tubes

[Knappy]

Anybody have any luck catching crappie on a tube--what method would you reccommend--i have not had very good luck on tubes --thanks Knappy

[fish-wva]

i put them on a round jig head 1/16 oz and experiment with the depth ( i count the cranks backwards ) until i find the fish and then just slowly jig them up and down back and forth. works for me

[Ken Kinser]

I fish tubes by casting,under a float, attach a spinner like bettle spins, on roadrunner heads all works at times, getting away from minnows more now and using tubes and twister tails seem to get not as many fish but bigger fish on straight artificual baits. also try hair jigs,and spoons

[CrappiePappy]

Anybody have any luck catching crappie on a tube--what method would you reccommend--i have not had very good luck on tubes --thanks Knappy

I'd say that over 90% of the Crappie I've caught, in the last ten years or more, have come off "tubes" (hollow or solid). Mainly I've been casting, Vertical Casting, or shooting docks with them. I use 1/32 & 1/16oz jigheads ... weedless (brush guard or V-wing) ... unpainted. Most of the rest of the Crappie have come on Roadrunners (marabou) ... or the same jigheads with Panfish Assassin bodies.
Colors vary from lake to lake ... but generally, blue/char - green/char are the better producers in tubes, while solid Chartreuse has worked well with my marabou Roadrunners. My Panfish Assassin top color producers are Crystal Shad & Albino Shad.
Don't know WHERE you've been fishing your tubes, or HOW you've been fishing them ... so I can only suggest that you need to present your tubes, to the Crappie, just above them (no more than a foot or so) and in a constant but slow speed.
My favorite cover, to cast jigs to, is a blowdown tree ... esp. one that is on a deep bank, and is big/tall enough to reach out into the deeper depths. Second to that would probably have to be a stationary dock (but, I have to go out of state to fish those, as all our local lake docks are "floaters" ). Standing timber, isolated tree near a bunch of other standing trees, concrete bridge pilons, submerged stumps or brush piles on a flat or channel edge or hump, and a rock cliff wall are also good places to present tubes ... provided it's the right time for the Crappie to be on these types of cover. And therein lies the usual problem, for most any bait used ... you got to find'em before you can catch'em So, knowing where they "ought to be" (what cover they're on, depth they're at), at that time/place and under the current conditions, is your first concern. Presentation method would be second ... picking the best method to use, to get the bait in front of the fish. They'll tell you "the rest of the story" ... size/speed/color/etc ... by accepting or rejecting your offers :p (if they're there, that is :D ) You've just got to keep experimenting, and keep putting that bait out there .... you'll eventually start getting some hits. Learn to watch your line, for any telltale movement or jumps, that you didn't cause ... that's the Crappie sucking that tube into its mouth --- and time to set the hook !!

... luck2ya ... cp

[hogster]

We vertical jig tubes here in Missouri around and over structure.I was a die hard minnow fisherman for years now i hardly ever use them.I will also use a slip float when they are shallow in the spring and fall.The bait pump is a good investment with tubes.You can fill the tube body with crappie nibbles and it adds the scent and flavor to a tube that they seem to not be able to resist.
Go to thebaitpump.com and get ya one the are great:D

[zappaf19]

I use a red and white tube with a .32 jig. Most of the time I skip them under a pier and let it hit the bottom then retreve slowly. Try to get the tube near a pilon.
Bill

[Baxter1]

I use tube jigs either casting by themselves or suspended under a float.I use a stop and go retrieve or steady retrieve. I tried using an oral syringe to fill the body with crappie nibbles.Works ok, you can get one at your local pharmacy.I also tip them with maggots.

[EDDY CREEK BANDIT]

Tubes rule! I have been tossing curley tails and tubes for a long time (30 years) I used minnows for a very short time when I started fishing but found out very early on that there is no way to keep up with numbers when the fish are really biting. I guess that minnows might be O.K. when the fish are slow. THE BANDIT