trolling crankbait question
hello all, i have a question. iv'e started here recently learning to troll with bandit's. i'm really liking it. a lot of info i read on trolling talk's about using a leader. what is really the purpose of using a leader. is it correct to say basically all it is is a swivel tied above your lure 18 inche's or so. what is wrong with just tying the crankbait directly to the line. i use to throw crank's a lot using a swivel for bass and that was to help with line twist. i'm not sure what i'm using one for now. i still get line twist after awhile. to weight it down some if i wanna get deeper i will put a bullet worm weight above the swivel obviously to keep it from hugging against the crankbait...is that the correct way to weight a crankbait? i'm a little lost on the whole leader and swivel thing can someone help me understand a little more why there used or can you just tie the crank directly to your line with no swivel. thank's for the help all. appreciate it
jeff the crappieslayer
Not really .... well, sorta
Quote:
Originally Posted by
gajud
Hey Guys, I am fooling around with crankbaits too for the first time.
So crappiepappy, are you saying that you are using the crankbait like a downrigger for your jig?
How much weight are you using?
When I'm trolling with a crankbait/jig on a leader rig .... the crankbait is what pulls the rig down, no weights added. I generally don't troll deeper than 15ft deep, and a Hot-n-Tot will get pretty close to that deep, depending on how much line I have out. I'm actually using this setup to fish for Hybrid Stripers, but the occasional Crappie has been caught. I just mentioned how I use a crankbait for trolling, to show that for certain depths & applications ... no weight is required.
Watched the latest Tenn. Wildside program ... showed them trolling Ky Lake with cranks & weights. They were using FIVE OUNCE bell sinkers :eek: --- of course they were using heavier equipment, too. Using the big motor to push the boat ... stated speed was 2mph. They called it "pulling", because they were using poles out the side and back. As I understand it, "pushing" is when you use cranks/weights out the front ... but, don't quote me on that :p
I don't do much trolling for Crappie, unless I'm longline trolling on Weiss in the Spring. Too much timber still standing to troll on my local lakes ... so I resort to fishing the shallow timber during the early morning hours, wherever I can find some shaded downed timber. Once the Sun has gotten high enough in the sky, to not offer any such shaded spots, then I troll for Hybrids or head to the house (depending on air temp, water traffic, and whether or not my boat owning fishing partner wants to stay or not :D )
... cp :cool: