# Trolling for crappies.



## TIGGER

I like to troll for crappies. does anybody else do this?


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## misfit

yes i do.normally i reserve it for the summer months,but along with drifting it can be productive at other times also.but i'm usually to busy with other fish to devote time to it


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## jrled

:T Right now is a great time to troll for crappies with deep diving cranks.Tie two three way swivles on 1 line 3 ft apart ,tie 3 ft leaders on the cranks. I got this out of a IN-FISHERMAN MAG. I plan on trying this very soon .


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## TIGGER

I saw the same article in the In-fisherman. I want to try it also. I think that will work well, especially on the deep ones.


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## jiggin'fool

I have done it on a few different occasions once was out at westbranch by 14 and I was trolling with a rooster tail and catching 12 and 13" crappies! and another time I was at sandy lake(private) in brimfield and I doubled up on twisters and I had one double that day! can be productive certain areas!


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## sowbelly101

I have done some of the spider trolling but it is pretty lame when you can only run 2 rods in ohio. Ive caught alot of fish this way but it just seem boring to me. One advantage is you can cover alot of water and posistion your bait at the depth they seem to be holding. I prefer to cast or jig.

Sowbelly


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## ShakeDown

I've caught them trolling live bait, and ive had big ones hit walleye cranks while trolling. Definitely something I want to do more of, specifically trolling smaller cranks deeper.


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## peple of the perch

i do it all the time at east branch around the stumps. also had a nice 3 lb bass get off at the boat. trooling with mr. twisters


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## exexec

I've dimsum crappie trollin too.


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## ka4iqd

I do a considerable amount of trolling for crappie. Almost any small lure seems to work but my favorite is a tiny spoon about the size of my thumbnail trolled with the motor as slow as it'll go and still move the boat.


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## BlueMarlin

I troll for crappies a lot, my best lure so far has been the new STORM Wild eye shad its deadly on crappie , whitebass & saugeye. Have had the best luck in spring just before the crappie move in shallow to spawn. It works pretty good later in the spring also. I use a small bott. bouncer with a 2-3 ft leader.


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## TIGGER

BlueMarlin, that is very similiar to how I fish for them. Try the Yozuri "pin minnow" also. Its one of the few baits i'll pay full price for. $6.99. Also I love floating jigs with bottom bouncer weights fished fast and far from the bottom. Post spawn "deadly". 18-20 foot of water.


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## misfit

gotta pick up some more of those wildeye shad.the ones i have are the bigger ones,and i can think of better colors.i know crappies will hit big baits,but i think the smaller size wildeye would work better.another good bait after they move out into the main lake,post-spawn,is the vib-e.i pick a lot of crappies up on the 3/16 ounce size.when i suddenly bump the speed up ,or make a turn,they'll slam it


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## TIGGER

MIsfit, Do you think they follow the bait for long periods of time untill a change triggers them? I had video of salmon that would follow the bait for long periods of time (5-10 minutes) before deciding yes or no. I've always wondered if crappies do the same.


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## misfit

i'm not 100% sure.i think they will follow at times,when the bait is running slow.possibly they're checking it out,and the sudden speed or direction change triggers a reaction strike.i also think when they are feeding,they'll grab it as it passes,no matter what the speed.
one thing i noticed is when the bite is really slow,i seem to get more takes on those speed/direction changes,than on a steady speed pull,which sorta reinforces the reaction strike theory.


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## TIGGER

Rick ,I like to hold one rod so I can twitch it every once and a while to trigger that strike. This works well for me night trolling for walleyes also. Some days they will hit as long as it's in the water!


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## sowbelly101

I learned a few things about trolling for crappie at a seminar Saturday. One of the key things that I picked up on was that suspended crappie in open water will respond to any change of speed or direction a bait may travel through the water. Even if they are not actively feeding and a bait makes a sudden change they will jump at it without even realizing that there not really hungry, and are just attacking out of aggression. I have picked up alot of smaller crappie trolling hot n tots for saugeyes and the bait was bigger then the mouth on the fish. 

Sowbelly


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## misfit

brian,i too have caught lots of crappies while trolling cranks for eyes.but sometimes i pull them just for suspended crappies.tots,shadraps,reefrunners,wallydivers,etc,all have produced nice crappies.
who gave the seminar?sounds like my theory was on the money  

tigger,i've also found that pulling and dropping the bait back occasionally can draw strikes from the eyes too,as well as crappies.


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## TIGGER

You guys ever try a 3-way with a crank and a twister tail combo? Similiar 3-way that is done on lake erie for walleyes.


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## sowbelly101

The seminar was up at Buds Marine on Indian lake. The "speaker of the house" was Russ Bailey of Midwestcrappie.com. I will give 2 thumbs up to the presentation as it was very well presented and easy to understand. Russ did a fantastic job presenting the information and answering all the questions that were thrown at him. I wish I woulda found out sooner about it so I coulda let more people know about it but I found out last minute. Definately will be looking to attend any seminars he puts on in the future no matter how far I have to drive just so I can ask more questions!!! 

Sowbelly


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## misfit

russ is good.gives a great presentation.i saw him a few years ago at a seminar,among other things,he gave a dock shooting demo,which i think is his favorite approach in the fall.not sure but i think he won a tourney at buckeye that year with that trick.wish i'd known about this one  

tigger,i've done some 3 way trolling,but not a lot.but it does work.another trick that works is a crank with a 2-3 foot leader from the rear treble,to an inline spinner  
grumpy on ogf likes that one.


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## BlueMarlin

Thanks for the tip TIGGER, i think i will pick some up this weekend .


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## Zfish

Misfit... Now don't be giving up any of my Hoover secrets


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