Printable View
I'm still new and learning to catch these crafty crappies. What are some jigs that are good to use that CAN'T be found at the big box stores like walmart and bass pro?
I came across this place in another thread and they got some odd lookin jigs the corporate stores don't carry. Are they any good?
I fish primarily Thunderbird and Arcadia but I do have a trip coming up to Tenkiller weekend after next.
Hairy jigs, Tube Jigs, grub lookin jigs with the curly tails, and those minnow looking jigs with the pointy slender tail is what i got in my box.
If it's fished at the right depth and the right speed, it's a good jig, regardless of who sells it.
Speed? Can you elaborate on that please?
Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
3-5 seconds for one turn of the reel handle. More info here:Quote:
Originally Posted by Okie405
Charlie Brewer's Slider Company - ******* Weedless Crappie Slider "Why&How"
Redneck Rubber LLC
Beaver bottom baits. I have no idea how you can beat these.
DB4D is talking about "speed of retrieve".Quote:
Originally Posted by Okie405
Check this out : http://www.crappie.com/crappie/-memb...-crappie-jigs/ if you want something that the commercial businesses can't match. And you can look on here for the colors/shapes of three of the four different plastics that "Slabeye" makes : https://sites.google.com/site/slaban...nged=Jig-Bodys (he hasn't put the Deuces Wild version on there yet, but he makes them in all the same colors as the other three)
They're soft but very durable, and they catch fish !! They're also less expensive than the brand name lures of the same shapes. I cast them, push them, and spider rig with them ... and they catch fish for me, every time I use them !!
Get some lake fork crappie bodies
Good action
Sent from my GT-I9515L using Tapatalk
Okie405 you opened up a can of worms. If you ask a 100 people what was their favorite jig you would probably get 95 different answers on what's the best. In truth they all work in the right conditions. Don't think design has as much effect as color preference and again you will get 100 different opinions. I would be willing to bet everybody that has crappie fished very long has a black /chart jig in their box. The new colors are good on days but it's hard to beat old standby's.
The link you provided is of Frank300's company that he owns and pours himself. Great guy with a great product. It is also made in Oklahoma!
I've had great success at Thunderbird with black/fluorescent green chartreuse or chartreuse and tomato seed/fluorescent green chartreuse or chartreuse. Doesn't really matter what bait manufacturer or style of bait. Put it in front of their face and they'll bite it if interested. Problem you'll run into is alot of baits are soft and tear easy but there is no magic behind this as plastisol comes in different grades. Soft, medium and hard. You can also add more softener or hardener to your liking.
Baits I use are all mine that I pour. 2.4" stinger, 2.5" carrot and 2.5" mo magic is what I was using last time I was at the bird. I have since then shucked the 2.5" mo magic as it is a pain to pour. I mostly use weedless round jig heads that I pour as well. I'm usually double dipping with an 1/8 oz on top and a 1/4 oz on bottom. Just recently switched over to Huckabee Meat Dragga rods with bait casters.
Recently I've had great success with gold flake pearl/chartreuse, blue/chartreuse and fire cracker/chartreuse. Haven't had a chance to test these colors at the bird but will one day. If you like, cruise the DIY Soft Plastic and Pouring and Painting Jighead forum for threads started by me. I have all bait I pour posted in there to give you ideas. Hopefully you'll get the bug and start making your on bait.
To answer your initial question of what's a good crappie jig? One that catches crappie. What's a great crappie jig though? One that catches crappie that you made. :)
Quick question about retrieve speed. If your reeling it in slow like that don't it sink to the bottom and then bounce along on the bottom?
I had read that crappie feed upwards (baits above them) so always keep it above them, thus I have been reeling it in just fast enough to keep it a bit off the bottom (I'm shootin for what i think is halfway between the bottom and the surface but who can really tell with the stained water at t-bird). This is for when casting out away from the boat, not when fishin straight down next to stumps and brush, right? For straight down i keep it above them on the fish finder and kinda bounce/twitch it a couple inches every 10 seconds or so. I don't reel at all then, until it's time to try a new jig/color.
The jig will stay at the approximate depth it reaches when you start reeling. I cast the jig out and count it down to the depth I want to fish: one thousand one, one thousand two, etc. Then, I reel back slowly.Quote:
Originally Posted by Okie405
Nip my brother that is a great post. Very informative. Bla bla bla. All that stuff. In reality, a great bait, or jig is one you have confidence in. IMHO there are 4 different COLORS of water. Clear, stained, dingy, and awful. The fun is figuring out what works in each situation before that situation changes. If you do figure it out, give me a shout. I'm still figurin!
I've found that the way & distance I cast/retrieve ... a 1/16oz jig/plastic will bottom out on a retrieve at about 8ft deep. But, then I am only reeling in fast enough to keep a slight bow in the line, with the rod at the 10 o:clock position. That way, even the slightest tap on the jig will make the line jump (the weight of the line in the bow above water reacts greater than a semi-taut line). Any pause, whether to let it sink deeper or just to jiggle the rod tip, seems to add another foot to the current depth of the jig.Quote:
Originally Posted by deathb4disco
I do, usually, start my retrieve as soon as the bait hits the water ... but, if I know the depth at the splashdown point is greater than 8-10ft. I will (sometimes) use the countdown method, especially if the fish are in that splashdown area, but casting beyond that area is not feasible.
And if you're fishing straight down, along side of or through the branches of those standing trees, you might consider "Vertical Casting" !! Here's a link to the "how to" article I wrote : Crappie Pappy Article
My fishing partner & I used the Vertical Casting method to catch many of the fish that we caught at Watts Bar Lake in E. Tenn last week. We dropped our jigs to the bottom in 15-25fow, and got the hits at the 6-8ft depths ... mostly around fallen & standing trees with lots of branches. We've also used the method very successfully around dock posts & concrete bridge pillars.
when you go to tenkiller: white, pearl, or clear are often the ticket there.
I have seen times a crappie dock full of fisherman, most of which can catch fish, and have one guy with one jig head/body combo that is catching fish. Everyone else tries to imitate but can't get it done. Sometimes they can be real picky. Two weeks ago me, a buddy, and his son were fishing and they were catching ten to my one, and bigger fish. Come to find out we were throwing same body shape and color, clear with blue sparkle. They had on a pink jig head and I had a chartreuse.