Cranks, different lakes

[excited4711]

I am sure this has been covered before, but I could not find it. So, tell me, what is pushing/pulling cranks effictive in some lakes and not in others?

[Rees Guide]

Wish I knew, whites are easier to catch with cranks than specks so if the lake is known for its specks you will most likely be less successful in it cranking, they can be caught but just not as easy as the whites, at least for me.

["G"]

The blacks are structure oriented year around....so during the summer cranking months they still relate or hang near wood. The whites during the summer months tend to suspend out in open water.

[M R Dux]

The main difference I can see is current and structure. Here on KY and Barkley Lakes we normally have a really good current flow during hot weather so the crappie will orient to off-shore structure like main lake channel breaks and deep secondary channels on the main lake. The guys in MS have less current to contend with so the fish will usually be on or near the deeper flats. Less current will normally mean somewhat of a thermocline in hot weather and that will be a big factor as to how deep one needs his cranks to be running. Sunday was one of the 1st times in a generation that I used a thermocline on KY Lake to set the depths on my cranks. Usually its deeper is better. We are extremely dry here and have had a reasonably cool summer and very little current is running thru the dams now.

I don't want my cranks to be running right on the breakline because that is where the stumps and man-made structure lives and that structure and cranks don't go well together. I will try to run them right off the break for suspended fish or I will scan an area and look for the baitballs of minnows. In late summer here you find the baitballs and you'll find the crappie.