Crappie Slider works / weedless or not?

I fished a Crappy Slider yesterday, casting, and caught 12 during really crappy weather, cold/wind. Oops, a pun! It was 4 species of fish, lol. Bass, crappie, bream, barfish. The latter being called sand bass, white bass, striper, etc. It's not a striper, these small guys don't get that big. The barfish had a white substance coming out of it, I assume it was sperm.

So, the Slider works. I'm impressed. The paddle tail seems to work at low speed. Funny, for bass, I have been using the Keitech Swing Impact Fat a lot, a very similar action bait, just larger. But it is uber soft, tears up easily. I have had a heckuva time finding a hook/jig to use so that it hangs right (straight) and to give me a good hookup ratio. I've been frustrated with that, especially the small size, 2.8". It does catch bass! Anyway, it's about time I finally tried the Slider.

The package I got was a dozen or so plastics and a jighead. These were regular jigs, not weedless. I did get hung up several times on underwater stumps and I never broke off, I went to get it, because I had only one Slider jighead.

I love fishing weedless due to stumps around here. Today, I came across a video of Charlie Brewer and rigging his Slider with his weedless jighead. I saw this last year, it only took me a year to come back around, lol. So, I want to try his weedless jighead. I always prefer to use an open hook jig because I cannot stand to not stick a fish after a bite, but we have so much cover around here, I usually fish weedless. I have not found a good setup for weedless other than Texas-rigged. I have tried the weedless hooks/jigs with the single metal small diameter stick-like thing that is angled ahead of the hook. I have also tried the metal weedless guards that are made of flimsy wire that curves around the hook barb. Nothing has worked as well as T-rigged. Does anyone fish weedless and find good results?

I also bought some of these 'weed guards' last year and fished a little bit with it, I need to try it again. I can't recall my results, lol. It looks like it ought to work well. Link -- Bass Pro Shops Hook Guard for Weedless Lures | Bass Pro Shops: The Best Hunting, Fishing, Camping & Outdoor Gear

I do not see but one size of Charlie Brewer Crappie Sliders, 1.5". I see that Strike King Slabalicious comes in a 2" version. The CB 1.5" size, obviously, catches fish. But I also want to try a 2" slider. If anyone knows of a good one other than the Strike King, let me know.

For bass fishing, 'finesse fishing' had become quite popular. I guess it just means downsizing your rig and the size of your baits to go for quantity rather than lunkers. Which I like. Also, the 'ned rig' is popular. It's basically a straight grub, maybe 2.5" to 3" long. Various techniques, including just reeling it in slow. I am curious if a straight grub type bait works well for crappie, and which model. As opposed to a curly tail or paddle tail. I favor an action tail, but sometimes, maybe one with no action will work better. I am going to order some Trout Magnets to try.

All comments welcome about fishing with sliders/grubs/whatevers. (EDIT: I am open to any size, large or small that catches!)

I've been a slider fan for decades. Other than my dad, nobody has taught me more about jig fishing than the late, great Charlie Brewer.

For crappie fishing, I use the spider slider head if I'm fishing really snaggy areas. Other times, I use a non-weedless head.

If you want to try a straight-tail bait, just buy some of the Brewer 4" worms and cut them down to whatever size you want.

4" Slider Fishing Worms Finesse Do-Nothing

I also highly recommend Charlie's book. IMO, it's the best book ever on jig fishing.

Charlie Brewer Sr. on Slider Fishn'

Sliders work for me, The little 1" does well in the early spring when the new hatch comes out. The weedless version works but you need a stiff tip and a quick snap to set hook. My favorite way to use them is Long Line trolling. They are very good for this.

I forgot to ask, what colors do you guys like? Yesterday, I used a combo that was kind of watermelon with black flakes with a chartreuse tail. I didn't see it on the Charlie Brewer site. Other than the tail, it is similar to my favorite bass color for soft plastics around here -- watermelon red. Except it didn't have red flakes, they are black, lol.

EDIT: One thing I forgot to mention, the Charlie Brewer Crappie Slider seemed to hold up real well. I fished for several hours and caught several fish on one bait. And got hung up in trees and such, lol. Lots of full-grown Cypress trees in the water and a 20mph wind coupled to the knowledge that you usually have to get close to the tree is not kind!