Thread: Long Lining vs Spider Rigging

Hope yall can help me out......when do you know when to spider rig and when to troll/long line? I haven't done much of either and don't know much about it so i hope ya'll can help.

Is there a certain time of year, water temp, water depth, etc. that makes one tactic better than the other??

Any advice and info would be much appreciated!!!

There are some folks who do one or the other all year long. Most folks I know long line in the early spring starting about Feb. and go through the spawn which is usually around first 2 weeks of April around here. I spider rig all year long and only long line a short time around the spawn. I have spider rigged from 3 feet deep to 35 feet deep. It is different for everyone and you just have to try it and see what works best for you. Hope this helps a little.

They both work great. Some days the Crappie want their meals moving slow & some days fast. The long line trolling bite is a reaction bite most of the time. While the Spyder rig bites is more in your face. I long line most of year but spyder rig during spring. You cover much more water LL trolling.

Thank you for your replies!

I do both interchangeably. Prefer the accuracy of spider rigging when working deep brush. Like the water I can cover when LL.

LL seem to work best when the fish move up in to the 7 to 9 foot range from Feb. until well after the spawn. have caught them 12 to 16 foot deep,but if they are deep i pefer to spider rig.

CrappieFlopper,
Does LL work well this time of year when the crappie are starting to move to shallower water chasing shad?

Originally Posted by YaBoyMaxWeezy

CrappieFlopper,
Does LL work well this time of year when the crappie are starting to move to shallower water chasing shad?

Yes!


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The area I’m fishing makes that determination for me. Wide open water I usually LL, while more confined water such as creeks and very narrow lakes with a lot of structure I’ll SR (push). Even when I’m LLing I usually push a couple out front.

I tend to use the different methods in accordance with "where" the fish are most likely positioned and whether or not they're schooled up or scattered. I'd use Longline Trolling for scattered fish in open water ... Spider Rigging for schooled fish around cover.

And just as a disclaimer note : I don't use either of these methods to any degree. I mostly cast jigs or Push jigs or cranks. Most of my Longline Trolling has been with a single pole in hand, and usually when moving between locations that are not far enough away to warrant using the big motor to get to them. All of my Spider Rigging was done as a rear seat angler in a friends boat. I've yet to actually Spider Rig out of my own boat, preferring to Push jigs (and not have to purchase or deal with live bait).