For Linda - How to teach grandson?

[Slab]

"I want to know how to teach my grandson to fish for crappie in a local pond. He is 8 & he has kind of a toy (30" Iron Man) rod & spin reel. How far from shore sould he be putting his line out & what kind of hook, sinkers, bobbers, bait, etc? Should I buy him a real rod? We tried using the rather large hook that came with his set and bread but didn't work."

Thanks,

Linda

[sulphurspringsfisherman]

tell her to use minnows on a medium hook a split shot weight about 3 feet down from a bobber cast about 15 feet from shore his rod will do unless you can find a real cheap one such as the zebco 33

[GCD]

Have Slab take him fishing!

[deathb4disco]

The Iron Man rod is junk. Go to Walmart or any local tackle store and buy him a simple 10' canepole or telescopic fiberglass pole, like a BnM Black Widow. Add a spool of 4 or 6# line, some small hooks, a small float and some split shot and you're in business.

Lots of baits will work: worms, crickets, bread, corn or small pieces of hot dog. I'll send more info in a PM, but those are the basics.

[GCD]

The Iron Man rod is junk. Go to Walmart or any local tackle store and buy him a simple 10' canepole or telescopic fiberglass pole, like a BnM Black Widow. Add a spool of 4 or 6# line, some small hooks, a small float and some split shot and you're in business.

Lots of baits will work: worms, crickets, bread, corn or small pieces of hot dog. I'll send more info in a PM, but those are the basics.

Don't forget Turkey Livers! CRAPPIE LOVE the TURKEY LIVERS!!!

[Hanr3]

Rig his line up with a slip bobber, weight, and a #4 hook. Bait with minnow or wax worm, could use artifical too.

How far to cast out depends on where the fish are. What depth to fish also depends on where the fish are.

[Eager Beaver]

The outfit he has will do fine, if he can cast it. Don't need to cast far, but I use a small pencil bobber, a #7 reusable split shot weight, and a #6 light wire aberdeen hook, gold or red will work. I tie the hook on the end of the line and crimp the weight about 4 inches above the hook. I start the bobber about 1-1/2 to 2 ft above the hook. You can use a minnow or nightcrawler but only use about an inch of the nightcrawler or they will pull a whole worm off of the hook. Crafty Bluegill will eat the crawler right up to the hook before you can set the hook. Minnows are the easiest to use. Hook them in the lips or thru the eyes. If you are going to throw it out and let it set than you can hook the minnow behind the dorsal fin to keep it up right. Throw it out and let sit for a short time and then just twitch the rod tip a little so it will move the bait a short distance and let it set again. After awhile if nothing is biting adjust the bobber about a foot deeper an do the same as before. If there is any bluegill in the lake or pond you will find them for sure this way. They will be much easier to catch than a Crappie will be. I always start my grandkids out on Bluegill because they co-operate better than Crappie do.
If you want to try a jig than I would recommend a 1/32 oz Chartruese jig head and a chartruese body or tail. Tubes catch quite a few Crappie. You can use a black and Chartruese jig also. Just tie your jig on the end of your line and add a bobber about 1-1/2 ft about the jig. You won't need a weight using a jig because it has it's own weight already. Same as before. If you don't get any bites after a short time then lower the jig by raising the bobber a foot. Hope this helps get you started.
Use a side arm cast to start with. An over hand cast will usually end up right in front of him. If he is right handed have him swing the rod to the side and then bring it forward. Release the line about 95 degrees, just short of straight in front of him and follow through with the rod pointing it at the target he is aiming for. The bait will follow. No need to try to throw it a long ways at first. Casting will come the more he does it. Good luck EB

[Slab]

To Linda from Deathb4disco:

deathb4disco deathb4disco is offline
Crappie.com 3K Star General

Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Atlanta, GA
Posts: 3,031
Default Re: Message for Linda
Ed, I'm not sure when I'll be back at my computer, so tell Linda to:

1) go to Bankfisher.com

2) scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on "Articles and Presentations".

3) scroll down until you see an article called "Bankfishing 101: Catching More Bluegills from Your Local Pond".

I use this method whenever I work with young kids. It works like a charm! I would just add that a small disgorger or pair of forceps would be very useful for removing hooks.

There is another article called "Fishing with the Family" that is also very good.

[GCD]

"I want to know how to teach my grandson to fish for crappie in a local pond.
Thanks,

Linda

To Linda from Deathb4disco:

3) scroll down until you see an article called "Bankfishing 101: Catching More Bluegills from Your Local Pond".

.

Linda and her grandson can probably already catch Bluegills from their local pond. She wants to know how to teach her grandson to fish for Crappie in their local pond.

tell her to use minnows on a medium hook a split shot weight about 3 feet down from a bobber cast about 15 feet from shore his rod will do unless you can find a real cheap one such as the zebco 33

Rig his line up with a slip bobber, weight, and a #4 hook. Bait with minnow or wax worm, could use artifical too.

How far to cast out depends on where the fish are. What depth to fish also depends on where the fish are.

These replies are pretty good advice. I would add to use more than one rod per person if your state laws allow, and to fish each rod at a different depth until you find the fish... then adjust depths of all the other rods to the depth the fish are biting at.

You should be aware that fishing from shore in the heat of the summer usually won't be very productive for Crappie unless you fish very early in the morning or from dusk until it's time to go home.

When the water cools this fall the Crappie fishing from shore will pick up for a few weeks, but when the water turns cold they'll retreat to the depths again and won't return until spring.

You and your grandson should study Crappie fishing by reading this board frequently, watching Crappie Fishing videos, and reading books about Crappie fishing to become proficient at Crappie fishing.

[skeetbum]

You have enough info on how to, so I wont add to it. It's all good info. I want to add something that just might turn the tables in his direction. We did this as kids and caught fish after fish. First you need a stocking, or a mesh bag. Into the stocking you put a cup(more or less) of oatmeal, and a half a dozen slices of bread. Any bread, moldy is just as good. Then put in a rock about half as big as your fist. Tie the end, and attach 20 feet or so of heavy string or light rope. Go to where you will be fishing the day before and throw this in the water and tie it off and go home. You want to retrieve it when you're done fishing and dispose of the non biodegradable stuff, hence the rope. The fish smell this stuff and come to eat, but can't get to it. You show up and present a bait. For a young person who likes to catch fish this will make for a great outing, and it's cheap. Use this for a trip and not every time. He will learn the patience in time, but let him catch a few fish to get started.