Wanting to get started trolling for crappie-any advice appreciated

[nccater]

I'm new to the site and had a few questions that may help me get started trolling for crappie. 1) Thinking about a setup where I can slow troll live bait/curly tails with 4-5 rods behind the boat and 4-6 rods in front (obviously with 2 fishermen). What speed is good? 2) Do I need poles of different lengths for the front setup? 3) What is the best way to rig the lines for this method? 4) What are some good/cheap(er) rod/reel combos for this type of trolling? Thanks.

[cause]

Welcome to the forum.

This is a very common first question on the forum, what follows is the typical first answer.

go to the search bar in top right of the page,mine says "google custom search", and search first for "long line trolling" next search for "spider rigging". Between these two searches you should get lots of information in regards to the most common questions to this question for these two popular types of fishing.

Once you have gotten a bunch of general knowledge type answers from these searches, come back with more specific questions.

[scrat]

Welcome from South Central Mississippi. Grizzly Jig Company has the pinnacle limit rods 8' 10' and 12' rods. 4 rods for $69.00 they are pretty good rods for the price.
https://grizzlyjig.com/p-296-limit-rods.aspx

[trypman1]

All the info you need is here, There are plenty of rods to pick from, go to Grizzly Jig for all your needs. You will need to check out all info on the matter. Buy the best equipment you can afford, It will pay off later. Take your time.

[nccater]

Does grizzlyjig.com have rod/reel combos?

[scrat]

"Does grizzlyjig.com have rod/reel combos?" Yes they have a lot more stuff in their catalog. https://grizzlyjig.com/VirtualCatalog/

[trypman1]

Yes, but be careful, Rods are more important, but the right reel is to. Almost any reel will do, if you are just spider rigging, but for long lining or crank bait pulling, you really need a casting spinning reel with level wind, Beware the little cheap ones.

[nccater]

i'm not going to pull crankbaits, just minnows and plastic grubs. not trying to spend a fortune having to buy rods then reels. just cheap combos to get started.

[huntinslabs]

There is a sticky at the top of the South Carolina page about longlining, and a sticky on the Mississippi page on pulling cranks. Plenty of reading material in there and some great info.

[CrappiePappy]

I'm new to the site and had a few questions that may help me get started trolling for crappie. 1) Thinking about a setup where I can slow troll live bait/curly tails with 4-5 rods behind the boat and 4-6 rods in front (obviously with 2 fishermen). What speed is good? 2) Do I need poles of different lengths for the front setup? 3) What is the best way to rig the lines for this method? 4) What are some good/cheap(er) rod/reel combos for this type of trolling? Thanks.

All I can tell you is what I do ...

Speed:
Spider rigging/slow trolling ... 0.1-0.5mph (w/sufficient weight to keep lines almost vertical)
Pushing ... 0.4-1mph (w/sufficient weight to keep lines at nearly 45deg angle)

Rod length:
Three 14' rods
A fourth rod is occasionally used, and may be a 7-10' rod (depending on which ones I brought)

Rigging:
I use a single bait per line. I have a duo-lock snap tied on the main line, and my weight & plastic bead above the snap ... I have pre-tied leaders with a loop knot on one end & jighead on the other. My leaders are made up in advance & wrapped around sections of Pool Noodle, and stored in my tackle pack.

Double bait rigs can be made/used, by simply adding a snap or swivel on the main line above the sinker (sort of "Capps & Coleman rig style").

My long rods are: one BnM PST 14' and two Capps/Coleman 14' (w/thumbar style baitcast reels)

My spider rigging mentor uses Shimano IX 1000 reels on his spider rigging rods.

A lot of the choices are personal preference driven, and/or changed after experience. I'm just beginning to get into the use of long rods (rods over 10'), but already see the advantages of 14' rods over the 10' rods I started with. It's also the reason I only use 3 long rods, currently, until I get better with the method ... and then I'll consider adding more long rods to the mix.

... cp