Drop Shot setup for Crappie.

[jackie53]

Would like thoughts,info on Drop shot set ups for Crappie/panfish will be targeting crappie in 20' of water or deeper,Drop shot ,weight's ,drop shot hooks,rod's,Line,Plastic's ect.We fish a deep clear lake this time of year crappie set up in 20' of water and deeper.Has anyone tried drop shotting crappie tubes 'Hook" for tubes.Thank's.

[brushnjigs]

Rod you will need a light action graphite with a fast tip. A Dobyns 701 is THE perfect rod if you can drop the coin for it. This is no place for an ultra lite rod. You dont need the super lines just use 6 or 8# clear mono. Some like braid but braid floats and after using standard mono for years, I just dont like the feel of the bait with braid. Ive dropped in 50 foot of water with no problems feeling the bite. One light tap is all you get.
No reason for the expensive drop shot weights. I use a swivel with a clasp attached to it, then just a cheap bass casting weight. Easier to change the weights with the clasp. For the suspended fish use the lightest weight you can get by with, depending on wind or current. If Im fishing on bottom I'll use a 1/2oz weight. If in snaggy areas just use a bullet weight held in place with a couple of rubber bobber stops.
As for hooks, a #1 Owner Downshot hook is the best I have found. If using small 2 or 3" tubes just thread the point thru the nose of the tube and let the tube cradle on the hook shank. 4 and 6" worms without salt also works well. Salted baits will add weight and kill the action of the worm.
Most people over work the bait. If the fish are active thats fine but if not just lightly bounce the line in front of the spool with your free finger.. Id tell you some other tricks but my partner would kill me. lol... Dont forget the crappie nibbles.
If you have any other questions PM me.

[jackie53]

Just what we were looking for thank's great info.No one drop shots for crappie on our lake's thank's.

[dave the wave]

On Cumberland I use a 1/4 oz. jig head for the weight tipped with a large minnow. Two for one fishing and sometimes pick up a walleye

[brushnjigs]

For an inexpensive rod that worked well try a walley marshell 7 or 8' pro series IM8 rod. Not a bad rod for the money for droppin. Probably any graphite rod with this tip action will work well for you.

[jackie53]

For an inexpensive rod that worked well try a walley marshell 7 or 8' pro series IM8 rod. Not a bad rod for the money for droppin. Probably any graphite rod with this tip action will work well for you.

Just happen's to be my Favorite Rod's.From Wally at the Grizzly jig show.Thanks

[jackie53]

Homemade 2.5 in crappie tubes black/chart,Glow and junebug/chart.Wanted a little thicker tube to hold hook.Asked a local plastic co to pour said they wanted .30 cents each to pour.We poured them. Will give them a try and report back.

[Crestliner08]

I've had some success drop shotting for crappie on our reservoir, fishing 21' - 23' of water. For both smallmouth & crappie I prefer a vertical presentation vs. casting. However, I've found that a much more productive presentation (for crappie) is just drifting jigs over those depths.

Trust me, they will come up for it as it passes by overhead. Even in a stiff wind of 10 - 20 mph, I've taken loads of crappie drift fishing over those depths. It seems they actually prefer to suspend rather than staying close to the bottom. Especially if there's a good chop on the water. This is what the sonar looks like under there conditions:



Unless you use a long hook to sinker line length, you'd be fishing under them with a standard drop shot set-up. Not an ideal situation, in my experience. If you are finding them dead on the bottom and the water is relatively calm, then the drop shot can really be productive. Hands down however, drifting and/or trolling presents what they want to eat a bit more effectively. Especially if the crappie where you are follow bait balls around and keep moving, which is what they do in this neck of the woods.

Back to your question on a drop shotting rig for crappie. I like a light action spinning rod (notice I didn't say med-light) of at least 6' - 7' in length. I prefer the main line to be Fireline 4# test Crystal, with a fluorocarbon leader. I'd also recommend sticking with Gamakatsu Split Shot/Drop Shot hooks in size #2. This will take any species extremely reliably each and every time.

Drop shotting is a very personal way of presenting a bait to your target species. So don't be surprised if you get many, sometimes conflicting, opinions on "what is best". Try some things and see just what works for you and you'll do just fine. BTW, just so you know, I've been drop shotting since the early 90's and learned the technique from the drop shot "Guru" himself, Rich Zeleski. Here's a link to his site, from which you can learn a lot about this technique:

Drop Shot Basics -- Hook, line & sinker. | RichZ's Bass Blog

Good Luck!

[jackie53]

We fish deep clear lakes 38,000,40,000 ac.lake"lots of places to hide" most of the crappie fishing is done in the spring when fish move swallow to spawn.This time of year the White Crappie suspend the only way of catching these crappie is trolling crankbaits/longlining.We have lot's of trees that eat crankbaits/jig's.We find them suspended in the top of the trees with crankbaits throw a marker buoy out turn around drop a crappie tube/arkie shad into the school of crappie.The largest inside tube head we can get into a 2 or 2.5 in tube is1/8, 3/16 oz.Need a 1/4 ,3/8 oz.To fish a heavery weight we are going to try drop shotting these Crappie.No one on our lake does this espically in the heat of summer time/ski lice/jet skies.Just another technique"fishing tool".Fished the Bass Circuit seen enjoyed dropshotting for Smallmouth,Kentucky bass.Thanks enjoyed the post and info.Enjoyed the Read.wish i had read this during my tour.Days.

[scrat]

You may want to try Crappiepappys vertical fishing for them also. I have tried it a few times and it worked real well for me.

Crappie Pappy Article