# New to crappie-specific fishing



## Photog (Jun 18, 2010)

OK, first of all, don't laugh! I am 44 years old and one of the things my youngest son and I like to eat is fish. I have always been a catch and release type of guy until last year's trip to Kelley's Island where we ate some white bass and white perch. Also I have found out I am Type II diabetic and want to shift my diet away from carbs. I grew up on the Scioto near SR 37W, so I mostly caught smallies and rock bass. I figure crappie sound like a good way to add an occasional meal to my diet.

Last weekend I went fishing and met the "creel clerk" for Delaware State Park. very nice kid and I watched him catch a bunch of crappie. I caught one nice fish on an inline spinner. He was using small tubes suspended under a bobber.
Well I tried that technique last night in the wind and stained waters near the marina and caught 5 but no keepers. I am using ultralight tackle, 1" bobbers and have several tube colors and some 1/32nd oz white jigs.

I think I am pretty set now, but would gladly take any advice. I will be fishing from the shore mainly, I have access to a kayak, and I live about 6 miles from Delaware State Park.

Thanks in advance!!


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## mac79 (Jun 23, 2011)

Are you using a slip bobber? if not that good help alot by changing you depth to find them slabbers


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## Photog (Jun 18, 2010)

mac79 said:


> Are you using a slip bobber? if not that good help alot by changing you depth to find them slabbers


I just saw the stickied thread reference them. Right now I am using the normal round ones but will be looking hard at those slip-types.


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## Scum_Frog (Apr 3, 2009)

Slip bobber 100%. Lets you find what depth they are at and get the tube or lure in their face. Also try other things than just tubes....not saying tubes dont work but you can also try casting your 1/32 jig tipped with a 1" or 2" twister.....you can also do the double trouble set up with putting a jig about 12" above your other jig....can tip it with two diff twister colors and see which one they want better....also can mess around with your retrieve....real slow or slow with pause...or bouncing it back too u? Many different options...I perfer casting over slip bobber unless its early season with a minnow. Goodluck and lets see some pics of the hawgs!


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## Photog (Jun 18, 2010)

Scum_Frog said:


> Slip bobber 100%. Lets you find what depth they are at and get the tube or lure in their face. Also try other things than just tubes....not saying tubes dont work but you can also try casting your 1/32 jig tipped with a 1" or 2" twister.....you can also do the double trouble set up with putting a jig about 12" above your other jig....can tip it with two diff twister colors and see which one they want better....also can mess around with your retrieve....real slow or slow with pause...or bouncing it back too u? Many different options...I perfer casting over slip bobber unless its early season with a minnow. Goodluck and lets see some pics of the hawgs!


It'll be a little bit before I grab some slip bobbers, recovering from my son's grad party and keeping expenses to a minimum at the moment. Bleh. I will definitely use them though, I can see how they would help a ton. I will definitely take a pic of said hawgs... as soon as I catch one lol!


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## boonecreek (Dec 28, 2006)

check out gizzyjig.com, a family run bus..


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## Wow (May 17, 2010)

If you're moving your bait, Road runners will attract more fish. Just add your choice of tube, Grub, & wax worm, maggot or crawler. Good Luck, Photog.--Tim.....................................................................................................................................................................


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## Photog (Jun 18, 2010)

Wow said:


> If you're moving your bait, Road runners will attract more fish. Just add your choice of tube, Grub, & wax worm, maggot or crawler. Good Luck, Photog.--Tim.....................................................................................................................................................................
> View attachment 47136


Sorry...what's a road runner?


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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

Photog said:


> Sorry...what's a road runner?


A jighead with a spinner blade attached underneath. One of the best all around fish catching lures out there. Just like Jimmy Houston says "You can't fish them wrong as long as you fish them slow". I've caught a little bit of everything on those things. They come in all sorts of different colors so just match up your soft plastic body color to the jighead color and off you go. They also come in a variety of weights.


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## Wow (May 17, 2010)

Here's one Photog.--Tim






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## spfldbassguy (Mar 23, 2009)

Bobby Garland Baby Shad baits act like a tiny jerkbait for crappie. Zoom makes a tiny fluke that's intended for drop shot use but when matched up with a small jighead they'll act like a jerkbait as well. I used them alot earlier this year from the bank and did really well with them. Figured I was giving them a different look because everyone else seemd to be using the standard stuff. There's a ton of options out there and they're only limited by your imagination.


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## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

I agree that this time of the year especially could be helpful to have a slip float/bobber. The fish are often times much deeper than the length that you could control casting on a fixed float. Also, you said "round ones"? I take that to mean the plastic ones that are indeed totally round and a plunger on the top? If so I would switch away from those even if you do choose to use a fixed float. The pencil style or crappie floats as they are mostly referred to are much more sensitive. The round type often times provides too much buoyancy which keeps the fish from moving the float without them feeling the resistance. This causes them to not hold the lure long enough to get a hookset. You generally want to use as small of a float as you can. Preferably you want barely enough to hold your lure up. Also the round type will not indicate the subtle bites that crappie often times do. The round ones are primarily useful on firm downward strikes. And just so you know slip floats are not that expensive so I would not let that be something to hold off on buying one or two. I think the sooner you switch over to either the fixed crappie float or slip float the better off you will be.


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## Photog (Jun 18, 2010)

Thanks again guys. I will be picking up some slip bobbers and such this week. I know summer isn't the best time to find 'em but I will keep pluggin' away and hopefully this fall I can slay 'em!


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## Ruminator (Apr 6, 2004)

Photog, you are really getting a lot of excellent advice!

Brian(bkr) just said a mouthful of it in his explanation about soft strike visibility and the fish not feeling resistance before committing to their take. 

Any bobber/float can be readily moved up/down the line, but the much less resistance to the fish due to the lesser needed diameter is a major help to the fisherman.

There is an even bigger advantage to a slip bobber IMO though, and that is eliminating the flying tangled messes you get with trying to cast a fixed bobber that you've set to a depth!! Can you say UGLY!  Wow, I've had some snarls; and you will virtually eliminate them from your lure and bobber rotating around each other during your casts with a slip bobber! Its an awesome site to behold, and a lot of frustrating times of re-tying everything eliminated. 
Don't walk... run to buy a couple Thill slip bobbers and slip knots. You need to pick up a couple of them along with your slip bobbers. Or just read the future posts here in this thread about how different guys do theirs rather than buy some. :B


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