Crappies

[himjunkie13]

I posted about this same thing in the icefishing category and got some good info but also got directed here, I found some good sized crappies on my vexlar in about 17' of water. What would be some good plans techniques for catching them? Lures? Baits? Line? Bobber vs. No bobber? Tactics and techniques? I can't seem to catch them, they were about 10' under the ice and I tried minnows, waxies, and gulp! maggots. It was about 7 o'clock so maybe the lack of sun had something to do with it IDK.

[Dan Thiem]

I'm no expert by any means,(just ask C.T.), but I have seen instances when some people can see fish on their flasher and they think they have to jig for them.

A fish that's neutral or negative won't bite an aggressively jigged bait. Sometime a deadstick approach would be a good tactic. I know it's hard to not to try and entice them to bite. I've been there. But sometimes not moving the line is the best way to get a bite.

Read Toms article on the heartbeat hula. Good stuff!

[CrappieJohn]

Dan is pretty much on the money here, but the first thing you have to figure out is the mood of the fish. I generally start out with an aggressive lure like the Jigging Eye (1/16 ounce) or Jigging Demon(size 6) or perhaps the Go Devil in a 1/16. Two waxies max on the trebles. If I get action right away I stay with whatever I have on, but toy with different colors. I usually start the larger, more aggressive stuff in glow red, by the way.

If the fish show interest by coming into the bait but not hitting, I make one of two assumptions: they are sunfish/perch or their mood is nuetral.

Either way, I down size to a smaller jig with a horizontal presentation....one where the hook hangs on the line parallel to the bottom. Again, color has to be determined and the only way to find out what is on the preference list is to work thru your tackle until you get action. These baits should be assisted with some bait, smaller waxies, goldenrod grubs, eurolarva, spikes, mousies and even the scented stuff like power bait are some directions you can go. If the fish still show interest but are not picking up the offerings, go to the vertical presentation. A smaller ratso is a good choice here. Another good choisce is a teardrop from JB lures in the smallest size. And here is where some ultra thin plastic can pay huge dividends. Take a piece of the finesse plastic and nip off a third of its length from the heavy end. Instead of bait of any kind, just hook this thin plastic once like you would hang a waxie by hooking once just under the head.

Something I will do when I have to get into the last senario is to go to very natural, neutral colors. I'll dump the glow stuff and opt for jigheads with black, blue, dark green, purple or a gray colored paint. Or a plain head, no paint. The plastic will be a very transparent plactic and it will be of nuetral color as well. A smoke colored tube used for crappie fishing will provide you with a dozen or so pieces of super plastic when you chop the tentacles off and use them.

Again with reference to the last senario, you want to keep motiont to almost nothing. No hard jigging. No sudden lifting. Hold the rod as still as you can at one depth and just tap on the handle with your forefinger....this imparts the perfect action. And if you are not using a spring bobber, by all means install one and learn to trust what it tells you, not the flasher colors. The sprin will help give you the most intimate of action too.

When fish are visible to the flasher and don't seem to want to hit, you have to be willing to get into a bag of tricks. Some will work, some will not. The reality exists that sometimes nothing will get them to hit. Finding a pattern of elimination that works for you is an important part of being confident in your pursuits and how you approach each day. And we all know that every day is different. For me, I start out heavy and fast and then begin working down thru the ranks of my tackle and the different presentations until I hit pay dirt. When I score more than two fish using a certain bait/presentation, you can be sure that my two rods are quickly using that approach.... I might have two different colors of an identical bait working or I could have two very identcal baits going at the same time, but my goal is to stay busy and minor adjustments are made as needed.

[himjunkie13]

ok sounds like some good advice, is there anytime i should use a bobber (neutrally bouyant)?

I've got a couple of the really small daredevils (i think they're 1/32oz.) One is flashy and one is yellow w/ red checkers, tipped with a few waxies or gulp would these be an effective presentation?

I have horizontal jigs, teardrop jigs, tubes to cut the tales off and a few glow chartreuse miniplastics. I should be pretty well covered, yes? most of my jigs/spoons are florescent colors with gold backs but i have some glow jigs(plain/blue, plain/pink, plain/red) and some bland colors such as black or brown too.

[Corey Bechtold]

I can't tell you the last time I used a bobber for Ice fishing. Lately Berkley Power Tubes and Shrimpo's from Custom Jigs and Spins have been working for me. When it comes to Crappies I usually start with white. You gotta start somewhere. If you have tubes in your tackle box than don't be afraid to give them a try.

One of the most important keys to fishing a horizontal bait like the Power Tubes or Shrimpo's is keeping the bait horizontal. Make sure the knot is positioned right on the top of the jig eye. Hold the bait in the water and see how it moves. Unless the fish are on an absolute tear they tend to just look at a bait if it isn't positioned perfectly.

Experiment with the tips you got here and let us know how it goes.

Good luck,

Corey Bechtold

[CrappieJohn]

It sounds as though you have a good start with tackle. To be honest, I seldom hang a float on a line thru the ice anymore.....springs all the way, or super light rods.

Those daredevils....I use them for trout thru the ice with fair luck and also manage to grab a crappie or two with them in the lake with the trout. If you know the crappies are hot, you could go with these if you have colors that the fish want and they can be helped along by tipping with a waxie or two. The action may be more irradic than a typical jigging spoon so jigging these should be a little less aggressive.

[Dan Thiem]

Junkie, spring bobbers are definatley an advantage when fishing with finess. But, you asked when should a guy use a float.

I still use a float whenever I drown a minnow. Like you said, "neutral boyance". Ice buster bobbers are a great tool for suspending a crappie minnow hooked thru the shoulders.

[deeky]

I know I had trouble when I was first using a flasher. I would see blips at a certain depth, and then drop my lure to that depth and didn't catch nearly as much. When I would keep it above the fish, I had better luck. It looked like the fish were rising to the lure, but when I was able to see on a bright day, they were actually above where they were marked on the depthfinder. Because of the cone, they were off to the side, and marked deeper than they really were. I was usually fishing below them. If you are marking them at 17 feet, I would say don't be afraid to work your bait around the 15-16 foot mark.

Not sure if this is an issue for you, but I know it was one of those little hitches that threw me for a while.

[Quackaddict9]

Bobbers all the way, I have no vex... I'm no serious fishermen but I always use northland tackle jigs, and some Genz jigs along crappie minnows or fatheads and do pretty well but sometimes these sneaky crappies are suspended way up.. so a vexilar will be a good use for me. Usually I'm out chatting with my friends, eating, drinking beverages but I can see what Crappie Tom is saying, and thats something new I've learned for the future. Thanks, might have to give a spring rod a try when i have a Vex in a few months. Good Luck everyone.