Can't get my self to use crankbaits.........

[Castamasta]

i know a ton of people have a bunch of success with using crank baits, but i can never seem to produce any bass with any type of crank other than a rattle trap  >. i would appreciate any beginners tips or info that is workin for your success with crankbaits!

[Gatorbassman]

Fish the paint off of your crankbait. Bang it off of everything. Fish one that dives to the bottom and bounce it off of every rock, stump, and log. Dig a ditch with the thing but reel it slow.

[NewScreenNameAdvised]

 I might add that you should have the mentality that you are going to lose them.  I see people too afraid to lose them and they don't fish the right stuff, the right way.

Don't buy Lucky Craft if you are too afraid to lose a $17 lure.  The Norman lures are an excellent lure for a low price.  The pros throw them all day long.

Also, and this is just my opinion, but crankbaits do best from a boat when you cover some shoreline.

[Stringjam]

Practice....simply put.  

I fish crankbaits 90% of the time I'm on the water.....if you pay attention, you'll learn something every time out.  

One thing of note......"overpowering" a crankbait is NOT always the best way to catch fish on them.  Although making contact with cover is always a good idea, banging and smashing the bait through stuff will sometimes turn off fish big-time!  Most people fish crankbaits when fish are really aggressive, and that will work - - but I fish crankbaits when they aren't "hitting" crankbaits - and the same conventional thoughts don't always apply.  

Sometimes your best option is to use a crankbait that ticks along the depth you need and just barely glances off of objects.

David Fritts once said that a crankbait is most effective when it is just barely hitting the cover.  

I could post 100 examples of this but I'd run out of room....  

Another thing.....if you're in an area you know fish are in, and they're not hitting your crank using a typical presentation - BURN IT.  As fast as you can reel that thing.    Burn it and stop, burn it and stop - my 3 biggest crankbait bass last year came using this method.......sometimes it's the only way they'll hit it.  

One more thing - - find out what crankbaits are effective in your area.     I've noticed when a lot of people start cranking they go out and buy big, aggressive action crankbaits - and these don't work all the time!   My most consistent baits are flatsided cranks with a tight action.  Since you like fishing lipless vibes, these are a very easy switch.    Go pick up a Spro Little John and give it a try, or contact Marty Burns (Big M on this forum) and get an M-Flat from him.

Dont' give up . . . . crankbait fishing is an art, and it can literally take years to get a grip on what works best in what condition.   But I really get a kick out of throwing these things.      

Oh, and if you fish diving cranks, get a telescoping retrieval pole - - - I wouldn't even tie a crankbait on without one.  

[Muddy]

Flukey and Strringjam hit it right on the head! This is what the fellas here taught me, I lost a few in the process and now they are a confidence bait for me. 8-)

[LooksLikeSinbad]

When first starting out I really liked using the Rapala DT series cranks because they have the diving depth printed on the bill.  I found it very helpful to know the diving depth so that I could focus on the other aspects of learning how to fish a crankbait.

[Avalonjohn44]

To gain some confidence in cranks, buy 4 bandit 100's ($17-18 for all of them...), and bring them to a pond or lake at dusk and use nothing but them.  Throw like you would a spinner bait, close to weed lines, muck lines, rocks, timber, etc.  From there, you will know what different structure contact feels like, what a strike feels like, and so on, and you can then work your way up the crankbait ladder to eventually buy some Megabass Cyclones, Zoom WECs, and discontinued Bagley Bs...

Anyhow...Starting with a Bandit makes sense since it is cheap so it's ok to lose a few.  It produces fish for me like crazy.  I have turned several of my worm-only friends into crankers slowly but surely by letting them use my bandits, then experimenting from there...

[Castamasta]

thanks for all the tips guys i just have one more thing to ask. how do you handle weeds if there is no "weedline"? weeds at different depths?

[djmax22]

Good info here. This is my 3rd year I have been using cranks on a regular basis. First year caught a few fish. Last year I started gaining confidence in them. This year I throw cranks over 50% of the time. That is how much confidence I have in them. I can always dig into the box to find a crankbait that will get bit.

Stringjams suggestion of burning it as fast you can reeling and killing it has been really productive for me this year. Next time you go out on the water only bring your crankbaits that way you will force yourself to experiment. It has become my favorite way to fish for bass.

[Raul]

thanks for all the tips guys i just have one more thing to ask. how do you handle weeds if there is no "weedline"? weeds at different depths?

Who needs weeds ?

[Marty]

i would appreciate any beginners tips

KEEP THEM WET!!!.

I have a book called "Bassing with the Best" and this is a quote from the chapter on crankbait expert David Fritts: "In fact, David will tell you that any well-crafted crankbait, straight out of the box, fished without any frills and with a simple, steady retrieve, will put plenty of big fish in the boat."

For guys at my level, "plenty of big fish" might be a stretch, but cranks are terrific fish attractors. You need to use them, probably more than you have, until you hook something and start to develop confidence.

Good luck. I can't imagine my lure arsenal not including cranlbaits.

[basspimple]

cranks are the "bird dogs" of fishing lures. sure, they can and will catch big ones, but they are ultimatley lures used to find aggressive bass. cast around a crankbait until you find some fish in a given area, and then slow down with soft plastics and really work that spot over. who knows how many tourneys have been won with this method. good luck!

-j

[Raul]

cranks are the "bird dogs" of fishing lures. sure, they can and will catch big ones, but they are ultimatley lures used to find aggressive bass.

-j

Not really.

It 's a matter of apllication and knowing what 's out there, fish don 't have to be in agressive mood to attack and be caught with a crankbait, you can catch fish in neutral or non aggresive mood with crankbaits if you fish with the right ones.

[Hookemdown.]

I caught my PB on a DD22.

Light fluke said, if you are not losing them, then you are not fishing them right.

Cranks are my go to bait in the summer.  Fish start to suspend deep and I reach for my DD22's.  I love it.

[djmax22]

I caught my PB on a DD22.

Light fluke said, if you are not losing them, then you are not fishing them right.

Cranks are my go to bait in the summer. Fish start to suspend deep and I reach for my DD22's. I love it.

Yeap summer time for me is DD22 time. Havent had as much success this year, but the DD22 is one of my favorites cranks.

[bass slayer 17]

what kind of rod do you use for those deep diving crankbaits??? I have a 6 6 medium action casting rod matched with a 5.3:1 shimano citica casting reel. would that work fine?

[.dsaavedra.]

i say just go grab a rapala DT FAT 03 and a DT 6 in just plain ole silver and just cast them all day. never switch to anything else. fish them in evey way imaginable. they are versatile little lures. just dont put the lures down. eventually you will find some fish and start to establish a pattern of what kind of retrieves are working and etc. i actually catch a lot of bass by bringing a DT 6 through shallow water (about 4 feet) VERY slowly and steadily. i never stop the retrieve, just slow and steady. if i go too fast, i hit the bottom and pick up gunk, so i have to keep it slow.

bottom line: cast them all day and never give up until you have found out what works and doesnt. fish them in many different ways. have fun.

good luck!

[lknbassman]

what kind of rod do you use for those deep diving crankbaits??? I have a 6 6 medium action casting rod matched with a 5.3:1 shimano citica casting reel. would that work fine?

Yeah, you're good with that rig. The reel is more important than the rod in the setup so that you can retrieve the crank at the right speed. I personally use 7' rods simply because the allow me to cast farther.

There are a lot of 7' 6" rods out now just for cranking which are great as they let you throw it that much farther and the new rods are super light so you don't get as fatigued. The key to the right crank bait rod you have already addressed and that's a medium flex with a soft tip. Too stiff and you rip the bait out of the mouth of the fish.

Line is a factor too. I use 12# flourocarbon on my mid size and larger cranks which is mostly what I throw because it gives me better feel, sinks, does not bow much if at all (that's the feel part), and has no stretch which I account for with my rod. If you don't go with flouro, try a co-polymer line as it's better than mono which gives the least amount of feel but the most stretch. Good luck.

[detroit1]

Who NEEDS to bang it into something?

[Hookemdown.]

Who NEEDS to bang it into something?

Everyone.  Deflections = More fish.

[MALTESE FALCON]

Go get yourself some Rapala Shad Raps in all variations, shallow, deep, suspending, and jointed, and you will more than likely catch fish.

Falcon

[djmax22]

You want the longest rod you can find when fishing deep crankbaits 7'6" or longer would be ideal. I have 7'0" but my next rod will be probably be a 8' rod. You need longer cast to allow the crank to get to the required deep so it is in the strike zone longer.

Also line choice I tend to stick with mono b/c it strecthes. A smaller diameter line will also allow the crank to run deeper. I tend to use either 8 or 10# mono for deep divers.

[Brian_Reeves]

I really don't throw them anymore.  When I was all crazy about them, I liked to pound shallow cover and stucture with either shallow or medium diving crankbaits.  I don't like deep divers at all.

Personally, I'd rather swim soft plastics in the same areas that people beat to death with cranks.  But crankbaits do have their place and time.  That time, for me, is the fall.  I'll break them out in a few months and go crazy with them again.

[basspimple]

cranks are the "bird dogs" of fishing lures. sure, they can and will catch big ones, but they are ultimatley lures used to find aggressive bass.

-j

Not really.

It 's a matter of apllication and knowing what 's out there, fish don 't have to be in agressive mood to attack and be caught with a crankbait, you can catch fish in neutral or non aggresive mood with crankbaits if you fish with the right ones.

that is why i stated them as a "bird dog", for instances if you dont know whats out there. a crankbait can be a good lure to find underwater cover,(deflection is key here) or concentrations of fish. although i might have overstated by saying it catches only agressive bass, for most fishermen that ihave seen (as for myself) a crankbait is a great search tool.( not saying that this is always true, there are pllenty of die hard crankers out there to dissect this more thouroghly) just my to cents. sorry for not clarifying this earlier raul, my apologies.

-j

[Hookemdown.]

Go get yourself some Rapala Shad Raps in all variations, shallow, deep, suspending, and jointed, and you will more than likely catch fish.

Falcon

x2

I've used the suspending shad raps with great success in out clear lakes.