Crankbaits - How Do You Classify The Make & Models You Use?

[SNK]

I want to get into fishing lipped crankbaits, but without having to buy and try out every crankbait, how do you classify the make and models of crankbaits you use in regards to having a wide or tight wobble?

 

I have read that the "rule of thumb" is tight wobble for cold water, wide wobble for warmer water. (I understand that it is not a hard and fast rule, but it is a place to start.). So if you could list some of your favorite makes and models, and if you consider them as having a tight or wide wobble, that would be great. 

[drew4779]

I wouldn't over-think it. Find some cranks that you feel confident in and fish. Start with shallow divers and squarebills to gain some confidence.

But...if you want to over-think it...

Wide wobble

I like Excaliburs (if you can find them)

Tight wobble

Yozuri 3D flat crank

Rapala dt series are great cranks as are sebile cranksters and livingston lures. A lot of people seem to love the strike king kvd series cranks.

[BobP]

You can divide crankbaits into many categories but the ones I find most useful, in order of importance are:

1.  Depth

2.  Action wide or tight

3.  Size of bait

4.  Color and prey representation

 

As to tight action in cool water, wide action in warm - there's something to it but I use tight action baits year round successfully too.  Lipless cranks like the Strike King Red Eye Shad have a very tight action, as do all lipless baits, but they catch fish year round.  So I wouldn't get too bound up in "crankbait rules of use".  Get crankbaits for a range of depths, learn how to fish them effectively and you'll gain confidence as you go along.

 

Shallow 1-4 ft

Medium 5-10 ft

Med Deep 10-15 ft

Deep - 15 ft +

[Fishes in trees]

I'm pretty certain that where you live, no matter where you live, there are guys who throw crank baits more often than they throw other artificial bait styles.    What brands/models within brands and what colors do they throw?  That, it seems to me, would be a great place to start.

[smalljaw67]

I categorize my cranks by diving depth but I do separate square bills from shallow divers as those will get burned through cover. So I have square bills, shallow cranks which shallow for me is 5' and less, the I have my mid depth cranks which is 10' and less and then deep divers which my deep divers are anything deeper than 10'. Now, the tight wobbling cranks, I have those separate and you can tell most of those because most tight action cranks are flat sided and they are better in cold water but they are also good during the warm water seasons when a wide wobbling bait is too much, like post frontal conditions or if I'm around submerged wood, then I'll run like a DT Flat 7. So that would be the easiest way for me, square, shallow, mid, deep, and flat sides.

[A-Jay]

My crankbaits are separated by type, running depth & / or size in Plano 3700 Prolatch Stowaway boxes.

 

So there's the 1/2 oz lipless box

The 3/4 oz lipless box

The small squarebill box

The Large Squarebill box

The 2 Mid depth (down to 10-12 feet) boxes

The 3 Deep running baits boxes

and

The Over sized Deep running box.

 

That reminds me - I need more boxes . . . .

 

A-Jay

[fishballer06]

I don't buy overly into the what wobble works best for what water temperature deal. I have a few brands that I like and each has something unique to them that can make them work/not work on any given day. Whats most important to me is the depth and the colors. Being able to effectively fish the water column is what makes crankbaits so effective in my opinion. If I want to bang the bottom, whether its 7' or 18', I can. If I'm in 25' of water and the fish are down 8', I can put the lure in their face. If there's weeds that come up 3-4' from the surface, I can bring it over the top if I want. Here's a few of my go-to cranks.

 

 

Shad Raps (regular and RS, all sizes 5, 7, 8, 9)

Wiggle Warts (regular and magnum, pre- Rapala preferred)

Rapala DT (my go to, 4, 6, 10, 14, and 16)

Norman DD22

Strike King series (1.5 & 2.5 squarebills, 3, 3xd, 4, 5, 5xd, 6, 6xd)

Bill Lewis Rat-L-Traps (my go to lipless crank)