Need Help for Tomorrow!

[TomC]

Guys I'm a bass fisherman at heart......don't crappie fish a whole lot and when I do it seems I always catch a few but never seem to "wear em out"
I'm going to be bass fishing tomorrow early and late but thought I'd put the baitcasters up and get out my 4 zebco 33's and rod holder and crappie fish from about 10am-3pm tomorow and I could use some advice on where to find em. I'll be on Lake Oconee in Georgia and I'm guessing the water temp will still be hanging in the high 80's....maybe higher. Thought I'd hit the standing timber, tie up and just see what happens. In standing timber this time of year are there any keys to what "water depth" to fish. Or if I decide to troll what type of water depth should I look for. Just looking for some "hot advice" cause I got the massive urge to eat some fried crappy come Saturday Night while watching the Florida Tennessee game. Preciate any advice and ya'll don't hold it against me to much for being a "bass fisherman" at heart....lol. Dang shame bass don't taste as good as crappie!! Thanks

tom

[big "E"]

Dont understand the bass thing at all but the crappie ought to be hiding down around the thermocline.Find the temp. difference and you'll probably find the crappie.Then if they are biting at all , which they aint here in sc , you could have those fillets you after.

[crappieseeker]

I understand the bass fishing, as I do it sometimes myself. I am crappie at heart. I dont have any advice for you except that if your a minnow fisherman, try some jigs. Who you rooting for in that game?

[TomC]

I'm a dawg fan so I wish both of them could lose.....but I guess that aint possible!

tom

[CrappiePappy]

try this - http://www.crappie.com/articles/crappiepappy.htm (and excuse me for the shameless self promotion :D )

And it works with minnows, too. (although, I don't think I would leave a minnow below the thermocline very long :rolleyes: )

You may be a little late in the day, for a shallow bite ... but, if you can find the timber, still in the shade, you may still find the fish in the upper reaches of the water depth. Approach the Crappie fishing, the same way you would approach Bass fishing ... just with different equipment/baits. By that, I mean, don't veg out in one spot and wait for them to come to you ... if you don't catch anything in an area, after 30mins or so - MOVE. IF they ain't deep - look shallow! Or - you could reverse your fishing "plans" ... and fish for Crappie, early & late, and do your Bassing during the 10-3 window. ......luck2ya ......cp

[TomC]

Very interesting article and think I'll give it a try and I really don't want to mess with live bait........hard to keep alive in this hot weather. I suppose the "quality" reel eliminates my zebco 33's but I am going to get some good spinning rigs in the next month or so serve as dual bass fishing (finesse baites and flukes) and also to use as crappie rods. As much money as I blow on baitcasters I ought to invest in some quality spinning gear. I'd also like to learn how to shoot docks.

Question for you crappypappy. I have a bunch of jigs but what weight and color are your favorites if you had to pick one and what specific color and size and mfg of plastic trailer should I put on the jig heads. As specific on the brand color and type would be helpful. I know that no one color always produces best but if you had to pick one (for stained water) what would it be. Also, how are you attaching the trailer to the jig head and would it be an OK idea to attach 2 or even 3 jigs to the line and I'm assuming you put a small split shot 6 or 8 inches above the upper jig? Thanks and I might just switch my crappy fishing to earlier and late and then just flip docks for bass during mid-day with my go to black jig and pig during mid day! Thanks again!

tom

[Mopar Matt]

In warm stained water, I like a yellow head road runner (by Blakemore) with a black/chartreuse body (bailey magnet/crappie thunder). Try to find the thermocline in the area you are fishing ( I would guess 12-15') and keep the jig swimming in that depth (use a float if needed).

[CrappiePappy]

first off .... I don't know if I'd actually eat "fried crappy" :rolleyes: ... but, fried Crappie - now that's some good eatin !! ...LOL!!

I cast jigs about 95% of the time - I use 1/16oz jigheads about 95% of "that" time ... and I use a BPS Sparkle Squirt tube for most applications (with the exception of "shooting docks"). The jigheads I use are - Oldham's Surelock Weedless Crappie jigheads ... and P&S Custom Tackle weedless jigheads. Oldham's has a thin wire loop to make it weedless -- P&S has the "brush" fiber style, and a V "wing" style. Oldham's Surelock's only come in 1/16oz ... P&S Tackle can make them pretty much any weight you'd want. The BPS Squirt tube that I use most often - "Electric Blue/Chartreuse" in 1.5" (#12 in this link - http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catal...=SearchResults
Neither of these jigheads is the "insert" type - so I just thread the body on the hook, leaving the lead head of the jig, exposed.
Now - that being said ... I do use "tubes" more for "regular" casting, than for "Vertical Casting". Depending on the density of the cover I'm fishing - I may opt for a marabou/hair type jig, for the less dense cover ... and a weedless jighead/tube body for the more dense cover. I just want a jig body that will have a subtle action, even with a dead slow retrieve. And I'd rather not snag up, any more than I have to - it can disturb the cover and spook the school. That's one of the beauties of this method - since you are dropping the jig straight down, and retrieving it straight back up ... there's a narrow lane of water that your jig travels thru, which minimizes the potential for hangups, to some degree.
Blk/char - green/char - red/char - white/char - pink/char - yellow/char ... are some other color combo's that I frequently employ ... but, none of them has proven superior to the Elec Blu/char. It has contrast & flash, so it works fairly well in most all water clarities. There are several other mfg's of tubes, that have this color pattern. And I'm sure they are equally as effective. I've just had so much productivity from the BPS version, that I have purchased a sizeable quantity (in the past) and haven't needed to switch mfg's.

Now - about "shooting docks" ... and my "exception" (to using tubes) -- there's not a whole lot of "mystery" about this technique. The mechanics of it are simple - you just need to practice a little, before attempting it. I prefer using Panfish Assassins, as my jig body, for one simple reason - it "skips" across the water's surface, better than a tube or grub or shad/minnow shaped body. That skipping results in getting farther back under a dock, and/or also allows you to "shoot" from a greater distance "away" from the dock. "Shooting" a dock isn't like "pitching" or "flipping" or "skipping" a Bass jig under a dock. It's more like "slingshotting" or "catapulting" a jig, underhanded, back under it. I use a 6ft med to med/hvy rod - 6lb hi-vis line - and a quality spinning reel, with a large capacity spool. The rod is for "power/speed" - to shoot the jig with enough speed to cause it to skip across the water's surface, gaining me extra footage on my cast and getting me as far back under the dock as feasible. The line is hi-vis so I can see the slightest "tic" in the line. The reel is high capacity, so that I can send out as much line as needed, to get way back under the dock ... with the least amount of resistance, less coiling of the line, and from a greater distance (if necessary). With the exception of using a braid (like PowerPro), a UL reel with a small diameter spool will cause mono to coil in tighter loops ... and this will shorten your range (from the friction of the line against the guides, and from the ever smaller line wraps around the line spool (as it gets closer to the core of the spool).
To actually "shoot" a dock, with a Crappie jig - depending on the action of the rod - allow the jig to hang down to the first guide past the reel (the biggest guide on the rod) - open the bail and hold the line in the finger crease of your rod holding hand - with the other hand, grasp the head of the jig, so that the hook point is facing AWAY from that hand - pull the jig back towards you, until the rod is "loaded up" - eye your target area/entry point under the outer edge of the dock - aim with the line between the rod tip and jig (not the rod, itself) - let go of the jig ... and when it clears the end of the straightend out rod, let go of the line. (it's a timing thing, which is why the "practice" is necessary). The jig should "shoot" straight towards the water's surface, at the outermost edge of the dock - hit the water, and skip back under the dock. Engage the reel, by manually closing the bail, and start your slow/steady retrieve - slowly lifting the rod tip up to the 10 o:clock position as you do. (note: this can be done with a spincast reel, like your 33's - just use the "button/thumb" hold & release, in place of the "bail/finger/line" hold & release method ... everything else should be the same).
Practice "shooting" at a 5gal bucket, laid on its side, from 10-20ft away. Once you can hit inside over 90% of the time - downsize your target. You may also want to test whether or not you are more accurate, shooting a jig - either, by holding the jig directly under the rod/reel (held in the conventional "reel down" position) ... or ... the "sideways" shot (holding the jig out to the side of the rod/reel, with the reel pointing towards that side/hand). ............ luck2ya ...........cp

[CrappiePappy]

oh yeah, TomC ... don't take my comment, about quality reels, out of context :D ... when I first started using the "Vertical Casting" technique - I was using a Zebco Micro 11 reel (or whatever that teeny, golfball sized Zebco spincast reel was called) It was a loooong time ago !!! But, I did learn a few things about this method, that have stuck with me; and made the method successful. The tiny reel spool of that little Zebco - showed me that Crappie would hit a very slow moving bait ! The inevitable line coils, of 6-8lb test line and the small line spool of the reel - showed me that a jig that was "circling" as it came up thru the water column, mimics a injured/unaware baitfish (or, at least, doesn't detract from the lure's appeal). I used 1/16oz white marabou jigs, in those days (and lost a lot of them to hang-ups). I was also using clear/blu mono line.
So, I learned to slow down my retrieve ... watch my line for subtle hits (and use "colored" lines or hi-vis lines for better results) ... use weedless jigs (for better cover penetration & less hang-ups) ... and switched to spinning gear (for a better drag system & smoother operation).
Don't take it, that Zebco 33's are not "good enough" ... that's not the case, and that's not my point, in my comment/article. I just wanted to point out that a "good, smooth winding" reel, would make a difference in your ability to detect a subtle hit ... as well as make the experience of using this method, more productive & more enjoyable. The article was meant to show a "method" ... using whatever brand of equipment you have, or prefer. The method does not "require" any particular brand or type of equipment - use what you've got, and what you're comfortable using ... it will still produce for you. ........ luck2ya ......cp

[frank lawhead]

that was a good article on shooting docks

I,m going to give it a go one of these days ,sure enjoyed reading how