Crankbait Hooksets

[Paul Roberts]

In my experience a hard hookset is not necessary. But a quick one can be, and it would be hard to tell I'm fishing a crank if someone saw some of those hooksets.

First off. we're only considering sticky sharp hooks here. They make a huge difference. Not only do they have to be sharp at the first cast, but at the end of the day too. They need to have the proper point -sticky to handle.

Bass don't always crush a crank -that may be a misconception that I think lots of anglers get about cranks -that all you have to do is "crank" them and the lure takes care of the rest and may be why some people have a hard time developing consistent confidence in them. Sometimes you have to fish them. It's great when bass just "glom on" to a bait, but they can be more tentative, even with cranks.

This was actually observed by Bob Underwood (in his book 'Lunker') when he dove to watch located bass groups respond to lures. He said he watched bass often take and expel a trebled plug without the "experienced" anglers knowing it. Hook sharpness was not discussed here though.

I find I need to pay as close attention when cranking as when jig fishing. I'm feeling for any changes in the plugs action, and I need to be wide awake to react in time on some takes. And that hookset probably looks like I'm fishing a jig. If I get tired, hungry, sloppy I feel those fish a bit too late. > Or maybe not at all! I hate the thought of that even worse! Some of those tentative hits turn out to be good fish too.

Some crankbait strikes are just slaps, which are probably bites instead of an attempt to engulf. Or maybe they are a cheek slap -like false rises trout do on flies -I've watched that. With bass and cranks, some of these 'short' hits are smalls, but not always. Slaps tell me something is amiss -they're aggressive, but not eating it. In trout fishing, it's called a "refusal". It means a change is needed. I either try to elicit a more committed strike by triggering actions, or usually better, switch lure types entirely.

Curious what others will say. And deep cranking may be different than shallow -I do little of that. Curious what others have found.

[Wayne P.]

The non-agressive hits by bass is why I do not use Triple Grip or EWG trebles. I use the round bends. While the Triple Grip and EWG hooks do a good job of keeping them buttoned up when hooked, you have to stick them to land them.

[WRB]

I don't recall the name of the video; Big Mouth? where big bass are shown engulfing crankbaits and spitting them out without the angler detecting the strike, amazing footage.

I believe the best hook set is a crank set and rod sweep. By cranking you get the hook point(s) started to grab flesh, the added force with the rod helps to penetrate the hook point(s) deeper. It's almost like a top water bite, you need the let the bass turn with the lure to get a good hook setting angle. By cranking you don't alarm the bass and it may keep after the fleeing lure.

The loss of wiggle action is an indication the bass has the lure and a lot of the time the bigger the bass is the lighter the strike feels.

WRB

[J-B]

Bass don't always crush a crank -that may be a misconception that I think lots of anglers get about cranks -that all you have to do is "crank" them and the lure takes care of the rest and may be why some people have a hard time developing consistent confidence in them.

I have to admit, I have most always been told just that.  That you don't have to set the hook much with a crank.  I have also seen it said many times on here.  But what you are saying makes a lot of sense.  It makes me think hard about how I fish a crank bait and about how I will try to do it differently the next time I use one.  Thank you for thoughts and experience on the subject.  IMO, another lesson I have learned.

J-B

[J-B]

The loss of wiggle action is an indication the bass has the lure and a lot of the time the bigger the bass is the lighter the strike feels.

WRB

I think that is a good point to think about also.  Thanks WRB.

[SportMN]

I think one of the most important things is to have a great crankbait rod.  Many a fish can be never hooked or lost with improper weighted and action rods.

[Paul Roberts]

The non-agressive hits by bass is why I do not use Triple Grip or EWG trebles. I use the round bends. While the Triple Grip and EWG hooks do a good job of keeping them buttoned up when hooked, you have to stick them to land them.

I've heard that, but haven't tried 'em. I'm using round bends too.

I've done well with the Excalibur whatyacallems ...'rotating' trebles too. They are light wire but good for my waters and fish. With barbs they can be brutal to work free. BTW: The one's I've got as replacements from BPS $uck. They are not the same quality as those that came on the plugs.

[Paul Roberts]

I

...

I believe the best hook set is a crank set and rod sweep. By cranking you get the hook point(s) started to grab flesh, the added force with the rod helps to penetrate the hook point(s) deeper. It's almost like a top water bite, you need the let the bass turn with the lure to get a good hook setting angle. By cranking you don't alarm the bass and it may keep after the fleeing lure.

...

WRB

Good post. Yeah, I'd agree with that. I'll do that too -keep reeling and wait for the next attempt. But if they don't engulf the plug, those biting takes may not 'find the corner'.

If I'm getting plucks and bites and they aren't comin' back for seconds, or the bass don't load the rod themselves at the take, I'll load it myself! Pop em!

[Randall]

I use a sweep and reel set but it is a hard reel and sweep moving as much line as possible. I don't use standard crankbait rods either. The rods I use are more of a flipping stick with some flex in the tip. I have seen big bass open their mouth at the side of the boat only for the bait to come out because the hooks were never set since the bait wasn't moved in the mouth as the bass clamped down on it.

[Catt]

With worms, jigs, crank baits or spinner baits one must develop what I describe as rhythm for a lack of a better word; to describe this rhythm at least to me it's the vibration of the bait, amount of bow in the rod tip, and sensation felt in my hand.

You have to develop a sense of feel of what that bait feels like under normal retrieve through clean water; any change in this rhythm is caused by something either alive or something dead. It is assumed that one must wait until you actually feel the movement of the lure by the bass but you should be able to feel a blade of grass attach itself to your lure or line.

After watching Glen Lau's Bigmouth and Bigmouth Forever plus spending many hours working a tackle shows that featured the Hawg Trough the hook set to me is mostly about speed. Even after watching Glen it was not until I stood a foot away from the Hawg Trough while watching an 8 lb bass inhale a ½ oz jig and spit it back out before my mind could comprehend it.

I now understood the length of time a bass was going to give me to set hook  

[Paul Roberts]

Great stuff all.

I don't think I've recognized the "pressure wave" yet; Guess I'll have to pay CLOSER attention, or brush up on my Zen.

As to rods, I'm still using 'old time' stuff, so I don't own a "proper" CB rod. Mine is a 1980s Berkley Bionix IM6 prototype a rep gave me. It came as a pistol grip which I'd stripped and epoxied on a straight grip hacked off a light downrigger rod. That rod still weighed less than 4oz. and I love it. It's rated a MH but it's line range (12-25) is way optimistic. It's fast, but absorbs CB fish perfectly well.

Catt described to a T, how I developed my sense of feel and control with lures:

You have to develop a sense of feel of what that bait feels like under normal retrieve through clean water; any change in this rhythm is caused by something either alive or something dead.

I came into artificials with the jig, and stayed there for a long time before branching out. I started by swimming a jig -still do a lot -it's defalt for me, and it's how I developed feel: a rock solid rod and smooth retrieve. Any changes...wasn't me!

If I can find it, I'll dig up something I wrote on control when fishing a jig, I think it's relevant, because as I've said before I often fish a crank like  I'm swimming a jig -same requirement for tight control for detection.

This is the kind of thread I like. I asked, "what kind of hook-set we use", and got, "why we use what we use". The devils in the details.

[Catt]

The hook set is determined by each individual set of circumstances

Did Mr. Bass turn swimming laterally & away from after he struck?

Under this set of circumstances Catt would usually perform a quick sideward's sweeping hook set.

Did Mr. Bass swim towards Catt after he struck or did Mr. Bass dive after he struck?

Under this set of circumstances Catt would usually perform a quick upwards hook set.

Was Catt totally out of position for the hook set?

Under this set of circumstances Catt would lick his finger then do the tapping motion indicating Bass-1 Catt-0.

My rod selection is determined by what type of crank I'm throwing; I don't use the same rod when throwing DD22s as I would for throwing Rogues.

[OK Bass Hunter]

I use a sweep on the initial hookset followed by a couple of jerks after i feel the weight of the fish.

[Raul]

I don't recall the name of the video; Big Mouth? where big bass are shown engulfing crankbaits and spitting them out without the angler detecting the strike, amazing footage.

That was it, Uncle Homer was the angler in that film, yes, it showed a bass englufing a bait and spitting it without getting hooked in the process.

[32251]

I reel in the lure and when I feel pressure or a tap I give a quick sweep and hold the rod tip up in the air and wait for the pull of the fish on the line to make sure that I am not hung up. When I see the rod tip move I always give a quick short jolt just to make sure the hooks are embeded and then I losen up the drag and start the fish toward the boat.

[LooksLikeSinbad]

I don't recall the name of the video; Big Mouth? where big bass are shown engulfing crankbaits and spitting them out without the angler detecting the strike, amazing footage.

That was it, Uncle Homer was the angler in that film, yes, it showed a bass englufing a bait and spitting it without getting hooked in the process.

Yeah, I saw that and was shocked! I couldn't believe a fish could eat a crank and spit it out without the trebles sticking or the angler noticing. But that is the truth, I think we all miss a lot of strikes and never notice.

Recently I was swimming a jig and watched a fish swim up and bump it and swim off and my line did not move and I could not feel anything. If I wasn't watching I would have never known.

[Paul Roberts]

I don't recall the name of the video; Big Mouth? where big bass are shown engulfing crankbaits and spitting them out without the angler detecting the strike, amazing footage.

...

Recently I was swimming a jig and watched a fish swim up and bump it and swim off and my line did not move and I could not feel anything. If I wasn't watching I would have never known.

Scary isn't it?

I once watched a steelhead respond to a fly in an interesting way. The drift was on the money, and the steelie responded, but only by intercepting the drifting fly at the very tip of its snout, with mouth pretty much closed. It held the fly by the tufts of fuzz it was tied with, for only a moment, then let it go. That kind of response is essentially imperceptible. But the trout now knows that that fly is "not food".

[LooksLikeSinbad]

I don't recall the name of the video; Big Mouth? where big bass are shown engulfing crankbaits and spitting them out without the angler detecting the strike, amazing footage.

...

Recently I was swimming a jig and watched a fish swim up and bump it and swim off and my line did not move and I could not feel anything. If I wasn't watching I would have never known.

Scary isn't it?

I once watched a steelhead respond to a fly in an interesting way. The drift was on the money, and the steelie responded, but only by intercepting the drifting fly at the very tip of its snout, with mouth pretty much closed. It held the fly by the tufts of fuzz it was tied with, for only a moment, then let it go. That kind of response is essentially imperceptible. But the trout now knows that that fly is "not food".

We have a worthy adversary, don't we.

[ChiCityBasser]

After fishing with my 9 yr old this weekend and watching him hook and reel in a nice 2-2.5lbs LM and one of the biggest Bluegill I have ever seen outside of the Cabelas tank, I don't think a hard hookset is necessary all the time either. He hooked both fish using my 6'6" Diawa rod with basically no hookset.

He cast out and I told him he needed to reel in the crankbait a little faster to get the right action. As he hit a clump of weeds he said he felt like he had a fish and as I went to help him I noticed the water swirling and told him to just reel it in and lift the rod. He did I saw he hooked a fish and as the fish got closer to the bank fighting I noticed how large it was. He never set the hook and just lifted the rod. He caught a nice 2-2.5lbs LM and caught the Bluegill basically the same way.

No hookset and made a very happy day for him and I'll post the pics later.

[FordNFishinLover]

Great article and responses yall! I learned some stuff.

[J Francho]

Kudos to Paul for starting yet another great thread!

I'm going to spoil my lunch today, and eat my own words, LOL.

For years, I've been saying not to set the hook, and just keep reeling in, while applying pressure. The fish will set the hook itself, by resisting.  While this is true when they plain eat your bait with gusto...this isn't always the case.

Well, this past weekend, I caught myself doing something that must be an unconscious response to a subtle crankbait bite....

Yep, you guessed, I popped the fish with a short, but very quick hookset. I was fishing deep cranks, DT16 to be exact, in 7-10 FOW, and basically fishing them VERY slow, doing something I call "jigsawing" through wood litter.

The bites would be very subtle, and might be mistaken for a small clump of sticks at the bottom, except there was "life" there if I stopped reeling.

Well, after the third fish, or so, I caught myself givving the rod a slight "pop' of the tip - enough to load the blank, but not anything close to a big swing or sweep set.

So, I've actually been setting the hook all along, especially on a subtle bite without even know about it...

Thanks for the post Paul, I'm sure I would have not even noticed what I was doing, since I've been fishing so long, much of what I do is muscle memory, and not so intentional, LOL.

[STK001]

This is a great topic indeed and I'll surely take it to heart the next time I'm cranking. It's funny that I never "set the hook" but only do the sweep to keep pressure on crankbait fish....even though I've lost very few cranking I notice that a lot of the fish come off instantly once in the net. If it's only the pressure I'm putting on them that's getting them in the boat that's kind of scary! And I have lost some hogs doing this so it's going to be a good snap set the next time! Thanks

[Paul Roberts]

...The bites would be very subtle, and might be mistaken for a small clump of sticks at the bottom, except there was "life" there if I stopped reeling.

Exactly. Who would have thought one could "weigh the line" with cranks. You can, sometimes, but a lot of the time you gotta be quick! Or at very least...wide awake.

[Dr Pigg]

Thanks guys--I've learned something.  Made me rethink my whole cranking thoughts...The idea of a LMB sucking a DD22 and spitting it out and me not feeling anything has blown my hummingbird mind!  But I believe it--There are times when something didn't feel right and I know I froze--didn't mean to but I know I did----NO MORE--sets are free.  Thanks

[Big Bait Fishing]

i have never done big hook sets , probably cause i fish braid most all the time , except for big swimbaits , anyhow i have always swept the rod and when i feel the rod load i know it's on there , i just reel em' in . i don't mind if one or two fish come off cause of my power fishing methods , it just makes me anticipate the next bite !!!!  ;D