Squarebill Help?

[BassAddict1911]

I'm fairly new to squarebill cranking, but i've heard its the bomb this time of year. Ive done some reading on them, and I know their primarily for deflecting off structure, but what is the best retrieve to accomplish this?

[MarkH024]

Straight retrieve and when it deflects give your rod a quick snap. You want to crash it off cover. Probably one of the most fun ways to fish in my opinion.

[BassAddict1911]

ok, i gotcha. does it get hung up often this way though?

[flyfisher]

It is not as much of a type of retrieve as it is an area to throw them.  They work very well in woody areas and rarely get hung up.  The design of the bait with a square bill basically rocks the bait straight up and over any cover where a rounded bill tends to slip off to the side and get hung more frequently.

 

I just started throwing them last year and it is definitely a fun way to fish and can produce.  Don't be scared to throw it into some pretty thick woody cover and hold on tight because when they hit is usually is pretty hard.

[gripnrip]

I asked the square bill guru himself at the Bassmaster Classic expo here recently.  Mr. Rick Clunn told me in his opinion to use a 6:3:1 reel and burn it as fast as you can.  If you hit cover let it pause then start reeling again. If that didn't work vary your retrieve until you figure it out. I personally use a 6'10" rod around docks.  Any other time I use a 7'4" rod when I'm not in around casting obstacles. 

 

I have read articles that had Kevin Short quoted as saying to reel or  guide your cranks into cover.  When it hits the cover pause.   He wants his cranks to do a 180.  He wants the bait to possibly turn around and face the attacker.  

[ww2farmer]

 While I prefer to have some form of cover to run it in to or rip it out of, If you don't have any cover to bang them off of, a stop...go...twitch-n-rip retrieve can be very effective as well. Or any retrieve that makes them act erratic. Stopping them and throwing slack back to the bait to make it turn to one side, or completely backwards has been a favorite tactic of mine for years, and produced some crushing strikes, often some real hogs. I have fished a lot of different squarebills , and some.........well most.....don't do that very well, but there are some that do, and I am not talking on which ones do or don't, play with them and find out. I will say that often the same baits, from the same brands don't often do it consistently, I mark the ones that I can get to do it with a green dot on the bill, and they quickly get put away if the toothies are out playing. And often just burning one as fast as you can reel, even if you don't bang it into anything, or make it erratic can generate bites, especially in super clear water. 

[motodmast]

not to hijack your post, but there's no point in me making a new one that's so similar to yours... but do you think a 7' medium/mod-fast Abu Garcia Vendetta would be a good rod for throwing squarebills?

[flyfisher]

not to hijack your post, but there's no point in me making a new one that's so similar to yours... but do you think a 7' medium/mod-fast Abu Garcia Vendetta would be a good rod for throwing squarebills?

I am not a fan of the moderate action rods for square bills myself.  it works but i have been using a 6'8" MHF rod and that seems to do a really good job.

[ww2farmer]

not to hijack your post, but there's no point in me making a new one that's so similar to yours... but do you think a 7' medium/mod-fast Abu Garcia Vendetta would be a good rod for throwing squarebills?

 If I were an Abu guy, I think that would be darn near ideal. For years I tossed my squarebills on fast action rods, but ever since I switched to using no stretch braid with them, I have leaned to a more moderate action. I get the max depth out of the baits with the small diameter braid, can feel everything it bumps into,  and still have the ability to rip free from cover with the low stretch line, but have all the benefits of a softer rod once the fish is hooked and going stupid with a face full or trebles.

[The Young Gun]

I asked the square bill guru himself at the Bassmaster Classic expo here recently. Mr. Rick Clunn told me in his opinion to use a 6:3:1 reel and burn it as fast as you can. If you hit cover let it pause then start reeling again. If that didn't work vary your retrieve until you figure it out. I personally use a 6'10" rod around docks. Any other time I use a 7'4" rod when I'm not in around casting obstacles.

I have read articles that had Kevin Short quoted as saying to reel or guide your cranks into cover. When it hits the cover pause. He wants his cranks to do a 180. He wants the bait to possibly turn around and face the attacker.

I've never thrown crankbaits but I always see crankbait reels like 5.1:1 ratios, isn't a 6.3:1 when burned fast almost to fast? Or is that the best way to go? I have a 6.3 reel I'd love to use for cranks I just thought it was to "high speed"

[ww2farmer]

I've never thrown crankbaits but I always see crankbait reels like 5.1:1 ratios, isn't a 6.3:1 when burned fast almost to fast? Or is that the best way to go? I have a 6.3 reel I'd love to use for cranks I just thought it was to "high speed"

 There is no such thing as too fast, when they want it they can chase it down faster than you will ever be humanly possible to reel. Try burning a bait with a 5:1 reel all day, and you'll want to go back and slap the doctor that yanked you out of your mother. 6.something to :1 is the perfect ratio for squarbills, and at times I wish I had a 7:1 on that rod. 90% of the reason people recommend 5:1 reels for cranking is to tame the torque of a big, hard pulling bait. Squarebills just don't pull that hard, and if you need to slow it down.............reel slower. Besides most of todays modern reels with there XL main gears, make it easy to pull even big baits on the higher ratios.

[iabass8]

Generally the lower gear ratios are catered towards deep cranking. Shallow or mid depth cranking with a 6:3-4 reel is ideal as burning it wont wear you out and slowing down isnt a crawl.

[The Young Gun]

There is no such thing as too fast, when they want it they can chase it down faster than you will ever be humanly possible to reel. Try burning a bait with a 5:1 reel all day, and you'll want to go back and slap the doctor that yanked you out of your mother. 6.something to :1 is the perfect ratio for squarbills, and at times I wish I had a 7:1 on that rod. 90% of the reason people recommend 5:1 reels for cranking is to tame the torque of a big, hard pulling bait. Squarebills just don't pull that hard, and if you need to slow it down.............reel slower. Besides most of todays modern reels with there XL main gears, make it easy to pull even big baits on the higher ratios.

Thanks for the info! I love bass resource for things like this.. So for throwing KVD 1.5's and bomber square A's I should have no problem chucking and winding that 6.3:1? Im pretty excited to go out and try it

[gripnrip]

I've never thrown crankbaits but I always see crankbait reels like 5.1:1 ratios, isn't a 6.3:1 when burned fast almost to fast? Or is that the best way to go? I have a 6.3 reel I'd love to use for cranks I just thought it was to "high speed"

ww2farmer nailed it.  I have 6:3:1 reels I use for shallow to say . . . .6-8 ft divers.  Anything deeper usually gets the 5:2:1 simply to be easier on the ol' arms and shoulders while doing so. 

[ww2farmer]

Thanks for the info! I love bass resource for things like this.. So for throwing KVD 1.5's and bomber square A's I should have no problem chucking and winding that 6.3:1? Im pretty excited to go out and try it

Crank away with what you got, you have what you need.

[Tuckahoe Joe]

Thanks for the info! I love bass resource for things like this.. So for throwing KVD 1.5's and bomber square A's I should have no problem chucking and winding that 6.3:1? Im pretty excited to go out and try it

I do exactly this.  Same baits, same gear ratio.  All day long.

 

And X's 2 on erratic retrieves if there's no cover to bang off of.

[Comfortably Numb]

I have been fishing them like jerkbaits this spring with good results.

[Avalonjohn44]

not to hijack your post, but there's no point in me making a new one that's so similar to yours... but do you think a 7' medium/mod-fast Abu Garcia Vendetta would be a good rod for throwing squarebills?

 

It will work fine.  I use a 7 foot Med/Fast Abu Veritas, almost the same rod as the vendetta, and have no trouble with hookups. I have never bought into the hype of using a 'wet noodle' type rod when fishing cranks.  I use the Veritas for all of my cranking and it has not let me down. I miss a fish or two, but every time I do, it is because of a mistake I made, not because of the action of the rod.  Good Luck!

[motodmast]

It will work fine.  I use a 7 foot Med/Fast Abu Veritas, almost the same rod as the vendetta, and have no trouble with hookups. I have never bought into the hype of using a 'wet noodle' type rod when fishing cranks.  I use the Veritas for all of my cranking and it has not let me down. I miss a fish or two, but every time I do, it is because of a mistake I made, not because of the action of the rod.  Good Luck!

 

awesome thats just what i wanted to hear, thanks!

[flyfisher]

i think another key to crankbait fishing no matter what type of action rod you have, is having really sticky sharp hooks.  Alot of times a bass may swipe at a bait or have a near miss and having extra sharp hooks helps in those cases.  It also enables you to not make a huge hookset which can tear a hook out of their mouth if not hooked well.

[mnbassman23]

 While I prefer to have some form of cover to run it in to or rip it out of, If you don't have any cover to bang them off of, a stop...go...twitch-n-rip retrieve can be very effective as well. Or any retrieve that makes them act erratic. Stopping them and throwing slack back to the bait to make it turn to one side, or completely backwards has been a favorite tactic of mine for years, and produced some crushing strikes, often some real hogs. 

This is great advice.

 

You read so many articles that say you "HAVE" to have cover to run a crankbait into for it to be effective, be it wood, docks, rocks, sandy bottom, etc.. While it is true bouncing them off cover does create strikes and is a great technique, but it is not needed for them to be effective. Using a retrieve that ww2farmer described will produce fish with or without cover near by. 

[mjseverson24]

I have been fishing squarebills for years I use them them anytime I am searching for active fish in shallow water as long as it is not too thick of grass. I usually use an irratic retreve but it depends on the day sometimes the fish want it slowrolled, sometimes they want it twitched and jerked, sometimes they want it burned. one of my favorite way of fishing them is in the weeds, let it get hung up and try a rip and stop approach some of my biggest bass of the year come when I am hung up on some weeds. I would suggest using a more parabolic rod for these, something that is easy to cast and not too much power. I also fish them on floro 12 lb with a 30 lb floro leader (too many pike in the north). I use the skeet 7' s-glass cranking rod it works great for this. But as the others have said use what you got success is 90% fisherman 10% gear. JMO

 

Mitch

[BassAddict1911]

thanks for the help guys, I appreciate it!

[A-Rob]

Take a day to go out with your square bill and don't put it down

Just fish all day, get the feel of it, throw it into tight stuff and see what it'll come thru and what will junk it up.

And of course try to get a couple bites on it!

 

I can't afford 2 cranking rods so i just use 1 MH Glass rod by Dave Fritts by American Rodsmiths. I do all my cranking on it. I have an abu garcia revo on it and I use 12# Yo-Zuri hybrid which I find to be  strong enough for heavy cover on a glass rod and thin enough to get my deep cranks deep. Not ideal maybe for square bills in the shallow but its functional and works for all cranking situations...if you are on a budget.

 

Good luck!