Spinnerbaits vs Crankbaits

[Skspacemonkey]

Hi, in what scenario would you chose a crankbait over a spinnerbait and vice versa? Thanks

[Mike L]

Considering the lakes I fish, it is very seldom that I throw a crankbait. 

And if I did it would depend on structure and then it would be a small sq bill. 

However, I would have to cycle through the entire bag first. 

 

I mostly throw spinnerbaits through scattered visible vegetation or over the top of submerged hydrilla and then only after not getting bit on other moving baits. 

 

 

 

Mike

[WRB]

I tend to use a spinnerbait when bass are feeding on shad and there is some wind.

I have no limitations when using crankbaits and use them day or night but prefer cranking edges or long tapering points or flat breaks with deeper water around or through them.

Tom

[NHBull]

Wind and white caps = spinners

Cranks can be anytime I can reach bottom

[bigbassin']

The difference for me is that I treat a spinner bait as a night only lure.  I can't seem to buy a bite with spinner baits during the day, my top night producer by far though.

 

As far as throwing a crank bait during the night, I'm sure it would still work but spinner baits are effective enough and are a little more forgiving due to their lack of trebles and weedless design.

[scaleface]

A lot of the time either one can be chosen and its just whatever floats my boat at the time  .   I like spinnerbaits better in brushpiles , laydowns , beaver houses and over vegetation . The vegetation in local lakes , a crankbait cannot be ripped free .You get those trebles in it and come back with a big glob .  Stumps , standing timber , rip rap and deep  structure i usually have on a crank but spinnerbaits can also be used .  

[BuzzHudson19c]

I hate spinnerbaits, so I would always prefer a crankbait.

[Scarborough817]

spinnerbaits are something i throw when i want to be tight into cover specifically timber. crankbaits i throw anywhere there is hard bottom, mainly rock or a long point. wind is also a key factor in spinnerbaits as it doesnt give the fish as good of a look at it. 

[Florida Cracker2]

I like Spinners during the day, Cranks in the evening, and surface early morning.

[smalljaw67]

The spinnerbait is my favorite lure and I throw it a lot. I also like square bills and other shallow to mid diving cranks and for me it has to do with where the fish are and water clarity. If I'm fishing a spinnerbait shallow, there has to be wind or stained water, if the water is on the clear side with no wind I'll opt for the crank. In all honesty though, there really isn't any general rule of thumb, more often than not you simple have to let the fish tell you what they want. I've had days when the fish were feeding up and they would destroy a spinnerbait pulled just below the surface but they wouldn't touch a crankbait. I've also experience the exact same conditions when they wouldn't look at a spinnerbait but a square bill bounced off a rock would work. I try to use the spinnerbait more often, especially if there are snags but sometimes the fish want that the crank and in dirty water a crankbait banging the rocks with a hard rattle will generally get more bites but you really have to let the fish tell you and you experiment to try and find a pattern based on conditions.

[Troy85]

I throw crank baits more when the water is clean and spinner baits when its more stained.

[junyer357]

Usually if i am with a partner, we throw both in same areas til we figure out which they prwfer, if there is a preference. Otherwise, i wont throw a crank if its somewhere i cant get it back or will just hang up too easy. I also wont throw a spinnerbait in any water over 10'. I just go to a deeper crank. 

[J Francho]

It's more about what cover I'm fishing, and activity level.  Spinnerbaits come through grass and wood without issue.  Crankbaits, not so much.  In either case, contact and deflection off the cover you're fishing is critical to success.

[Ratherbfishing]

I tend to use a spinnerbait more when the water is dark (or it's low light) and or when there is a lot of cover (especially vegetation) in the water.  Conversely, if the water is clear and the fish the bass can get a good look at the bait, I'm more inclined to use a crankbait.  This is not a hard and fast rule, however.  It's more like 70/30.  I also tend to use a crankbait more if the fish are pressured.  All this assumes I'm using  one of the two choices-which I may not actually use.

[Spankey]

On average my day out starts at before sun up. Topwater first. Than I throw crankbaits to start to cover some water. Structure fish wood with spinnerbaits. But somewhere along the line soft plastics are mixed in there. I have a tendency to get off course some and get hung up on soft plastics fishing. 

[bowhunter63]

Crankbait if I'm banging rocks but I use a Spinnerbait for everything else.I want to fish a crankbait more this year. Love those War Eagles on the river,There hard to beat.

[greentrout]

In 5-7 ft. of water use a spinner bait in all water...different colors, sizes and blades depending on water clarity, weather conditions & temp...

 

In a private residential lake with little cover like to throw it on the bank and reel in fast once it hits the water...

 

The old Bandit lure is my favorite crank bait but I don't use 'em nearly as much as my spinner baits...

 

That's my mileage...

[Jason476]

5 hours ago, bowhunter63 said:

Love those War Eagles on the river,There hard to beat.

2x on War Eagles. I’ve had much better results w spinnerbaits over cranks

[iceintheveins]

Most all hard baits IMO work better when there is some wind or cloud cover. This is especially true with spinnerbaits. I will reach for spinnerbaits first when there is a good breeze or during low light and cloudy conditions. If they aren't hitting topwaters in low light or cloudy conditions, a spinnerbait is what I reach for. But crankbaits can also work well during these times. I use cranks more over wood and rock cover, and spinnerbaits more around weed and grass. But generally I will throw both. I almost always have both rigged up.

[Bankbeater]

The only time I use a spinnerbait over a crankbait is when I am fishing around heavy cover like water willows, or lily pads.  The rest of the time I use both and let the bass tell me what they want.

[Deleted account]

On 2/11/2018 at 4:04 PM, Skspacemonkey said:

Hi, in what scenario would you chose a crankbait over a spinnerbait and vice versa? Thanks

I always choose a spinnerbait over a crank bait, but sometimes fish just don't want to commit to it, some of the factors that usually influence them I think are clear water, calm conditions, and colder water. It really depends though, I've caught them mid day in glass calm conditions without a cloud in the sky with a gaudy spinnerbait, so always keep an open mind.

[A-Jay]

Spinnerbaits for me are routinely fished in the top third of the water column and Crankbaits are used to fish the bottom third; Rarely are either effective in the middle third.  

 

A-Jay

[J Francho]

38 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Spinnerbaits for me are routinely fished in the top third of the water column

You're doing it wrong.  Get a 3/4 ouncer, and dredge the depths.  Seriously.

[A-Jay]

Just now, J Francho said:

You're doing it wrong.  Get a 3/4 ouncer, and dredge the depths.  Seriously.

Yea - I give up what I know just not all I know.

A-Jay

[J Francho]

I have a whole string of photos from a cold, clear, early May day, of big largemouth, all chin hooked by the trailer hook on a spinnerbait.  17-20' water, near a channel and rip rap.  Let the bait hit bottom, and reel in so it's hitting bottom occasionally.  They were chin hooked, because they were crashing the blades.  I've duplicated this success many times over.