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I am still learning crappie, but I like to catch bream, and they are good to eat! But I don't know where or how to start. Can I use many of the same lures I have for crappie? I may be wrong in this thought, but someone already said it, if the crappie is going to have a lockjaw, could the bream be more active? If so, then I'll change tactics and fish! I really appreciate any help you can provide.
Bluegill have smaller mouths than crappie so I use smaller jigs around 1" long . Biggest hook for gills I use is a #6 but most times I use smaller hooks like a #10. The smaller baits do catch crappie as well.
Where do I find them in a lake?
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Bluegill are everywhere in the lakes I fish. I fish from the bank and mainly fish small shallow coves or corners of the lake using tiny jigs under a weighted float. The weighted float allows me to fish baits slower than simply casting and reeling without one but there are times that fishing without a float is the better choice. Tip small jigs with a nibble or waxworm, something to add scent to the bait will increase your bites and hook up rates.
Bluegill are probably the easiest of the fish species to catch and most of us probably started our addiction to fishing by fishing for bream "bluegill, red ears, google eyes, etc." All you need to do is get you either some worms or crickets and fish them under a cork or bobber. You will have to play around with what depth to set your cork at but 12"-18" would be a good starting point most of the time. I would pitch it around the shoreline or grass line to start. Another way you can fish them if you have a lot of structure in the lake you are fishing is to just vertically fish them down in deeper water, just take the cork off and add a small splitshot of weight and just drop it straight down next to the structure - This works much better in deeper water, over 10 foot. Good luck and be sure and post pictures of your catch!
The basics guaranteed to catch anything that swims:
Light ball head jigs: 1/16, 1/24, 1/32 oz
hook size #6 (no need to go smaller)
Line: small diameter braid (1st choice) or plastic line (mono or flurocarbon)
8 # test braid has a small diameter and casts light lures a long distance.
Light action rod 5'6" or 6'
Reel: spincast or spinning - not too big or too small in spool diameter or gear ration
Lures: too many to list but always on the small side
Live bait: bits of an earthworm (YUCK!)
Not big on using floats, but fun to watch as they submerge not knowing what pulled them down. Can be used with any of the above lures or live bait.
Retrieve: rod tip twitch & pause - the universal ultra-light retrieve for any species of fish.
fish location(s) examples: on flat bottoms near shore; near weed edges or in weed pockets; sometimes schooled up in open water (big numbers caught) in 3-6' (sonar always a plus to find bait fish or fish locations in general)
Some examples of store-bought lures: Crappie or Trout Magnet grub
short thin plastic worms
a grub body minus the curl tail (amazing how many fish it catches!. I've even attached two bodies together by melting the ends. Shown below is a wacky rig (center hooked):
https://www.crappie.com/crappie/atta...-boby-body-jpg
Grub body:
https://www.crappie.com/crappie/atta...-grub-body-jpg Attachment 499275 Attachment 499276 Attachment 499277
Who knew it could do so well with the least bit of skill! Even a 4 y.o. could catch fish casting them!
Other lure examples:
small crank baits (2" Floating Rapala or Rebel; small spoon (Johnson Silver Minnow); small Mepps spinner; Gulp Minnows (1"); hand tied jig using feather or hair; 2" Sassy Shad grub with belly and or tail cut off for better action (also one of my best discoveries!)
Note: no jig is weedless, but the hooks are small and rarely get hung up. (Lily pad stems are the worst, so when snagged, push the lure free using the rod tip against it in a downward motion.)
Again, there are thousands of soft plastic lures rigged on light jigs that catch everything from 3" bass to 7 lb catfish. Been there/ done that. My numbers don't lie and rarely did I catch less than 2 dz. fish per day.