Crankbait wide wobbles and tight wobbles

[mrbassky]

After diving depth I think action is most important key to crankbait success.

So what action when? The most common theory is cold water use tight actions (shad raps, risto raps, speed traps, ect) and in warm water use a widder wobble (DB3, Fatfreeshad, Poes 300, wiggle wart). But one of the most popular spring crankbaits in cold clear water is a wiggle wart. I caught my first big bass on DB3 in march in 55 degree water. I have also had alot of success on shad raps in early spring. My guess on why the wiggle wart is so good in early spring is it looks a crayfish. Same with my DB3 I was throwing. So here is my list of what is a bigger factor in what action will work better. Here they are in order of importance.

1. Forage imitating-I think this is most important. I think it also plays a role in how you fish your lure. If you bouncing a lure off rocks and digging into a bottom I think a wide wobble just looks alot better than a tight wobble. If you not making bottom contact and ticking to tops of grass and fishing more open water imitating baitfish a tight wobble is more natural.

2. Cover-this is fishability. For ripping thru grass a tight wobble works better. You can fish a wide wobbler thru grass by stopping when it hits grass and letting it float out of the grass I found this worked better once during a cold front. For fishing around rocks a wide wobble fishes better. For power fishing brush its the opposite of grass a widewobbler is a better power bait and the tight wobble has to be finessed. Alot of times I end up picking you crankbait based on where I am fishing.

3. Water clarity-Tight wobbles look more natural in clear water and wide wobblers put out more vibration in dirty water but both work vice versa. I think the more cover you contact the less water clarity is a factor.  I think the deeper you go the less water clarity matters.

4. Lure speed-you can fish a tight wobbler faster most of the time and easier.

I think these are the factors that matter in my opinion. I left off season because I think thats really a connection with forage (spring-craws, winter-baitfish). I also left out water temperature. I am sure alot of people will disagree with this but heres my reasoning. In the coldest water baitfish are the main forage in alot of places so people tend to do better on tight actions. Also people tend to fish clear water when its cold which also favors tighter actions. In the summer people usually look for dirtier water, also fishing shallow around brush is big in warmer water. For deep cranking usually contacting the bottom is key which is good for wide wobblers. I think water temperature has little if any factor in crankbait success itself. The best crankbait I have ever used in extremely cold water where I live (Dec, Jan) has a wide wobble. Its flat and looks like a baitfish but this lure can only be fished slow which is key. It works because the lakes here are murky in the winter and the extra vibration helps alot. I think retrieve speed is just as important or more important than wobble.

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/iaconelli_crankbaits.html

This is an article by Iaconelli on crankbaits and he mentions grass vs wood in his selections also but he think water temp is the other key. I just think its a misconception because water temp changes the way we fish which plays a big role in which actions work better.

So what are your thoughts on crankbait actions????

[Marty]

I agree that the conventional wisdom is tight wobble in cold water and wide wobble in warm, but the bass don't know that. I've seen too many exceptions, particularly with tight wobblers like Shad Raps being very effective in warm water.

Imitating forage is not high on my priority list, again, because I've seen too many exceptions with regard to colors and sizes and shapes doing well without resembling anything, at least based on what I would consider resemblance.

[Randall]

Here is my theory on wiggle warts and shad raps. They both work/wiggle well at very slow speeds and that is why they both have a reputation for being great cold water cranks. It has nothing to do with tight or wide. It's that both baits get a lot of movement with very little forward motion.

[Stringjam]

Conventional wisdom is wrong......but it makes it easier for outdoor writers to make articles.   Maybe "wrong" is too harsh a statement - - but it is DEFINITELY not always correct, and sometimes flat out wrong.  

I hate to throw around generalities - but I find that a tight, lively action works in pretty much any condition. Even in Yoo-Hoo water. My biggest fish of the year came on a very, very tight wiggling flatsided bait in some very dirty water.

That said....sometimes fish will destroy a slowly retrieved bait with a wide action - - especially when fished near the surface. Shallow, off-colored water is one place I never rule out a crank with a wide, aggressive action.

Sometimes fish will hit a beer can if you put it in front of their face.

Despite fishing crankbaits pretty much all the time - it's a subject I still really don't have a handle on (understanding why the preference changes). I typically give fish both options on any given day just to try to get a better grasp on it - and in my personal experience, it just varies too much to lay down hard rules about it.

Randall touched on a point that I generally just refer to as lively - - a bait that exhibits a lot of movement given a short distance traveled. Most of the baits in the top of my box exhibit that quality.

[TrippyJai]

Like the old saying goes, bass will eat anything infront of their face. If they are feeding on shad, they will eat a crawfish and vice versa. I think if they are aggressive, they are willing to chase down a bait and when they are not such as winter a slow moving crankbait will be a easy meal.

I do believe in general rules because they will make the difference in catching more bass, but that doesn't mean if you don't follow then, you won't catch fish.

[kbkindle]

here is my thought    one day i can go fishing  and throw a big' o bait it has a tight wiggle the next day go out and no hits tie on a bandit 100 or 200  wide wobble and catch fish   same spots on the lake  i have got  mad and fish a big o just about all the day and not catch a fish   change over to a wide wobble a hour and catch fish..  you tell me what is going on?

[Jake.]

For me, tight wiggling cranks work well all year, while the wobblers will have their certain days when they crush the fish. I will throw a tight action crank in muddy or clear water, it doesn't matter if the water is warm or cold. The natural actions of flat sided cranks just seem to get bit more consistantly.

[Stringjam]

The natural actions of flat sided cranks just seem to get bit more consistantly.

Indeed.  I'm a huge fan of the flat crank.  

[crankbait001]

i have always used live bait but i have been trying to use some plastics, i just dont have any luck. now with that said, i have no idea what the difference in a tight wobble and a wide wobble would be.

could anyone explain this to me? i would appreciate it.

[Stringjam]

i have no idea what the difference in a tight wobble and a wide wobble would be.

could anyone explain this to me? i would appreciate it.

I - and also most crankbait makers - tend to use 2 terms when describing crankbait action.  "Wobble" and "Wiggle"  

A lot of people use these terms interchangeably - but they are NOT the same thing.  Here's a lowdown:

Wobble - -  Imagine holding up a crankbait and looking it straight in the nose.  Hold the bait with your thumb on the bottom of the belly, and your index finger on the top of the lure.  Now "roll" the bait back and forth between your fingers.  THAT is "wobble."  

Some people merely refer to the characteristic as "roll" or "back-roll" - as it describes what is happening.....the lure's back appears to be rolling over, back and forth.  

Wiggle - - now hold the crankbait with your thumb and index finger on the sides of the bait instead of the back and belly.  Twist the lure back and forth, so that the nose and tail of the lure move horizontally from side to side.  

This is "wiggle" - - the movement of the head and tail of the bait along a horizontal plane.  

Most of the time - crankbaits don't just have one of these actions, but rather a combination of both.

A "tight" or "wide" reference is simply a description of how far the lure rotates during its action.    

 

[MNBassguy]

Here is my theory on wiggle warts and shad raps. They both work/wiggle well at very slow speeds and that is why they both have a reputation for being great cold water cranks. It has nothing to do with tight or wide. It's that both baits get a lot of movement with very little forward motion.

Im with this guy on this one.

[bpraz]

I always like a slow wide wobble it just seems like i catch more on these.