Crappie molds?

[Denny Welch]

I have caught crappie before, but always by accident.  With all you crappie guys high fiving one another all the time and jumping up and down like excited little girls I figure I had better get in on all the excitement.  The problem is I don't really know where to start so I have a few basic, entry level questions:

1.  What are your three most used CCM crappie molds?  I won't be doing any "ice (?)" fishing.

2.  What type gear should I use...rod, reel, line, etc.

3.  Are there any good crappie web sites? 

Thanks in advance.

[andrewlamberson]

My favorite baits are:

1.75" Small Fry ....either fished on a jig on a slow retrieve, on a "safety pin" spinner (small single spin) or under a small bobber on the jig (especially if it's windy and the bobber moves the bait both up and down with the waves and across the water).The small fry catches some really nice crappies, bluegills ....and that 38" Northern Pike that I posted a pic of a year ago (fall)! And...I admit.... popping out 12 baits every time you mold is kind of fun too!

The 1.75" crappie carrot is a close 2nd. Fished all the same ways.

The 2.5" Swim Fry swimming back on a jig head is a real killer when the fish are active. It also catches some dandy bass!

And my surprise crappie bait last year was the  1.75" Croaker. Those little paddle feet REALLY make some noise and vibration in the water. I did well on "frog colors" and in sliver to make it look more like a minnow.

Your Crappies are probably a lot bigger than ours...so you could probably go with some of the bigger baits also....but the advantage of staying under 2" is...BIG BLUEGILLS!

I fish a fairly long, ultralight spinning rod (the longer the rod the farther the cast) with the 2lb test green PowerPro. If I think they are being really fussy...I'll add a super small swivel and attach a couple feet of 3 or 4lb fluorocarbon. I do NOT like short ultralight rods. They don't cast very far...and don't give you the line control you need.

A really smooth ultralight spinning reel is the key...you need to be able to feel the tick of the hit...not the reel grinding on bumping as you reel it! Cost is NOT a determining factor in how smooth a reel is (in my opinion)....I have a couple fairly expensive Shimano reels that are terrible...and some "cheap" reels that are a lot smoother. Pflueger reels always seem to be the best for me...and are worth the extra cost.

My personal favorite way to fish these baits is to cast them on a small, light jighead and get them to hit it on the fall. That's why you need the PowerPro...and a good graphite ultralight....to feel that tick. I also watch my line like a Hawk for the hit. Just like nymph fishing when your fly fishing!  And Yes... if they are hitting shallow...I will add a small strike indicator to my line to see the strike.

I really like the Sickle hooks I get from Crappie Tom ...http://www.crappietomtackle.com  His color suggestions sure seem to be good on the waters I fish.

I'm sure you will get a LOT of opinions on this topic!

[matt]

I am believer in bnm rodhttp://www.bnmpoles.com/default.aspx they have some videos that will teach you every thing you need to know and so thing you don't
jigs i give up all my tube jigs for Fry's in have taken the fry all over the USA and got crappies and bluegills all it is the color

[Muskygary]

Everthing said above is good information. The long crappie rods (9-12 feet) are nice for fishing standing timber and brushpiles. Just reach the rod tip out besides the tree and slowly let the bait down with periodlcal stops and quivers. Rember drop-shotting! Super way to fish. How many hooks per line are you allowed in your state? In Indiana were allowed two; so I fish one about a foot above the drop-shot and then a second hook about a foot and  a half above the first hook. Rember the Nano fry! Super bait year round. For a top crappie site try  www.crappie.com    Tons of information on every state. PS When things are slow fish the Nano fry.

[Jerry V]

I'm not a big Crappie guy Denny, (but I did sleep in a Holiday Inn once)... I've got a real good feeling that these guys are gonna steer you in the right direction.  We can learn together, you and I.

Based on my own limited experience I will reiterate most everything Andy said.  My experiences speak to those things that he's mentioned.  I typically use braided line on all spinning rods but tie a flouro. leader ('bout the length of the rod) onto that.  I do the same thing with finesse presentations to finicky Bass or in ultra clear water.

[ctom]

The thumper fry is a great Crappie bait in warmer waters. And as Andrew has alluded to, the 1.75" small fry is a clear winner. I haven't used any yet, but I have an inkling that this next spring will see me doing so.....those crappie carrots. I already know that the Nano is a serious threat to crappie populations.

When you start to amass crappie baits of different sizes and shapes you also discover that you need to use jigs with hooks that offer a clear gap for hooking. A thumper fry will not allow hook-ups on a standard 1/32 head with a #6 hook as well as the 1/32 with a #4 hook and that will hold true with any style of hook. Be certain that you carry jigs that have hooks with enough gap to hook up when crappie hit. Nothing is more frustrating than feeling a hook point just barely grab and then pull out because the bait got in the way.

Maybe even more important than what tackle and baits you use is to keep an open mind. Often times color changes are all that's needed to get into a mess of crappies, but also the need to up-size or down-size. The fish themselves are good at dictating what they want. Of all of our freshwater fish, I don't think any other can re-write fishing logic better crappies can and they can do this in a minute or less. Keeping yourself flexible as to baits, colors, sizes, and actions make you easily adaptable to crappies' little quirks.

Another thing with crappies is that they can be notorious suspenders. Staying at the level where the fish are hitting when they get in the suspension mode is often tough to do without a float. Shallower fish can be approached with a fixed float while deep fish you may require thet you have to use a slip float. Carry a few of each style along with the stops for rigging the slip version and carry at least a couple sizes in each style to balance your offering if different weights of baits are being used .

Every geographic part of this country has crappies and every gegraphic area has a different approach to catching them. Your best appraoch will come from the area in which you live. Yes, southern tactics catch northern fish and vice-versa. Same with east/west fish. Still, local tricks of the trade are often not common knowlege to sites such as this, so hit the bait shops in your area and pump them for info. Color preferences can be real local thing.

Good lake maps are an asset you'll soon appreciate. They will show where underwater structure is that crappies relate to.  Where you've found fish on one trip, a small "x" will get you back to the same general area to snoop again. I do this on a couple waters away from home that I fish and along with the "x" I add either a "s", "sp", "w", or "f"...these indictating the season or time of year.

Crappies and weeds are good friends. Find an underater point jutting out into deeper water with weeds atop of the point until deeper water stops weed growth and you have a prime time location to work over. Current would be areal bonus. And if by chance there was a half acre of  submerged wood with water in the 10 to 30 foot range amounst the fallen trees, bring plenty of water or other refreshments, something to chew on, and your infamous toilet paper because you may have a gold mine and you could be there a while.

[DobynsTriton]

X2 on the small fry. It also catches "Tennessee Tarpon'' so both the rockfish fishermen & crappie guys love it

[pjmcla]

Denny - you are in a new realm of addiction here.  It has some fly tying aspects with the tying of crappie jigs.  Here are my "starting out" answers.
Question 1 --  1.75" inch small fry ( fry or bug ) - 2.5" Crappie carrot ( shiner/ basic minnow ) - 2.5 Inch Stinger Wutz-It ( shad or pregnant minnow ).   
Question 2. -- Soft action 7 foot open face rod with as much feel as you can afford.  Crappie often hit very lightly ( esp. vertically jigging ) and they have soft mouths.  Reel - Smooth 1000 series reel; you don't need a lot of line for crappie.  Line - In open water - 4 - 6 lb fluorocarbon - for timber or concrete 6 - 8 lb. fluorocarbon.  Caveat -  you will be surprised how many bass and catfish and stripers you will catch while crappie fishing.  So you may discover that you need line capacity for them ( esp. stripers ).
Question 3. --  Crappie.com -  They have sub forum for jigs and plastics.
 Texas fishing forum - Crappie section ( also has jig area ).  and  Jigcraft.com has lead pouring, jig tying and plastics.

[Brent]

I use both the 1.75 fry and the 2.5 fry, along with a "crappie dancer" made by another. During day light hours love the chartreuse, silver smoke with big black flake in it, and Clear with blues,greens, gold or copper glitters. This past year I did a ton of night fishing because of my work schedule and shot some killer baits in "green" and "red" GLOW. I also fish with a "green led" light which is huge in "charging" the glow colors, I have rigged them with a Cubby jig head, Darter jig head, and a Lindy's slick jig head which makes a great search bait.

Drop shotting them during the day when they are hold close to structure is a great way to increase your catch rate too.

As far as gear, not sure you can pass up a Shimano 500 Sahara, Cubby makes a 7 panfish rod that is great all around, I also have Fenwick and G.Loomis panfish rods. 2lb-4lb floro line.

PS I also plan on putting together the following, (ice guys might get it) HT windlass tip up, Lindy's Slick Jig, and 2.5 Fry

[matt]

Tennessee Tarpon I love it skipjack the blue bait there is hey ha

[Denny Welch]

Thanks, you guys, for all the great information.  It's one of the great things about this forum. 

FYI, I drove to Bass Pro Shop in Manteca, Ca today (1 1/2 hour drive), shopped for an hour ($134) and drove home.  I went specifically, for some VCM ds and wacky hooks because I couldn't find them locally.  Please don't criticize, it's an illness.

While there I looked at some crappie rods.  The only ones I saw were made in China and cost between $50 - $60.  (I looked closely for Scooby Do markings, but didn't see any.). They looked more like crappy rods.  After reading your replies I felt relieved that I didn't buy the BPS rod. 

[BareKnuckleJigs]

I've been huntin' online for a long Sacalait rod to "replace" my shattered SpinFly, to no avail...not even close...to try to avoid building another.  Looks like I'll be building one, from scratch this time.

I've watched this Thread since it started, and have been scratching my head...has noone bought the 2" Glider?

[DobynsTriton]

Tennessee Tarpon I love it skipjack the blue bait there is hey ha

They may not be food BUT they fun to catch!

[Botanophilia]

Anything over 7' isn't easy for me to work with in a canoe, so that's my length limit.  I don't often go out specifically for crappie.  If I do I prefer my 7' glass rod.  If I'm just out fishing (which means targeting bass or pike) I bring the 5' ugly stick UL in case I want to do some panfishing as well.  The 5' takes up less space in the boat or canoe and I usually get good enough distance casting.  I have 2 UL reels, a guide series from Gander Mountain that is fantastic and one from HT that is nearly as nice.  I used flouro for the first time this year and hated it.  I usually use  4lb mono or 6lb spiderwire stealth braid, which is the same diameter as 4lb flouro.  I'm sure fish see the braid better than flouro or mono, but it hasn't been a big disadvantage for me and I'm a lot more comfortable accidently hooking into a 7 lb bass on that than I would be on mono or flouro. 

As for baits, 2" twister tail is a given.  Crappie tubes.  The 1.75" croaker was awesome, and on my list of molds to buy.  I like the look of the 2.5 swim fry and will have to get some eventually.  Small fry were pretty good drop shot or drifted along the bottom on a jighead via wind power this year.  Found some very nice crappie that way when we had no bass action, it proved to be one of our most productive days this year.  I dig the 2" thumper swim fry, but I haven't had much of a chance to try it out.  I did get a couple of nice bluegills on it.  I also really dig a couple of crankbaits... Rebel Tadfry & 1.5" Daiwa SC Shiner are my favorites. 

I love bass fishing, but panfish are just as fun and just as challenging to catch.  Maybe even more so as even active panfish can be harder to trigger into striking.