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Thread: Without a Fish Finder....how good are you?

  1. #1
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    Default Without a Fish Finder....how good are you?


    Hey guys,
    I'm writing this post today because I've been a bank fisherman/rent a jon boat for years, with no fish finder! I was curious to see which of you anglers would be completely lost without your fish finder/sonar?! From my point of view, I would say 99% of the "crappie catching vids" on youtube are done with the help of sonar/fish finder, and they just slay em' making it look wayyy to easy......Their's no question a sonar/fish finder is critical to locating crappie and depth. But what if that technology was taken away, what would you do to locate them?....and im not talking about spring or ice fishing where their location is obvious, I'm talking post spawn, dead of summer and fall crappie. Think of it as a crappie tournament on a unfamiliar lake with electronics being illegal except what powers your boat where the heck you starting?
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  2. #2
    BAMA S's Avatar
    BAMA S is offline Crappie.com Legend and AL Moderator * Crappie.com Supporter
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    I make a lot of deep water beds to fish but it would be hard to mark them with out electronics. Fishing lights at night do not require electronics but it's nice to use them for navigation through dark shallow stretches. It would definitely slow me down some.
    Likes NIMROD LIKED above post

  3. #3
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    Well I'm not that good with one, so on a scale from one to ten, I would say I would about threeve without it... and my wager = Texas :-D

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    NIMROD is offline Crappie.com Legend - Kids Corner Moderator
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    Most lakes it helps to find fish/cover and gps great to be able to return time after time
    Moderator of Beginners n Mentoring forum
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  5. #5
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    i have a confidence level that is unlike many other anglers and do many old school things to ketch crappie .
    if i had to hit a spot i aint been to before without electronics .....my first stop would be all the bait shops locally and ask a zillion questions and try to decipher and filter out the not true answers ....LOL
    lets pretend there wasnt internet as well ....then approach the bank anglers and watch them to see who is fishing/ketchn what ?
    then get out the binoculars and look over all the boats out on the lake that are visible .
    walk the shore a bit and look for sign ....filleted carcasses maybe ? fry close to the bank ...shad flicking the surface
    fallen BIG trees along the bank in deeper waters ....really steep banks that might indicate a drop off ....
    and bridges are ALWAYS a good a place and docks as well to find them . timber stands that have a visible edge and the list goes on .
    and the use of scouting equipment like a road runner pitched and dragged is another option as well .....
    i am not very competitive though so i am not in it to ketch more or bigger than the next guy ......i just go to ketch them for me to have fun (
    and out of the 7 days a week i hit the water i only use my boat with a graph on it one day a week most weeks .....
    sum kawl me tha outlaw ketchn whales
    Likes Tony the Tiger LIKED above post

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    Cane Pole is offline Crappie.com 2011 Man of the Year * Crappie.com Supporter
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    I was fishing way before recreational sonar existed. Location was "triangulation" and depth was a ky rig using the "dabbing" method.

    I prefer the new technology cause I have developed a perfect lazy streak.
    Member BS Pro-Staff and Billbob Pro-Staff
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    Look up "Broken Bow summer time crappie fishing " on YouTube.

    Summer winter and fall it's very important.

    Mine died last week and I have to send it back in for repair.

    I feel lost without it

    Even in spring

    Sent from my GT-I9515L using Tapatalk

  8. #8
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    I very rarely use electronics and do just fine.

    Electronics are very helpful (especially on big waters), but they are not a necessity.

  9. #9
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    Fishing smaller, shallower water would help with no electronics . Once you learn the spots they like and what time of year you are good to go !
    That is how I grew up fishing. To this day I still prefer smaller water and often trailer my small boat using my 4 wheeler to fish light pressure ox-bow lakes etc.
    Likes Eagle 1 LIKED above post

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    skeetbum's Avatar
    skeetbum is offline Crappie.com Legend - Moderator Jig Tying Forum * Crappie.com Supporter
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    I don't store my electronics in the boat and that leads to getting in a hurry and forgetting them at home. I have done good without them on waters I have fished for a while. As a club member I suggested a tourney where everyone used no electronics, 1 pole and no minnows. The laugh I received was something I remember well. Pull truck has spit the motor and so I can't pull the boat, so I now fish from a canoe that is cartopped to it's destination. Backstepping many years for me. Registering and adding a TM will help but it is still good fun, and I still catch a few.
    Creativity is just intelligence fooling around
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