Thread: Dock shooting 101??

Going with someone that's good at it letting them show you will greatly shorten the learning curve. I teach people how to do it on lake Jackson. My evening trips are real cheap and you'll learn more in those few hours than you will in years on your own.

Well...here goes...I don't shoot docks much, but when I do, i go with one of the three best dock shooters on here...Ricky Willis, Joe Pratenza or Richard Malcom...all here on crappie.com...Earl...We've never shot docks together..so well..luv ya man!!!

5 -5.5 FT ROD LIKE A BASS PRO MICRO LITE IM6....SMALL OPEN FACED REEL LIKE BROWNING ...4 LB HI VIZ LINE...1/24 JELLY BODIED FEATHER TAIL JIG.."SKIPS BETTER" LIKE SUGAR BUGS OR JIFFY JIGS...1/24 CAUSE OF THE FALL RATE.... LOCATE DOCKS CLOSE TO DEEPER WATER RIGHT NOW AND FISH ANYTIME AFTER THE SUN GETS HIGHER....SHOOT IT AS FAR BACK AS POSSIBLE....LET IT FALL ...FALL...FALL...JIG IT BACK TO YA AND WHAM! NOW OF COURSE....YOU HAVE TO ......

1. SIT IN A CHAIR AND CRACK UR GARAGE DOOR 4" AND GET REAL GOOD AT SHOOTIN THAT JIG BEFORE YA GO....
2. BUY LOTS OF JIGS!!! CAUSE OCONEE DOCKS WILL STEAL EM FROM YA!!!
3. PRACTICE YOUR JIG TYING LOOP KNOT SKILLS CAUSE ...WELL...YOU KNOW...

SHOOTIN DOCKS IS FUN ONCE YOU LEARN HOW....RICKY MADE ME FEEL LIKE A FOOL WHEN HE TAUGHT ME HOW TO DO IT.."BEEN DOIN IT FOR 30 YEARS MAN"....YEAH...UH ..I CAN SEE THAT...HE OUT FISHED ME 10 TO ONE THAT DAY....

RICHARD "JIGSLINGER" SLAB SLOBBER MAN TAUGHT ME ALOT ABOUT JACKSON DOCKS AND SHOOTING BRIDGE PILINGS...THAT'S AWESOME WHEN THE WATER IS AT HE RIGHT LEVEL...

AND THEN THERE'S JOE....i JUST REFER TO HIM AS "NINJA" ....SHOOT DOCKS IS ALL HE DOES ! RUN AND GUN! GOT A BIGGER MILK RUN OF DOCKS ON THREE DIFFERENT LAKES THAN MAYFIELD DAIRY!

IT'S FUN! LIKE BASS FISHING WHEN THEY'RE BITING LIKE CRAZY!!!! PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE.....IT'S LIKE GOLF....MORE YA KNOW..BETTER YA ARE....HMMM..MAYBE I SHOULD GET RICKY, RICHARD, AND JOE TO PLAY GOLF ONE DAY....THEN I'LL GET MY REVENGE!!!! HAHAHAHAH!

I can tell ya what I use :

5'6" - 6'6" fast action tip rod w/reel that balances well with rod length
6lb test Vicious Panfish hi-vis line
1/16oz weedless jighead
Plastic bodies include : CrappiePro solid body tubes - SouthernPro Crappie Slug - Panfish Assassins - custom poured minnow shaped bodies ... colors are personal choice, but I like the colors of the body & tail to contrast, and most colors + a chartreuse tail takes care of that.

I look for stationary docks (on poles) with deep water along the front edge ... minner buckets, fish traps or baskets hanging off the dock ... rod holders mounted on dock ... wire or rope hanging down in water (indicating possible tree hanging off dock) ... or any obvious sign that people fish off the dock. Also ... if you see a dock with these signs/things, but it's in shallow water, then move out from the dock a distance of a good cast & see if there's sunken brush out there. Some dock owners drop brush away from their docks, especially if the water under the dock is rarely deep enough to draw the Crappie up under it.

Unless the water is real clear or real shallow ... you can usually get right next to the dock, or even up in the boat slip (w/permission) to shoot your jig under them.
The bigger the dock, and the closer to the water's surface it is, the greater the amount of shade produced ... the shade is also "darker" when the dock is close to the surface.

Biggest Don'ts : tying off to dock, getting out onto the dock, or pulling into boat slip w/o owners permission.

If the outer dock posts are in deep water (>10ft) and in the shade of the dock or treeline ... try Vertical Casting those posts. Here's an explanation of what I call "Vertical Casting" :
http://www.crappie.com/articles/crappiepappy.htm

You might even want to read my posts in this thread : http://www.crappie.com/crappie/showt...Tecnique/page2 ... to get some idea on how to shoot a dock. A little backyard/driveway practice, before you go, will help keep you from making too many errant shots & possibly damaging the dock owners property & equipment.

Also of note : hits from Crappie will likely be one of two types ... either a single short bounce in the line, or your line will suddenly go slack (and your jig is not on bottom). Don't think about it, and don't wait to feel the fish pull the rod tip ... SET THE HOOK, immediately !!

Hope some of this helps you & your boy git'em !!

... cp

All this is very good info. I wish CDC was around when i started. It would have saved a lot.of trial and error. If you learn how to flip rather than shoot, your back will feel a lot better at the end of the day. Although, you will need to learn to shoot to the back of some docks.

Chadchester1 I was in your shoes back in January. I was new to dock shooting and fishing Jackson. I read the information posted online, on the forums, and on videos. I made a couple of trips to Jackson and did not catch a fish. I'm hard headed but finally I relented and called Jigslinger. We agreed on a date and met one Sunday after church for a half day trip on Jackson. That particular day the water was very high and muddy. I thought to myself "I want to see this guy catch fish in this stuff." We went to the first spot and immediately we started catching fish. When I went back by myself I was catching fish in those same places that I had been skunked before. The others here have given you some real good advice. However, if I had it to do over again I would call Jigslinger. Catching Crappie under docks is a hoot. You will love it.

what they said!!!!

caught this under docks this past weekend . all but 3 were females and had eggs . some looked ready to lay and some were not .what do you all think ?????????????

In 1 hour I can have you shooting like a pro and catching fish Or it's free , now that's a heck of a deal. Golf pro crappie man couldn't tell somebody like me how to hit a golf ball in text , he'd have to show me. One Ben Franklin and you got it. Which basically covers my expenses that's it...and you get a lifetime of knowing how to catch crappie when no body else can year round.