Beginner Crank Baits?

[Joedodge]

So I read the few articles on them. But sincere fot a canoe and I can get past the weed line on my local lakes. What are some good crank aid ad colors to start with? I have a couple rattle traps already.

[roadwarrior]

My #1 is a Norman Fat Boy (Redear)

 

 

 

 

[Trenton]

I actually just started a thread and got a ton of people responded to what is my favorite crankbaits. Bombers are inexpensive and their A series is legendary, they make great square bills, deep cranks, etc etc but them and rapala dt series are my go to. But colors as far as that goes just match the cover you have around you in the lake. Dark green with a black back and white belly works really well for me running them parallel to the weed lines.

[Joedodge]

Oh ok awesome! I'll check that out. I have a lot of grass and hydrilla in out lakes locally and modestly stained water visibility to the bottom is roughly 3-6 feet mostly. I'm assuming solve or chrome and black and green and black should be ok

[fishballer06]

I'd look into the Mann's 1- series, as well as the Strike King Pro series. 

[Joedodge]

I'll look Into those thanks for the recommendation

[WIGuide]

The Xcalibur line has some great squarebills (CS100 being my favorite) Bomber makes some good baits too as well as Rapala. None of them are dirt cheap, but they perform very well. 

[Joedodge]

How do you guys gauge the color or shape and size you buy?

[KentuckyDave]

Check out the H20 express line at Academy as well....

[Joedodge]

Ok I'll look I to those also thanks for the advice everyone

[AllTerrainAngler]

h2o express at academy. They're on sale right now for 1.99 and up. They're not top of the line but they work and you don't have to cry when they break off. 

[Joedodge]

I'll look in a bit when I get home. Any color advice?

[KentuckyDave]

Craw patterns sexy shad any other type baitfish color

[Joedodge]

Ok awesome im looking at the academy express stuff now there nice

[Joedodge]

Lol I went on there sight and went ahead and grabbed $40 worth of 2-6 foot crank baits, and 3/8-5/8 ounce lipless rattling baits in craw, shad, blue gill and sunfish colors. Thanks so much guys

[Ozark_Basser]

Get some lipless cranks as well. Yo yo them and rip them out of the grass. Awesome technique.

[whitwolf]

My personal go-to for numbers: Norman deep baby N..... I like the TN shad, Nutter Shad, and Rootbeer....

[Sam]

Crankbaits come in so many colors and sizes that you can go nuts trying to find the "exact" one you think will work.

 

So break your crankbait selections down to these denominators:

1.  A shad color usually works everywhere. Try the Sexy Shad colors.

2.  Firetiger works in stained water.

3.  Black Norman can be great in dirty water.

4.  You can fish the top water column with a wake bait.

5.  You can fish the middle column with a Bandit size 100 or a KVD 1.5.

6.  You can fish the lower middle column with a Bandit size 200 or a KVD 2.5.

7.  You can fish the bottom with a Bandit 300 or any bait that dives deeper than the bottom so that it's bill bounces off the bottom.

8.  You can mix and match any colors and bait depths you want at any time.

 

The colors you selected can be excellent. You throw them all until the bass tell you what they want.

 

As for lipless crankbaits, you did good with your selections. Just remember that you may want something "red" in your spring lipless cranks to mimic crawfish.

 

And what happens if a bass is following your crankbait but will not eat it?  Change colors or your retrieve pattern.

 

Do you know how to set up your baitcaster to avoid backlashes?????

 

If not, please start another post and the guys can fill you in with the details.

[jbw252]

Good reply Sam.  Sage advice.  Sexy Shad & chrome variants are great color choices.

[Trenton]

Get some lipless cranks as well. Yo yo them and rip them out of the grass. Awesome technique.

Actually placed in the last tournament of the season for me last year to make it in the top 10 in points and the classic with this technique

[Choporoz]

More than any other specific crankbait, when I was a crank bait beginner, I most wish that I'd had some of these:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BIG-UGLY-Plug-Knocker-Lure-Retriever-Quick-Easy-To-Use-NEW-IMPROVED-/331155075605?pt=US_Taxidermy&hash=item4d1a617215

 

Until I was confident I could get my cranks back if hung up, I never had the confidence to put them into harms way.....and didn't catch bass.  Once I realized that I could get just about any crank back, I lost all fear and put them into the heaviest cover....and learned to catch fish with them.   Now I always have a couple of those Big Uglies along and they have saved me ten times their cost in retrieved lures.

[Joedodge]

Ok awesome ill look at some craw colors also. I don't know how to set up the bait caster as I've always use spinning set ups I'll make a post

[fisherrw]

strike king in ss

[Mainebass1984]

 You cant go wrong with squarebill kvd 1.5s and 2.5s

[primetime]

As a fellow Clearwater Resident here in Florida, if you are fishing from the bank, I would suggest buying what is on sale, and if fishing smaller ponds, go with a few Rapala Minnow baits which double as topwater, jerkbaits, swimbaits, and crankbaits...Strike King silent lipless cranks and the Red Eye shad are awesome since the seem to rip out of the weeds well.

 

Most places are full of weeds...The key is having good plastics-Flukes, Worms, hooks, jigs, topwaters, but knowing the forrage is key. Many  1-10 acre small ponds are loaded with huge Shiners, so big bass want big food, and that is when it pays to have a few larger Bomber Long A or Rebel jerkbaits or Rapala F-13 size in gold...Tilapia are in all the golf courses and they are a lighter blue/silver and strike king as well as other's make a few good tilapia tones that work well.

 

Here are a few must have lures that will not break the bank...Tiny Torpedo, Strike King pond King Spinnerbait 1/8 oz in white, 1 in chart, and get a pack of zoom 4" grubs in chart and white and then some jigheads and small worm hooks. Everyone throws Senkos, Zoom Flukes and Trick worms, Zoom Lizards, but they forget to grab the good stuff....Strike King Caffiene shad flukes, Gambler baits, Net bait Paca craws...I use only a few colors, even on Lake Tarpon, Alligator, or the River...Green Pumpkins, Watermelons, Black...and right now I am all over anything with chartruese in it since Bass are moving on up to spawn, and big females are on the nearest drop although it is cold tonight so they will be deeper most likely and for that I love the "Rage Rig" it is simply a weighted hook with a beaver, I tell my friends to cast it out, let it hit bottom (if it does, fish hit more often than not on the drop) and then reel a few feet and stop..shake.hop..and basically make it look like a wounded bluegill or scurrying crawfish, so sweeps and twitches work well..

 

Tons of articles online, but here is a tip...If fishing a pond in Clearwater or Tampa, many are private, dress well, be polite, catch and release only, go barbless, if you catch a big female on somebody's property, leave her in the water, have pliers and make sure they get the hook out easy and have a successful release. I have gained access to many private lakes by asking permission, but always remember, just because one home owner says it is ok, does not mean his neighbors agree, so just have common courtesty, and when it get's warmer, wearing flip flops, towel, and looking like you are a visitor or guest will also get you a long way...Just never get rude with anyone, unless they grab your equipment, then it is up to you....Especially when fishing a public place that some think is private, Florida fish and wildlife has all info needed, print it and show it, this way if you have to defend your rod and hit a take down, you are in the right, not the wrong....Most people are cool if you ask, not so much if sneaky.