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Thread: trolling crankbaits ( Bandits)

  1. #1
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    Default trolling crankbaits ( Bandits)


    Ok. I need a little help here. I have been trolling Bandits in Enid Lake the last to days and have 4 fish.I use to run minnows and did real good but thay have gotten to dern high to buy so I went to crankbaits.Problem is, I have been reading here to run them 1.5 miles hour. I have my poles set up in front of the boat and at 1.5 that runs my trolling motor turned all the way up. What am I doing thats not right. I was told today I need to run 5 MPH. I cant get that fast with my trolling motor.Do I need to put some weight on the line or put the weight on the bottom and run a line with the plug up from it? Im lost any help would be great. THANKS

    BTW: I see outher people reeling them in so there there, I see then on the fish finder.Im running a bass boat set up for crappie fishing.

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    GWDJR - I just fished a crappie tournament on Enid 2 weeks ago. I trolled Bandit crankbaits. I didn't win or even place but it is a good way to catch crappie. I would suggest you mount some rod holders on the back of your boat and run the outboard. To get the speed right you just need to bump it into gear and let it run at an idle speed. I have 2 driftmaster rod holders mounted on the back and I hold a rod as does my partner. Crappie will rise to the top of the water and ski. It will seem that you are going to fast or atleast thats what I thought but we caught allot of fish. We had our best luck out in front of the Water Valley ramp in front of the trees out in the open water. I hope this helps!
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    From what I gather, Bandit 200's & 300's fished 40-60 yards back about 1.5 - 2 mph should be right.

    If other people are catching and you aren't, try shallower. Crappie won't go deeper for a bait.

    Hope it helps.

    Steve

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    Previous post on the subject.
    http://www.crappie.com/gr8vb3/showthread.php?t=598


    Also Tim Huffman has a book with some chapters devoted to trolling.
    Monster Crappie is a book for pursuing big slabs. The primary technique is Trolling Crankbaits along with Wade Fishing and Mississippi Power Trolling. One chapter has pros telling their outline for going after the crappie of a lifetime; their tips can help you. The final chapter picks the top five lakes in the country and mentions many other potential spots.
    This is a 128 page soft-bound book with over 60 photos. The book is at the printer and is due in mid-August. Send now to be first in line for a new autographed copy of the book. Costs including s&h is $11.50 from Huffman Publishing. Or call Grizzly Jig Company after middle August for price and availability.


    http://www.monstercrappie.com/Products.cfm

    I have had zero success with this in lakes I fish.




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    I have been trolling cranks for the last 3 weeks and have been tearing em up.
    The 1st thing you need to do is figure out what depth the fish are holding and keep the baits right above them. A 300 bandit, on 10 lb test, with 40 yds of line out ,going 1.8 mph will run at 12 to 13 ft. A 200 pulled the same will run 7 to 9 ft. My guess would be that you were not going fast enough because we always troll from 1.5 to 2.2 mph, letting the fish tell us the right speed. This will not work out the front of the boat. We fish out the back.

    I have got to know where you get your bandits if they are cheaper than minners. I am about to go broke buying them.
    Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them.
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  6. #6
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    David Waters is offline Moderator Shoals Area Crappie Association Forum * Crappie.com Supporter
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    you can put some weight on the line if you need to to get more depth.
    Shoals Area Crappie Association

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    Quote Originally Posted by BANDIT

    I have got to know where you get your bandits if they are cheaper than minners. I am about to go broke buying them.
    I would say he's getting them from the factory down there,it's in Sardis, MS close to Lake Enid.Just a guess.
    :D Give a man a crappie you feed him for a day...teach a man to fish for crappie and get rid of him for the weekend!!!

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    Previous post was right - spider rigging and slow trolling is ok from the front but for pulling cranks your rig needs to be in the back of your boat - and you need to be running the big motor.

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    Mississippi Slab: Thanks- I have two rod holders in the back now but was thinking about putting the ones in font in back. I have a older model 85 HP on back and I dont know if it would handle the hours and thx for the tip.

    Oksrt55: Thanks--Boy 2 mph seems fast. I have the 200 series plugs right now.

    Whizkids; Thanks-- I will have to check that out.

    Bandit, Thanks-- How are you running that fast, outboard? What size is it if you are? The Bandits (200 series) I have now I got from Lawers gro on 32 HW thay were 4.89 each but im checking with anouther man that has them at a much better price but the number on his b-card has changed so I will have to go by there,I will let you know.


    Can I not run the crankbaits slower with a little weight?

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    Cool

    I am very much interested in learning to troll for crappie and have invested in some lures and plan to invest in a few more. I think rattle traps may work well and have some of those as well as some shad raps. I plan on investing in some Little Georges and Gay Blades also. No one has mentioned colors. I have been buying shad colored lures like chrome and blue. Would some of you experianced trollers please give us some information on lure colors and sizes. The local crappie follow the shad schools around and I would assume that anything that resembles a gizzard shad would be a good color choice. I personally will be using rod and reels that will handle stripers as I am expecting to hook an occasional striper using this technique.
    The Little Georges and Gay Blades will be for casting into schools of shad instead of trolling. Sometimes you can see them working the shad close to the top of the water.
    I have my boat rigged for trolling, not spider rigging, so I don't expect any problems when a striper hits instead of a crappie. I could imagion what a striper would do to a bunch of light crappie poles. :D LOL.

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