch-N Tackle
MarCum
Stone Legacy

[Deitz Dittrich]

Most people who have problems with crankbaits are not fishing them properly. They can be an awesome bait from the time season opens till we get that crust of ice back on our lakes.

The biggest problem people have with crankbaits is not choosing the correct one. They just pick one that looks good and start to throw it. Its a lot more complicated than that. A crankbait is a tool, and it needs to match the conditions that you are fishing. If the fish are in 10 feet of water and you are throwing a crankbait that only runs 5 feet deep, its not going to catch to many fish.

When people fish other baits they cast to an object and fish that object. With crankbaits they often fan cast an area. You need to realise that you need to be just as accurate with your casts with a crank bait.. and then some... Realise what piece of structure or cover you are trying to fish, figure on the depth the fish are at and then figure the ammount of time its going to take for that crankbait to reach that depth, THAT IS THE DISTANCE YOU NEED TO CAST PAST THE OBJECT YOU ARE TRYING TO FISH!

Also, retrieve speed is very important.. the colder the water the slower you should retrieve, dont be afraid to varry your retrieve...

And lastly, crankbaits have a lot of different actions.. some have tight wobbles, some have wide wobbles... Usually a tighter wobble is more effective in colder water(spring,fall) and wide wobbles works better in the summer hotter water period.

again, the only season when cranks are affective is when there is ice on the lakes...understand what each one does and how deep it runs with the line your usuing. If you have access to a swimming pool thats great because you can then test these baits.. .otherwise find a clear lake and test them that way...

Good luck! Dont give up on these fish catching machines!!!!

[locolocal]

Hey Mr. Special-
Couple of thoughts:
*Try cranking on outside or inside weed edges, tops of submerged veg, points and mid lake structure.
*Cranking is primarily used in the spring time to prospect for fish.
*Use a color pattern that mimicks the forage of the lake your fishing (craw, firetiger, shad are good options for most lakes in MN, decision depends on water clarity).
*Cranking generally does yield bigger fish, just not as many.
*In the spring, a good place to start is to fish your cranks in 6-12 feet of water near the above mentioned structure.

I believe you handicap yourself by being a single dimensional angler. Anyone who prescribes to this practice would certainly be the kind of golfer who'd use their driver on the putting green. However many aspects of bass fishing you decide to master, just depends on how seriously you want to improve your game.

[bassin]

Exude Dude gave a lot of great advice. I can add a few more points. Your crankboait needs to contact cover to be most affective. If your fishing weeds your bait needs to run deep enough to tip the tops of the weeds. Fishing weeds won't be a smooth as pulling a spinnerbait through it. You end up cranking until the baits gets hung up a little on the weeds then you rip it off with a quick snap of the rod. Thats when you will get most of your strikes, right after the bait breaks free of the weeds. I like to use power pro when fishing weeds as it allows you to snap the bait free without the line stretching. The down fall of that is you need to have a loose drag becasue its easier for the fish to pull free with no line stretch. When fishing rocks you need a crankbait that will run deep enough to reach the bottom. If your only in 6ft and its all rocks don't be afraid to through a bait that runs much deeper than 6ft. The bass love it when that bait is running into everything on the bottom. The shape of the bill makes a big difference when fishing rocks. A rounded bill will make the bait just roll off the rocks. A square bill, or better yet a bill with angled edges will bounce more off a rock which will draw more strikes. Most importantly though it needs to contact cover to catch fish.

[Ray Esboldt]

Special,

I wouldn't leave them at home. No way. They catch bass and are worth fishing. No ifs, ands, or buts.

I've never considered a crank bait a "load the boat" bait on lakes (on rivers, it's one of the first things I pick up). I use cranks to comb unknown water quickly or as a school locator.

Cranks can give you a pretty fair amount of information quickly. Where's the weedline? What kind of weeds are there? Are the fish really wound up today (i.e. one jumped on it on the first turn of the handle)? Pretty basic info, but easy to acquire with about 6 pitches of a crank.

Cranks are also incredibly diverse. There's a model for every depth; a color for any situation; a body style to match the hatch; and so on. Of course, you end up carrying quite a few if you're into them, and they take up a ton of room.

As mentioned, I like cranks for covering large chunks of water quickly. Often times, I'll catch a fish, put the crank down, and start pitching a jigworm to investigate a potential school. The crank served its purpose, find the school.

I really like them in the wind. You can get away with cranking in areas that can't be fished with other baits in high winds.

Bring them with and use them where it makes sense. They are a pretty easy (and mindless) bait to fish. I think you're cheating yourself out of a couple fish without them.

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Ray Esboldt

Catch-N Tackle
MarCum
Stone Legacy

[Deitz Dittrich]

Write this day down... Soooo Sorry bud.. but for one the first times ever I am going to respectfully disagree with My good friend Ray Esboldt... Work with me here Ray..This is done with the most respect...

I think that crankbaits ARE boat loaders, I have had some of my best days fishing with cranks, and have won tounaments without picking up a single other bait other than a crankbait... and not small fish either. I also think that fishing crankbaits(well) are one of the hardest baits in the box. Fishing a crankbait mindlessly is what turns people away from fishing them, fishing them well and learning them, looking for the magic bait. Well thats a whole different ball of wax. I can go threw about 10 crankbaits that are EXACT, and only a couple of them will be the fish catching machine that I want it to be. Understanding which these are... is the key to crankbaiting...

The worst part about crankbaiting is the cost... Most of them arent cheep, and to be fully rigged you need a lot of them, If you asked me how many crankbaits I have, I couldnt even guess... I know I bought 70 last fall, and just bought 25 more last week...

[EBass]

I always have a crankbait rod ready. I just like the feel of them when reeling in. Then you get that big SMACK and fish on. Unless it's a 6lb bass on Medicine that jumps 4 feet out of the water then tosses the baby 4 minus. That was a sad moment, but I got a nice walter about 5 mins after that Woo!

We'll get on using cranks this year, well when you have time to go that is!

[bucketmouth64]

I always have cranks ready to go. My favorite colors are firetiger and crawfish. I've had some of my best days using cranks. I don't use the expensive stuff. I think the most I pay is $2.99 or less whether from BPS or Gander. My favorite brands are Storm and Mann's Razorbacks.