Caught some small crappie this weekend and had to really work at it. I was fishing below a dam amoungst all the sturgen and casual fishermen, but I had sat down, deliberately, by a family that seemed to be pulling in crappie at will.[blush]
I riged up worm on a jig and a weight to get me out there, got some nibbles but missed what ever was biting, probably small bass, the people next to me were doing real well and I noticed the had r?w or r/y tube jigs, 2 per line with a weight at the bottom, no bait.
I didn't have what they had on exactically so afte an hr or so of no crappie, I rigged up as close as I could and bamm got a crappie and then another[cool], but not nearly as regular as they were. Like about 20 to my 2. It was like if I didn't detect a bite as the jigs went through the water column I was out of luck. Is this normal?[crazy]
Later on after those people left and their friend who came before they left (spot saving technique) I saw a young man catching 3 quickly using a bobber and worm. So I moved over there and rigged a jig on a bobber and stared hitting them almost every cast. I was down abot 2-3" below the bobber. Is this the better way?[unsure]
I came home with plenty to clean and eat, but would rather have not had the 2-3 hr slow time. Share some thoughts, thanks[blush]
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It is important to use light line with the Crappie. Most of those light ticks that you felt on the line are the actual Crappie bites.
They tend to be light biters anyways. Next time you feel that light tick, quickly set the line. They are almost like the Bass.
With Bass, once you feel the tick, it is too late. That is the sign that they have already spit it out.
You can also tip your Crappie jigs with a piece of meal worm or even Wax Worms if you can find them in your area.[cool]
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Two words......crappie minnows! I dont know if you can get or use them in your area. I know Utah dosent allow live minnows but down here you get a minnow bucket gold hook and bobber with a few small split shots and once you find the right depth you sit back and reel them in [
] Theres only a few types of fish I eat and crappie is neck to neck with trout in my book. Bluegill is right up there witht hem but nothings better than some fried crappie. Hope that helped you out any, real simple rig and very effective. You can even get crappie rigs that have 4 or 6 hooks off them and make a little school of minnows. If your on them you can catch 2 crappie at once with those rigs[cool]
Matt
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TubeN2 gave you some good advice. There's no reason why you can't tip your jig with a piece of natural bait. They'll hang on longer and give you a better chance of hooking the fish. Crappie are a tricky breed sometimes, but if you get into them, they fight and table fare are well worth it. I prefer a bright green or yellow jig for crappie, as it seems to alway work for some reason.
Also, i'm with matt on the live minnows. We've always use live minnows for as long as i've fished for crappie. Around structure, especially around bridges at night. We'd tie off the boat on a pilon and drop a floating night in the water. You could put a serious hurtin' on the crappie like that. Just use a basic bobber rig and hook the minnow just behind the dorsal fin, but not too deep. You don't want to pierce it's spin. A dead minnow will yield you negative results. [
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Thanks guys, we don't get to use lve monnows here in ID but thats OK if I can get them to hit the jig like on Sunday I'll be happy.
I am still wondering are they more likely to take something suspended rather that near the bottom?
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better to be just above 'em than below with Crappie..
One thing I have gained through chasing 'em durring ice fishing that has helped me in open water season is that its quite common for the larger fish to be beneath the school or in the lower part of it. Not always true mind you, but it seems to be a pattern when they are suspended and schooled up on most of the wates I fish.. could be a specific pattern here in my waters though..
If you're 'cork fishing' using round style bobbers I recommend you definately switch 'em out and use floats like Thill's Stealth series, wagglers or something similar that has less resistance that you can balance out with split shot.. its deadly.
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There is 101 ways to crappie fish. Like shooting jigs under docks. vertical jigging and live bait. I go crappie fishing every weekend. Here is what I do.
I ONLY FISH AT NIGHT
1. Get on my dock which has a real good dock light and set up 5 or 6 rods on holders. All I put on the line is a hook with a live minnow. I feed out the line so the minnow can swim around freely. Sometimes you get some very active minnows and they can swim around too much and tangle you up, so just put a real light weight on that line. I only use a weight on the real frisky ones. I just sit there and drink beer and wait for a rod to bend over. BUT, if you do this there is a 90% chance the fish will swallow the hook all the way to his gut, so be prepared to tie a lot of hooks. I never rip the hook out I just cut the line.
2. If you are not drinking....do the same on a boat, near a dock W/ a light on it, or any good structure. I like this the best because I have a Pontoon and I put a lot of lines in the water. It looks like a shrimp boat coming at ya.
I hook the minnow by......Go to the front of the dorsal fin, and go down 1/16 or 1/8 in and hook him in the meat. Dont go too far down or he will die very soon. This way he will swim better, but he still swims like he is hurt. So, the fish love the weakest link.
Make sure you use rod holders. A Cat, Bass or striper might want a little supper. I ve lost 2 rods already this summer.
Fishing this way you can use any line, rod or reel. Just as long as your rod can flex a little to let you know you got one.
Remember everyone has their own way of doing buisness.
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Very good advice. Thanks Jim. I'm sure other members can learn from the information that you have posted here.[cool]
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Yea I think I saw one of those rods go in the drink when I was showing you a 8 inch bass I caught off your dock. I wonder what that fish was? Anyways I need to go out there and catch some crappie with you again, my freezers out of fish [cool]
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YES!! use light line bud.. but try this combo out a red lead headed jig and a small/medium minny.. i catch em like crazy with that setup..
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Hey slammineyes, and welcome to the BFT message boards. It's nice to have another panfishing angler in the house. We look foward to more of your insights in the future. What state are you fishing out of partner?
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Hey!!! i'm fishin' out of northeast ohio buddy..
im the crappie king.. well maybe not the king but i catch alot.. haha
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[font "Lucida Console"][#ff4040]If you can't find any meal worms or wax worms use some crappie nibbles. They work pretty good too, and they definitely keep the fish on your lures a little longer. I've had some good success with them. Look in the Powerbait area when you're looking for them because they look exactly like power bait...and make sure they say crappie nibbles.[/#ff4040][/font]
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[cool] I use crappie nibbles when I jig fish for crappie. They work really well, sometimes I put a minnow on the jig to give them a little something extra.
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i hit crappies the best on a really small green twister tail on a green or black jig head. and light gear is a must. its nearly impossible to feel the hits on my bass gear let alone control the jig. (medium rod/12lb line)
on a side note, i had a crappie hit a #5 mepps the other day while fishing for northern. ive also had them hit spinnerbaits and poppers. crazy little guys will sometimes hit anything if you can find them a put a lure in their face.
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The "papermouth" characteristic of the crappie has me ready to revert to barbed hooks. Inthe past couple of weeks I have lost more crappie than I have landed. It seems if they can get their head above water they are able to shake my barbless 1/32 oz. jig. Any suggestions from you fellows that fish crappie all the time. I'm up here in Southern Ontario, Canada.
I don't miss them all.
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I caught these 2 - 1.5pndrs today, while trolling in 8-13ft open water on Rat-l-trap 1/2oz. I wasn't trolling for anything in particular, I earlier caught a 2.5lb bass on chartreuse worm, texas-rigged, my engine konked out on me so I just trolled on the way back in and learned something new. I never even knew we had black crappie down here in florida and definitely didn't think we had any in this lake I have been fishing since I was a kid.
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trolling for crappies? man, I learn something new everyday.
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We troll for crappie in winter when they go to the channels in deep water. We troll with a jig pole and 1/32 or 1/16 jigs. Nothing beats the feel of a big ole slab thumping a jig.
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[fishin]You can also tip the jig with Berkley crappie nibbles. They work great.
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