The New land of 3 lbers .....

[Ketchn]

very rare fish in my opinion as well in most places .
in this part of the world an angler can ketch a terribly high number of crappie before he makes the 3 lb mark for sure .
i have probably managed no more than 3 or 4 in 50 years of chasing crappie and ...
all of them came during the exceptionally long spawning periods we have in Texas .
the thing of real interest on this subject was that the first one i ever saw was an enormously huge male fish some 40 years ago !
that fish was so large the anglers in the boat nearby me were congratulating me on my big largemouth i just slid over the side of the john boat kinda quiet like ...
heck i still remember that fish like it was yesterday i tell ya ....man was he stupid big all over the place ...
he was really thick ,really long and really tall .....
i have never seen a male crappie anywhere near that size since ....
and never even realized until i chatted with the fisheries department 8 years or so ago about crappie stuff ,that male crappie can grow as large as female crappie .
i always thought they were more like bass in that department .
males ran mostly smaller and the ladies were the ones that got huge ...
i do know there is certain amount of cardiac issues that might occur on a hookup on a big male in the spring time , they can fight just like a bass and even get major air time .
i still remember a 2 lb 6 oz male that i hooked up at long range and he took the air right when i set the hook about 5 or 6 years ago .....and i mean like a double cart wheel big time air !
i yelled over at my bud on the bank with me that day one word on that fish btw
K A B O O O O O M !

[BuckeyeCrappie]

I am happy catching and lb’er fish although I wouldn’t mind tying in to a biggun.

[trypman1]

I have caught 3 over 3# and a bunch at #2.75 to 2.98. I take a picture and release, they do not taste good. When you catch one it is a prize, for sure. Give me #1.5 down for eating. Catching a 3lb crappie happens during the spawn. I love trying to catch them!!

[Oregon slabman]

They're rare on Brownlee but they do show up occasionally. In November 2004 I had a charter that our 4 biggest fish totaled 10 lbs. All 4 were big,thick, black crappie, probably in their healthiest condition of the year. Biggest was 3.07 followed by 2.75,2.37 and 1.80. This coming year will be my 20th guiding on this reservoir and I've never had a day of real big fish like that day. It takes 5 years to reach 10" here so those were old fish probably close to the end of their life cycle.

[Ketchn]

i am always amazed at how old a northern fish is when its large .
some spots the white crappie here grow ridiculous fast
some spots they reach the 10 inch legal minimum in one year .
one fella i hit the water with one summer with told me he thought alot of the 2 lb fish in his lake were only 2.5 years old

[SKs Crappie Catching Adventures]

3lb & + crappie ruin you...... All the other fish are just another crappie after you catch one of those BIG CRAPPIE..... They are definitely SPECIAL......

[Bricks]

Up here in the Nort country a 3# Crappie is only a dream, we have one section of the Mississippi river that the forage base is so huge fish never live very long as they grow too fast. Walleyes do not get much over 8 -10 years of age due to the fast growth every one you catch are obese even the smaller ones. Now I have caught some big Crappies (1.5-1.75 lb ) trolling for Walleyes but in this system I have never been able to nail them down to catch any consistently.

[Ketchn]

3lb & + crappie ruin you...... All the other fish are just another crappie after you catch one of those BIG CRAPPIE..... They are definitely SPECIAL......

this is a fact , after one real whale every fish below that mark seems rather routine
one can wish to find another over 3 , but unless its in the land of 3 lbers , its a dream fish for most folks

[ezgoing]

Catching the occasional big crappie is fun but catching a whole lot of smaller fish on each fishing trip is even more fun. At least for me, I prefer quantity over quality, with lots of thumps over the occasional trump of a big one.

[Ketchn]

Catching the occasional big crappie is fun but catching a whole lot of smaller fish on each fishing trip is even more fun. At least for me, I prefer quantity over quality, with lots of thumps over the occasional trump of a big one.

this ....is me ....and if a big one gets in the mix ,its all good