Setting The Hook On Crankbaits

[Smiths.R]

I really don't fish cranks all that much. I'm usually on shore, and those treble hooks love to snag on stuff for me. I recently started fishing a more open area, and so I've been throwing big rattle traps. It's been a good thing. My problem is setting the hook on them. These bass love to get just one hook on the edge of their mouths, and they throw it all the time on me. When I set the hook on a plastic, I literally attempt to pull their spine out of their mouth. Should I be doing the same thing on a trap?

Thanks!

[smr913]

Sounds like the fish are short striking. Try a different color or change the size up and see if anything changes.

[tholmes]

A lot of people think that a bass "hooks itself" on a crank bait. While that happens occasionally, it's certainly not the norm. I've found that if you set the hook when you first feel the fish hit the bait, you'll often hook them very lightly or not at all. I wait until I feel the weight of the fish on the line, then set with a quick, upward sweep.

Tom

[hatrix]

I usually just turn my waist to set the hook. A lot of time I will set 1 handed so I don't apply to much pressure. I also crank with braid so you don't need much force to get a good hook set.

[Jake P]

A hard hookset fishing a t rig is necessary to drive the hook all the way through the lip. With treble hooks IMO it is totally different. Your not going to get all 3 through the lip. I used to swing for the fences and my hook up ratio was horrible.

try sweeping your rod to the side once you feel the weight of the fish. Keeping constant pressure on the fish is the, key since trebles are much easier to shake than a single hook that is all the way through the lip.

What action rod are you using? Moderate action is preferred by most because you get a parabolic bend and play the fish with the entire rod vs just the tip. Good luck!!

[Revo_Carrot Stix]

X2 on Packman's comment. Rod action should determine how you set the hook. Slamming a M parabolic rod back is a lot different that MXF rod. A quick sweep up or to the side does the job for me on squarebills (6'8" MHF w/ 20# flouro) and topwater plugs (6'8" MXF w/ 14# mono). I like parabolic 6'9" M w/ 12# flouro for mid cranks to smaller deep diving cranks where I'll sweep to the side and keep it there, allowing the rod to do most of the work.

[B@ssCrzy]

I will raise or sweep the rod with a short pump to set the hook after I know it is there, but it is my opinion that if you swing for the fences you are going to lose a lot of fish. It seems for me that most of my crank fish are not hooked in the perfect spot so if I swung hard I would lose them. I use a MM rod with mono so I can work the fish as gently as possible to the boat.

[steelslinger86]

As soon as I switched my cranking setup to a 7' MM rod, and started using a side sweep set, I noticed my hookup ratio increase greatly. I have even heard of guys holding their rod against their leg when cranking, to take some of the sensitivity away, so it slows their reaction even more, to allow for a fish to fully hit the crank, and get a solid hook set, versus the dangler.