some newbie quistions

[countrycat16]

hey yall, im new here and i love the site already.so hears my quistion,what are some good crappie baits(mostly artifical)?also what should i look for to find crappie like structure wise?and finally how big is a trophy crappie? keep in mind that i have never cought a crappie before,but i have cought alot of bluegill in the 8-10 inch range.any help would be greatly apreciated.thanks

[willsjwills]

HEY,CAT. welcome to the site. this is my two cents worth to your questions

BAIT: best to learn with minnows. good hook, split shot, and float. probably a #1 or #1/0 would do the job. this time of the year find logs or brush in 5 to 6 feet of water and let the sucker swim around the structure.this should get some action.
an option would be to use a jig, 1/16th oz. , 10 or 12 ft crappie pole, jig tipped with minnow or crappie nibble. fish the jig around submerged structure(logs or brush) with and with-out float.

fish early and late.
TROPHY CRAPPIE AROUND HERE WOULD BE 3LB. AT LEAST
hope this helps.

lots of folks on the N.C. board that can be helpful.

KEEP YOUR POWDER DRY

[gabowman]

Wills has some good info. I prefer nite fishing with minnows so no help on the jigs. I might offer my suggestion to what is a trophy crappie........I believe it is whatever is in the eye of the beholder. For one person a 3 lber is a trophy but then again the same could be said for a 2 lber. Alot of people might not ever see a 3 lber. You'll have to make your own decision on what's a trophy to you.


Now, DID I GET YOU TOTALLY CONFUSED!!! :D

[skiptomylu]

In the spring I fish from 3' to 12' or maybe even a little deeper late spring and I troll around the grass. Under 6" I use a 1/32 oz. and then go to a 1/16 oz.

Late Spring and before the heat is turned on I fish over brush piles that are at least 20' deep or more and usually catch fish down about 12'. I do move deeper later.

In summer I fish mostly at night and use a 3 way swivel and have a hook for a minnow on a short leader like 6"-8" or so and then about 18" below that I have a 1/4 oz jig for weight and I usually catch the bigger crappie on the jig. Water may be 30' or a little more and fishing anywhere from 12' to 20' down.

All the brush pile fishing and night fishing is on the edge of Creeks.

Hope this helps and I do have a How To Page on my web site you can look at.
http://thumpitjigs.com/HowTo.html

If I can help with more just look around my web site and if you have a question email me or PM me and I will do what I can.

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