Strike King Bitsy Minnos

Just thought I'd share this rig that has been very effecive for bream fishing on beds. Strike King Bitsy Minnow. I fished it by itself but its really small and hard to cast/feel. So I added the small cork and a split shot to help keep it down and man those bream eat it up. And its fun watching that cork take off. I just cast it past or in the bed and they attack it. I just adjust the cork and slip shot according to how deep. I slid the cork down in the pic just to make it easier to see. Usually about a 2 feet or so. I don't like dealing with live bait.

Sounds like you have a winning combo there!
My personal favorite lure is an 1/8oz. wounded shiner Rat-L-Trap. Those gills just maul that thing!

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM looks good to me!

Good idea. Will have to try something like this in south La.

If you think it is too small to cast and feel then the rod you are using is not an Ultra Light. I have a load of these mini cranks and can cast and feel them just fine.

Mike P.

i love that bitsy minnow. i have had great luck with it here on bream and bass.

looking forward to trying the slab hammer crankbait.

I bought a couple of those yesterday, but was having such good luck with another lure, I forgot to try them out! I promise to use them next weekend.

i use them too,and they cast out just fine with an ultra light rod.i usually pick up bass,bream,pumkinseeds,and also got some crappies of em.i like to use a dual locking snap on the end of the line and depending on the size snap,i've discovered the snap will make the crankbait have almost neutral boyancy and kind of suspend or even sink!

Snap swivel is a good idea. Lot of the strikes come after you twitch it and just let it stop and suspend. Can be fished either way. Ultra light or also with a cork. I do both and have lots of fun and just something about watching that cork take off that is fun. Also, you are going to catch some bass so I use 10 lb line and I know most of you use very light line. I just don't like too.

I also use one,silver with chartreuse stripe but use it for crappie its a real fish getter for me.

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Originally Posted by 27458

Also, you are going to catch some bass so I use 10 lb line and I know most of you use very light line. I just don't like too.

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I know that feeling. I've switched to braided line. It casts forever because the diameter is so thin and is so much stronger than mono line.

i do good on the tiny rapalas too, its that tight wiggle.... catches even larger fish than your after alo of times

funny, because back in winter, i found one of these things in my room. my dumb friend gave it to me. i caught a stocked trout on it, but thats it. how else wouldi use it.

love the bitsy minnow (especially the white ) , have A ABU/Garcia 100 cardinal on a Okuma 6 ft. ultra light . will cast lights out with 6 lb. stren original clear blue .

I love them pond minners. The firetiger is my favorite color. I take the splitring off the line tie because it doesnt run as good. I tie a loop knot instead. When the gills start eating bugs on top try the pond minnow on top. Let it land and give it time for the rings to go away. Then shake your rod tip and make more rings around the bait. Sooner or later you will have gills blastin it. Mucho fun! And it almost works as good as a top water fly on a fly rod.

Thanks for the tip I never thought of fishing it under a float with a splitshot.

I've got one or two but I keep forgetting to use them DohDoh

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Originally Posted by Prybis

If you think it is too small to cast and feel then the rod you are using is not an Ultra Light. I have a load of these mini cranks and can cast and feel them just fine.

Mike P.

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+1...I feel 'em fine on th UL


I have been using these lures almost exclusively for the past week.....We've been out 3 times last week (for a total of 12 hours) and caught about 50 fish and I didn't really fish too much because I was having enough fun unhooking the ole lady's catch!....I'm sold on 'em!

We've been catching almost as many smallies as gills/crappie on 'em and even landed one largemouth! I've been catching them with a twithc n' stop method, burning them back to the boat and just trolling slowly.....starting to look like you can't fish these things wrong!

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Originally Posted by 2KanZam

+1...I feel 'em fine on th UL


I have been using these lures almost exclusively for the past week.....We've been out 3 times last week (for a total of 12 hours) and caught about 50 fish and I didn't really fish too much because I was having enough fun unhooking the ole lady's catch!....I'm sold on 'em!

We've been catching almost as many smallies as gills/crappie on 'em and even landed one largemouth! I've been catching them with a twithc n' stop method, burning them back to the boat and just trolling slowly.....starting to look like you can't fish these things wrong!

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Yep. Great lure. And you will catch about anything. Various retrieves, stop go, etc. all work. Best thing is you don't have to change bait! :D

I have 4 colors of these,just i haven't dedicated the time to fish them.OMEGAPD,do you tie braid direct or use a leader?

great post!! thanks for all the tips. gonna have to try this out. so far i have been using worms..............

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Originally Posted by sbh801

I have 4 colors of these,just i haven't dedicated the time to fish them.OMEGAPD,do you tie braid direct or use a leader?

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i tie direct to eye of lure. u can just experiment with it. lots of ways to fish with it.

what was said above- :D Tied directly.

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Originally Posted by 27458

Just thought I'd share this rig that has been very effecive for bream fishing on beds. Strike King Bitsy Minnow. I fished it by itself but its really small and hard to cast/feel. So I added the small cork and a split shot to help keep it down and man those bream eat it up. And its fun watching that cork take off. I just cast it past or in the bed and they attack it. I just adjust the cork and slip shot according to how deep. I slid the cork down in the pic just to make it easier to see. Usually about a 2 feet or so. I don't like dealing with live bait.

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I didn't know you could use crank baits with a float lol, does this set-up work very well ???...

Wow this is really interesting. I've used splitshots to make Rapala F03s go deeper, but I've never thought of using a float to keep a deeper diving bait from going too deep. I might have to try this sometime in this one place we fish sometimes where we have to make really long casts to get to the fish, but the water we're fishing is no deeper than about 2.5ft.

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Originally Posted by 27458

Yep. Great lure. And you will catch about anything. Various retrieves, stop go, etc. all work. Best thing is you don't have to change bait! :D

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Thought I'd add that yesterday I caught a Saugeye with one!

....now that was a first!

Right on SLABMASTER just lookin around here to see if anyone had ever tried the strike king bitsy minnow best bait you'll ever find cathin those gills or shellies on beds or not it dont matter

Another thing to buy!

...this hobby is gettin' spensive.

Looks good.

whenever i am fishing,i am throwing one of these things some part of the time im out there! lately i been using the chartruese with black back colored ones.think im starting to like that color over fire tiger,and i love firetiger

Ive caught my two biggest gills (back to back, had them mounted together, combined weight was 3lb 7oz) you cannot go wrong with the albino, whenever im fishing for anything I always bring em and troll back to the landing with them, kinda pricey but oh so worth it!

That should do the trick

Might have to try this

Great bait on small streams also.

The Salmo Chubby Darter works under a slip bobber, too. This one sinks and then moves up and down when the line is pulled through the bobber and released, a more vertical presentation on the same kind of rig.

Love those little things but never tried them with a float

Tried them for the first time this year after all the hype. They will catch it all. I caught Crappies,Small Largemouths,Redbreast Sunfish, Bluegills,Warmouth from small farm ponds and small creeks. Bomber Square A in Oxbow Bream color is awesome as well. You can get them at Walmart.

I love them. First thing I do when I get them is take the split ring off. The split ring wont let them swim good because the ring is to big for the loop it is attatched to. I tie a loop knot and cast it on a 6' shimano clarus UL with 4 lb yo zuri hybrid line and it casts very well on that set up. Experement with your rod and line and you will find a combo that works for you. That color you have tied on in the picture (fire tiger) is the most productive color I have found. Sometimes when you hear them slurpin bug off the top you can throw that little bugger and just shake it on the top and your hooking ratio goes way up compared to poping bugs.

Sounds like bluegill are tearing them up but how do the shellcracker like them? I used to catch some good ones on a tube jig pinched off right behind the hook.

I gotta try this, interesting. Already use the bitsy. JUST WATCH OUT FOR THEM MEAN HOOKS. lol

These sound like a good replacement for the Snap Bean which seem hard to find anymore. I have a small box of the Bitsy Minnows but really haven't given them much time on the water. I cant seem to lay my Trout Magnets down.