In Need Of Crankbait Expertise

[shimmy]

So, i need to establish a better way of fishing crankbaits at 20 feet. I understand that thinner diameter line will get a crankbait deeper and longer casts will improve the diving ability, and i don't troll. The lake i fish is all rock bottom and it tears 10 pound line real easily (have to retie line every 3 casts). I try to upgrade to heavier line which prevents having to retie but cannot get deeper than 20 feet...I use a 7 foot rod and put it mostly in the water as i am cranking to get the desired depth also. So, what are some tricks you guys do to get line deeper in the 20 foot range without tearing up the line? So, i use DD22's and Manns depth plus series but they just can't get down to 20 unless i have 10-8 pound line which involves excessive retie. Those with experience in fishing 20 feet dealing with these circumstances, what are some things i can do?

Thanks,

Shimmy

[MarkH024]

Have you tried braid? Gets cranks down fast. You could fish with 30lb but you'd just have to adjust your hooksets. I prefer flouro myself but I rarely fish in waters to crank that deep. Just a thought.

[swarrin4]

Sinking cranks.

[quanjig]

Troy, I have a friend that swears he can get a crankbait to 20+ feet with braid and a flouro leader. Someone makes a braid with floro blended In so it sinks even more. He was getting that deep with he 6XD! Are these fish suspended or are they on the breaks at BDR? I have an idea that might work just as well as the deep diver. PM me!

[drew4779]

Fluro leader. It sinks and it seems to handle rocks better than mono.

[shimmy]

Thanks Jon, yeh i'll have to send details. I have thought about using lead strips on the bottom of cranks but have no experience with it and am unsure whether or not it hurts the action too much.

[papajoe222]

Because of age and joint pain, I'm really limited to short periods of deep cranking. I've been using braid with no leader the past few seasons. It's my belief that, even in clear water, line visibility at 18+ft. has little effect on strikes/hook-ups. Yes, the heavier/thicker line does dampen th lure's action, but there really is no way to determine if that is resulting in fewer or more strikes.

I learned years ago how to get a #7or#9 Rapala down deep and keep it just of the bottom at any depth................Carolina rig it.

I've gone back to doing this, but with other types of crankbaits rather than the thinner Rapala. My favorite is a shallow running crank. You can tie it on a short leader for easy casting, and the wide woble and high floating properties show fish something they rarely see down deep. Oh yea, you can use the heaviest line you have spooled for this, just go down to 8or10# on the leader so you don't kill the action.

the other great thing about this set-up is that it won't float up out of the fish's zone when paused or dead sticked.

[Bassn Blvd]

Just keep using your #10 mono, but splice on a piece of 2-3' #12-15 mono leader.

[Hi Salenity]

I have a question, what gear ratio reel should be used for deep cranking? I assume a 5.1 but does anyone feel that a 6.? gets there cranks deeper?

[Sam]

Tie lead around the front treble hook to get crank to go deeper. Mine is in a soft form and I can add it to a treble hook. Here is a site for a lead wrap. You may have to to go to Orvis or a fly fishing outlet to find the product.

http://www.feather-craft.com/wecs.php?store=feacraft&action=display&target=TH208

You can always consider adding a removable split shot to the front of the crank to give it more weight but not impair its action. You can also place the split shot on the front treble hook shaft.

Just two suggestions.

[Sam]

You have to reel fast to get the crank down to the desired depth and then crank back to you at the speed you select.

Sometimes a 7:1 ratio is best to get the bait to a deeper depth.

If you weight the crank you may be able to get it to the required depth faster with a 6:1 ratio.

Just understand that you will be losing a lot of area when you are reeling fast to get the crank to your fishing depth so you are not covering the entire length of your cast at the 20 foot level.

[Sam Fisher]

Because of age and joint pain, I'm really limited to short periods of deep cranking. I've been using braid with no leader the past few seasons. It's my belief that, even in clear water, line visibility at 18+ft. has little effect on strikes/hook-ups. Yes, the heavier/thicker line does dampen th lure's action, but there really is no way to determine if that is resulting in fewer or more strikes.

I learned years ago how to get a #7or#9 Rapala down deep and keep it just of the bottom at any depth................Carolina rig it.

I've gone back to doing this, but with other types of crankbaits rather than the thinner Rapala. My favorite is a shallow running crank. You can tie it on a short leader for easy casting, and the wide woble and high floating properties show fish something they rarely see down deep. Oh yea, you can use the heaviest line you have spooled for this, just go down to 8or10# on the leader so you don't kill the action.

the other great thing about this set-up is that it won't float up out of the fish's zone when paused or dead sticked.

2md

[NBR]

C-rig the crankbait!

[ww2farmer]

I can get a 6xd to hit 19-21 feet doing this: replace stock hooks with Mustad KVD #1 1x strong triple grips, put a storm suspend dot on the bill just ahead of the line tie, clip a 1/32, or 1/16th oz drop shot weight on the front hooks split ring, carefully shave the leading edge of the bill as much as you can without ruining the action or making the bill super weak, make loooonggggggg casts, a longer rod will help, I use a 7'10", as will a moderate action so you can really load the rod up and fling it out there. Use small diameter line, I use 20lb braid, and crank it down steady, not super slow, but not burning it either. A 5:1 reel is what I like, not so much for the speed I want to fish the bait, but because at the end of a long day of doing this you don't want your arms to feel like they are falling off. Once I get it down there I generaly reel fast to get a reaction out of them.

[A-Jay]

I can get a 6xd to hit 19-21 feet doing this: replace stock hooks with Mustad KVD #1 1x strong triple grips, put a storm suspend dot on the bill just ahead of the line tie, clip a 1/32, or 1/16th oz drop shot weight on the front hooks split ring, carefully shave the leading edge of the bill as much as you can without ruining the action or making the bill super weak, make loooonggggggg casts, a longer rod will help, I use a 7'10", as will a moderate action so you can really load the rod up and fling it out there. Use small diameter line, I use 20lb braid, and crank it down steady, not super slow, but not burning it either. A 5:1 reel is what I like, not so much for the speed I want to fish the bait, but because at the end of a long day of doing this you don't want your arms to feel like they are falling off. Once I get it down there I generally reel fast to get a reaction out of them.

Interesting idea with the drop shot weight - I'm betting tungsten is your choice, can I ask which shape is the weight ie tear drop, round, short pencil or does it matter ? I also have been getting better results with 20lb braid, tried 10lb - but it's a little tough to deal with on a casting reel, at least for me. The slower start to the retrieve with a bit faster cadence once you reach max depth is some what back wards from at least half of what you'll read about crankbait fishing; but it's the way to go IMO as well. An occasional pause (at depth of course) has worked for me on some days as well. You lose some depth as the plug floats back, but if you don't wait too long it seems to do more good than harm.

Of course, once I start clipping that drop shot weight to the bait there will be less of that floating up stuff . . . .

A-Jay