Lets talk Crankbaits...

[Deitz Dittrich]

There has been a lot of talk on the boards lately about crankbait rods and reels.. But little about the crankbaits themsleves.

So lets talk.. I have my opinions, but will leave them out of the post for a while.. I woud like to hear about how and why you choose a paticular crankbait.. and what if any modifications do you do to them?

So,

Why do you choose a crankbait?

-Is it your fave?

-lucky color?

-depth..

and how many true crankbait rod/reel set ups do you have..

1 have 4 rod/reels that are pretty much only crankbait rods and reels...

[ocf]

rapala floating minnow in black/silver 2-5' deep is my money maker, i dont have a crank rod, i have 1 stratus sgt 20 reel that i use for everything and an 20 year old rod

[slopmaster]

my favorite crankbait would have to be a #5 shallow diving shad rap in perch that is my go to crankbait like it for dock fishing

[bucketmouth64]

Lately it's been a white crank, bandit and rapala, with red treble hook. Ever since I have been replacing the forward treble hook on my cranks most of my hits have been on that red hook. Which has led to better hookups because fish has a mouth full of treble hooks. I love cranking for bass.

[ocf]

cranking is awesome, happy birthday bucketmouth64

[Central Bassman]

Hey Bucketmouth64, happy birthday first off... But seen u like to crank then your the man i want to talk to. I dont know much about cranking it is something that i want ot learn alot more about so i can do it. I do alot of spinnerbaits so, casting isnt a problem but just any advise about cranking would be nice. and if anyone esle has any that would be SWEET. Thank Guys!!!!

[Deitz Dittrich]

CB - I too am excited to see the reply to this post. I fish a lot of crankbaits. I think its a very fun way to fish, although many call it stupid fishing... I think there is a lot to choosing the right lure for the right application.. I have well over 100 crankbaits.. My wife asked me how much $$$ I have invested in crankbaits the other day... my reply?... "you don't want to know"....

Crankbaits have many shapes(which in my opinion is very important) colors, sizes(again importnat), diving depths, sounds..ect.. and it can be quite overwelming! But rewarding!

[ocf]

yep i have heard it can be

[st.crioxfishin]

In the spring I like to throw a rattle trap, and a manns 1-minus. In the summer I like a 7ft diving storm wiggle wart. And In the fall I like a blue/chart DT-10.

I don't throw crankbaits a whole lot and thats one thing I need to get better at. I still don't have a lot of confidence in cranks, I think a solid day on the water with crankbaits would get me using them more, and help me to become a more versatile angler.

I'm very interested in what others have to say.

oh yeah and I do have one crankbait rod, so its a start

[river rat316]

Cranking is one of my favorite way to catch green fish... well when there not taking a frog.... I dont really have a go to, it all depends on conditions and depth, and what there feeding on. I usually like to maintain bottom contact or be hitting the tops of weeds (easier said then done) I also like bright colored cranks (I dont fish much clear water) Spring Craw is probably my favorite color its chartruese with a brown craw pattern back. I alsolike square lipped cranks in wood cover, The bomber square a is a killer in wood cover and in the 2 years Ive been throwin em Ive only lost one to a snag, and you can throw em in real nasty areas! My crankbait collection is growing it now spans 3 boxes, I have em split into deep summer divers, deep and shallow coldwater (flatter) cranks, and shallow and square summer cranks...... well I guess 4 cause I got minnow or jerkbait baits in a different box. Right now I have 1 truely dedicated Crankbait rod and I use my 5'6" pistol grip rod for tossing square lips into cover, and it works like a charm! I still try not to throw cranks for smallies, cause you end up losing alot more with there quick explosive bursts, and leaps, but sometimes its all they want and your stuck losing a few!

[Stratosman]

I like crankin typically midsummer bass holding on deeper weed edges, points and midlake humps. It's no secret that mid-summer bass like to school up on deeper structure and working parallel to the weed edges and throwing over the tops of bars, points and sunken islands will often expose these schools and multiple catches in certian areas is quite commom.

I like a variety of cranks dependant on water clarity, forage type and obviously depth. I love the DT series by rapala and if I had to choose only one type, this would be the one. But I always have a selection of flat A's at hand, as well as some shallow runners for the tops of weed flats. So many possibilties and applications. Lipless crankbaits are my favorite fall search lure and I can attribute many sucessful days on the water to a shad or blue/chrome lipless.

I don't see this as stupid fishing any more than any other presentation... you still have to know where to find the fish, and location is the number one factor know matter what the presentation.

Many other factors and tidbits that I am sure will surface as this thread continues.

[OnTheWater]

If there is one crank that I could not do without, it would have to be the Rapala DT-6 in the Sunfish pattern. It is an awesome bait when the pannies are stacked up on a wind-blown shore, and can produce when nothing else does.

[dan2957]

Great topic!

The color I use depends on where I am fishing. When I first moved to Minnesota from Texas I had alot of shad color cranks. I liked whites, chartruse, grays, orange. Now that I have fished up here for the past four years I really like green color cranks. Anything in Baby Bass and perch color seem to work the best. I am a big fan of the Storm Mid Wart and the Rapala DT series. Excaliber cranks also work for me. Bandits are probably my favorites but I keep banging them off trees, bridges, boat motors. Bandits don't seem to hold up too well when you smack them off hard things, LOL.

I do the unthinkable to my cranks, I spray paint them. I do this because I can not always find the colors I am looking for up here. Maybe I'll post a picture of my favorite creation later.

SluggoMaster and I fished a tourney on Kentucky Lake in Kentucky last October and white Bandit cranks worked very well. The key to catching the fish down there was to plow the bottom of the lake. I find the best way to catch fish here is the tick the tops of the weeds.

In the fall when the water cools I add suspened strips to my cranks. This makes the crank suspend in place for up to 30 seconds at a time. This can put a lot of fish in the boat.

Fish count 227 CPTA 4.28

[Slyster]

I am so weak on crankbaits.. since I focus too much on plastics.. today I tried a few darker colors of DT5 cranks figuring this rides above the weeds, but gets down. That's all I know! I probably own 10 total.. mainly DT5 or so and a few rattling types.

I'll be keeping my eye on THIS thread! Tx D

[Bullwinkle]

I don't own a ton of cranks but my favorite as of late has been the DT10 in Firetiger (I like it's depth and action). I also have used Rattletraps several times lately but I have noticed that I tend to pick up a lot of pike on them. Is this a common problem? I do have a dedicated crankbait rod - a Guide Series eglass cranking set up with a 5.1 Quantum spooled with 20lb powerpro. Love the post. Hope to pick up some other ideas as to other cranks to purchase.

[bucketmouth64]

Thanks for the b-day wishes. Was out on the water with my son and we caught about 25 bass cranking. I usually follow a weedline when cranking. I throw parallel to it and I also throw on top of the weeds and rip the crank thru. I try to stay less than 10 feet of water. Weeds have been about 3-7 feet below the surface, sometimes closer. I just change lures according to how deep they dive. In the fall I usually use one that has some kind of metallic coloring like chrome. You will get northerns to hit often using cranks. When using cranks you need to experiment with your retrieve. Fast or slow retrieve, sometimes you need to add a pause.

[rippinlips]

I would have to say the brown crawfish wiggle wart is my favorite crank. It's hard for me to throw those brighter color cranks because I just don't see what they match for bait fish or food. What are your views on this. What is the easiest way to tick the top of the weeds if your in 12' of water and the weeds are 7' to 8' off the bottom. What also goes along with that is mono verses braid and line weight to get the depth you want.

[jmikes]

In the past I have used DT's and Bandits/Bagley's for summer crankin. I picked up a selection of Norman baits earlier this spring and have found them to be very productive (especially deep little N). I believe they have a slightly tightier wobble that seems to be working. As for colors shiner patterns followed by sunfish and baby bass

[TurnUpTheFishing]

I used to crank much more. Now I usually find myself looking for the right plastic/rig to fish an area. I still use cranks though especially to search out new waters and when fall rolls around.

When I choose cranks I consider the basic things most do, depth, cover and water clarity.

First I consider depth. How deep is it? How high are the weeds (if any at all)? Are their any baitfish suspending in the water column?

Next I consider color. Darker waters on bright days I use bright obnoxius colors like chartreuss and firetiger. Dark water dark days I may still use those listed above but also like dark solid colors such as blacks and browns. On clear water I like to use natural colors. I especially like perch but silver and golds get used often.

When choosing a crank for dark waters I like to have it rattle and have a little more bulk to it. On clear waters sight is more important so I dont concern myself with rattles.

If Im fishing rocks and wood Ill try to use square or coffin billed cranks (I like Mann's baby -4 and the DT7). In weeds the rounded bills are better.

When fishing cold water (55 and below), which isnt often for me, I like to start thinking about suspending baits like the xrap, pointer and rogue. These I usually throw with lighter line on spinning rods.

For most my cranking needs I like to use 10-12 lb. mono for the added stretch since I use a MH rod. If I were to use a braid line I would probably get a glass rod since its more foregiving when fighting a fish. for reels I like to use gear ratios around 5:1.

[Deitz Dittrich]

Very good post Turn Up!

[FRESHWATER PETIE]

So many to choose from, so little time!

In recent years there has been alot of new colors,bodies,rattle,deep,shallow,lipless, and so on and so on. Sometimes I like to look in the back of my tackle box and bring out a oldie and let er' buck!!

[Ray Esboldt]

For me, cranks are primarily a contact lure. I want a crank that will run deep enough to hit weeds, or rocks, or logs, or just the bottom. I generally don't just wing them in the free and clear. The only time I'll do that is when covering water on the outside of a point.

My favorite crank is any version of Storm's Wiggle Wart. I like natural colors in any crank - dark green, dark red, black and silver. I also like Rapala DT series, old Bagley DB2s, and even the old Mann's Deep Hog and Pig.

One thing I have found about a crank over the years is that they are a good tool for starting or restarting a bite. Everyone's been on a school that died out after a half dozen fish, right? Leave them alone for 15 minutes and come back after them with a crank. If you can get a fish to eat it or even chase it to the boat, that can restart the school.

[Central Bassman]

Great post guys.. This will be alot of help for myself and everyone esle. Keep it up guys. THANKS

[feeshing]

If i use a crankbait it is usually a Rapala DT. They work for bass and a lot of other species.

[Deitz Dittrich]

Ok.. my turn to chime in...

Crankbaits come in many sizes and colors and depths that they run. Some are flatter than others, some have the line tie on the bait themselves, some have the line tie on the lip. Some have rattles, some have groves. Some have round lips, some square. All will affect the way the lure runs,and its ability to catch fish.

When the summer is warmest, I find it best to choose a crankbait with the widest wobble. These are usually the roundest or fattest crankbaits. When water is cooler or cold front conditions, a tight wobble seems to catch more fish(flatter sided crankbaits). In stained water wider wobble crankbaits in my opinion will catch more fish as they put off the most vibration, while in clear water a tighter wobble seem to catch more fish as they put off more flash.

Diving depth is crucial, if your lure does not come in contact with something, your not giving yourself the best chance to catch a fish. Each cast should either hit a rock, sand, wood or have the chance to get hung up in a weed.

Colors, I seem to follow my same thought as I do to choose a color of plastic. Dark days, darker crank, bright days brighter crank. Clear water= natural bait. Stained water bright colord bait.

I prefer my baits to not have rattles in clear water and tough conditions. Otherwise rattles seem ok. In stained water I prefer rattle baits to only have 1 large rattle inside rather than a lot of rattles. The one big rattle puts off more vibration than alot of smaller ones.

As for modifications.. I will use lead wire to wrap around the front treb to get them to dive deeper at times or suspend strips. But my major change I make to them is to add a dressed treble to the rear hook. Expecially in clear water. A dresseed treble is what is usually on the back of a pop-r. If someone needs a pict, I can do that...

So, that is how I tend to choose my cranks.