How do you catch 2 # plus crappie?

[ezgoing]

Do you use minnows, jigs or plastics? What color combos are most productive for you? What locations do you find them? What depth do you find them?

As you can see I have a lot of questions buy answers. I hope members can provide answers.

[SKs Crappie Catching Adventures]

Always on jigs....
Color depends on water conditions.... same as depth....
Location = usually small stumps that most don't even pay attention to....
We'll be working on locating some soon.......

[CrappiePappy]

Do you use minnows, jigs or plastics? What color combos are most productive for you? What locations do you find them? What depth do you find them?

As you can see I have a lot of questions buy answers. I hope members can provide answers.

First off you have to fish waters that HAVE 2+lb fish in them. And that's not always your major or large lakes, although those would likely hold greater numbers of them (but you also have to contend with the size of those lakes).

You can use live or artificial bait ... your choice, and also your choice of techniques.

Most of my 2lb+ Crappie have come on artificial baits ... primarily marabou Road Runners & jig/plastics .... primarily casting to pre-spawn & spawning fish (mainly because that's mostly what I've done over the past several decades). There were times, in the past (far distant past & recent past) where using minnows and Pushing jigs got me into Slabs of that size.

Their "locations" were determined by the lake I was on & the time of year. Mostly they were caught in the Spring, during the spawning period. There were occasions where they were caught in the Fall, just not as often, overall.

Their depths were determined "mostly" by time of year, with the Spring fish being in <10fow and the Fall fish being in >20fow ... not "always", but collectively over the years they were.

Colors that have shown the most consistency (for me) over the years are:
blue/chartreuse plastics on a jighead
Solid pink or solid chartreuse on a marabou Road Runner

[Ketchn]

My thought is right place right time ....location is key like mentioned, some lakes just dont have many if any...I use just jigs myself and manage a few each year around dfw ....but it ain't easy in town to top 2 lbs ....
Fork tawakoni Palestine lake of the pines Navarro mills produce a few

[T_om]

All the fish lined up on the left are over 2 pounds, and some on the right are VERY close.

No minnows, just pushing jigs.

Tom

[S10CHEVY]

One thing everyone isn't mentioning, is the time of year. 2+, prespawn, and during spawn, or in the fall when they turn the feed bags on, late September and on, getting ready for winter. They loose weight because of spawning, and it takes time, to put it back on.

[silverside]

The old rule is... large baits catch large fish. So I trap 3/4 - 1# crickets for bait.
I have only caught 1 over 2# and was by drifting a nightcrawler.


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[ezgoing]

The old rule is... large baits catch large fish. So I trap 3/4 - 1# crickets for bait.
I have only caught 1 over 2# and was by drifting a nightcrawler.


Sent from my SM-G960U using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app

I thought that also until last Fall. Friend gave me a 1/64 bumble bee jig to catch bluegill. I didn't catch any bluegill with it but I caught a lot of crappie with it before I lost it. Biggest was a 14" but I also caught some 12"-13" crappie with it.

[Old Yankee]

I have no scientific data, but a few things trend with big fish.
If the bite is light, you won't catch big ones.
They seem to hang on the outside of a school, catch one first and last on a drift.
They seldom pound the bait, light tugs almost hard to see.
Don't get them on their side coming to the boat, they'll be gone.


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[ET Fish]

I’ve caught fish here that based on length would probably be at least 3 pounds in, say Mississippi. When I weighed em....didn’t make 2 pounds!