New to Crappie Fishing

[ballgamedrink]

I have bass fished all my life but have rarely crappie fished even though I live very close to some good crappie lakes. My kids are getting to the age where they too enjoy the outdoors and i was looking for a style of fishing they would appeal to there short attention spans better than bass fishing. Anyway i have decide to start crappie fishing. What I was hoping to learn today from you veterans is this:

If you had to go buy 3 poles/rods/reels for crappie fishing to get you by all year what would you suggest to someone getting into the sport?

Lengths, 2 piece or telescoping, action, etc.

Most fishing i will be doing is at area lakes, some big some small, some brushy some with little cover except for man made.

Please Help

[wannabe fisherman]

Welcome aboard from Louisville KY

I'm no expert on rods and reels, but for dock or pier fishing I use light action rods and reels 5' to 6' I also use them in boat for bobber fishing along with 6' to 7' rods. For jigging I use a little longer pole up to 10'. Some use 10' up to 16' for spider rigging and slo trolling. I'm sure that some others will help you with choosing the type of rods and reels you need.

PS your profile says that you're from Arkansas. There are some VERY good fishermen there, some of them crappie guides.

[sticksteer]

welcome from Mississippi .

[jstlovtofish]

Welcome aboard, we're glad you're here. Good luck in your quest but be careful, you will become addicted.

[FROSTY]

Welcome from springfield,mo. All the information a guy could need,is here! lots of good folks willin to HELP. Don't know if matters much,my wife does real well with her 5' zebco 33. Think the main thing is GO FISH! Good Luck

[deathb4disco]

If you had to go buy 3 poles/rods/reels for crappie fishing to get you by all year what would you suggest to someone getting into the sport?

Lengths, 2 piece or telescoping, action, etc.

Depends on the kind of fishing you want to do. I'm not a troller, so I can't help you there (but there are plenty of others on hand who can.)

If you want to toss jigs, though, there are lots of good, inexpensive outfits on the market. Just look for a light/ultra light rod in the 5'-6.5' range. Pair it up with a good spinning or spincast reel, and you're in business.

Bass Pro's Microlite rods are very nice for the price. I like Shimano and Daiwa reels. Just look for a model that will handle 4-6 lb line.

[ballgamedrink]

what is with the really long poles/rods?

[deathb4disco]

what is with the really long poles/rods?

They're for trolling or vertical jigging in brush.

[Spoonminnow]

Daiwa has a good spincast reel (closed face push button) with decent ratio and anti reverse button in case a bass takes the lure. Medium size spinning reels go for around $20 and have bearing and smooth drag.

The shorter and younger the child, the shorter the rod, but look for a small diameter rod blank. Tree trunk fiberglass rods are a thing of the past and Micro-lite, I agree, is a lot of fun casting light lures and hauling in 11 plus inch panfish. Glass is nice, but I like M-6 graphite composite rods with the blank going completely through the handle for sensitivity.

Light superline (IE Fireline or Power Pro) allows for a newbie to set the hook with less reflexes, but flourocarbon (Vanish) does well with a bit less stretch than mono. I do like Trilene's XL (extra limp) line for spinning and spincast and it's more abraision resistant than braid the touches rocks. Low memory is key so you don't have to get nests out from line twist (which is why I like braid backing and 6" of plastic or f/c leader).

Just don't spend big bucks on a set up!

[gabowman]

Welcome aboard ballgamedrink. You gonna get about as many answers are there are rod lengths on this question. First off, do some reading and questioning to find out which style of fishing you prefer....ie: trolling, spider rigging, drift fishing, fishing bridges, shooting docks, night fishing, etc. and you can more pinpoint what will best suit your needs. Lot of options here. Search the boards about issues that come to mind and ask plenty of questions on methods people use fishing to catch crappie. It wont take you long to decide the style that better suits your needs for the amount of cash you want to dump into a "new" sport. Being a bass fishermean you know what I'm talking about....whew!! Now that is expensive! Anyway, visit all the boards and enjoy!