To minner or not to minner? That is the question.

Minnows are a pain in the rear. Now, I have ALWAYS used minnows. Daddy ALWAYS used minnows. Grandfather ALWAYS used minnows. Great Grandfather ALWAYS used minnows.

I have been thinking about experimenting some, and maybe trying to catch some crappie this fall and coming spring on straight jigs. Just wondering, How many of you gents feel confident enough in your plastics that you would be willing to go to the lake without a bucket of minnows. I know some will, just wondered about how many.

I know. This topic has been discussed ad nauseum. Just wanting some hard data to go with the opinions......

Like you my father , my grand mother , always used live bait. but 5 years ago I have switched to using Gulp Minnows , wax worms and maggots .I will admit that there are days I wish I had a bucket of minnows or crickets, because the only boats coming into the launch with good catch were using live bait. I'm just getting to old to mess with cost, new regulations on minnows for which lakes . and just chasing them around the boat when they escape. Plastics an Gulp sit real still.

"Minnow free" for forty years and counting.

Quit using minnows about 7 years ago except on the very rare occasion. But am just fine not buying them. But if I was tourney fishing or spiderrigging I would not be without. But I longline and single pole almost exclusively 99.998% of time. But I do use that Bobby Garland Slab Jam stuff and the Johnsons Shad scales stuff.

I have tried just about every type of artificial bait(tube,curly-straight tail, crankbait etc.) they are and I have caught some fish with them and I will continue to buy and try them. But as far as being confident in going to catch crappie I elect to take and use my minnows. Been catching fish for years now with minnows and it is a hard habit to quit. Tight lines and good luck with whatever way you like to fish.:twocents

Minners are good.

Link for minner haters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4YlMMFzc2M

Only use minnows when the water is cold, or at night.

Jig fisherman my entire life. Women and children use minnows. That's my dad's famous quote. This year my brother and me were having a hard time catching fish so he started buying minnows. Getting bites weren't a problem with jigs but hooking them was for some reason. With minnow we don't miss as many fish. I still jig fish most of the day, but usually catch more on the minnows. Needless to say I am now in the women and children category with my dad but that's okay last weekend in a local tournament he caught three all day and we got 26 and second place.

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Originally Posted by jwilson48

Women and children use minnows.

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Minners gives my wife something to play with when the fish ain't biting ...

Rickie

my thoughts are this on that ...lots of great fisherman use minnows for crappie ....if minnows makes you good at it or confident then minnows are the way to go ......that all said I only use jigs because of 3 things.
1....I like the ole I can make them think its real food thing
2....I cant put them in my pockets and travel lite (no tackle box required)
3....I can ketch 25 or 30 on one jig most of the time before I need another

Only use minnows when kids are going. Haven't used them in a long time.

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I don't use minnows, and may not get to eat as many fish because to it, but I just don't like dealing with them.

I catch more than my share most days. I kicked the minner habit years ago .:Rofl I use tube jigs exclusively , my go to bait is Southern Pro Umbrella tubes on 1/8 unpainted heads rigged ''NIMROD style '' :biggrin Not big on changing colors alot and purple metal flake / chart tubes are tied on my jig poles 99 % of the time .:fish Great not having to deal with minner problems ( wet hands , dying bait , stops at bait store and most of all cost ). You can fish all year with jigs for what a pound of minners costs at most bait shops .:twocents

It's kinda like spider rigging. Sometimes that is the only way to put fish in the boat. Minners and spider rigging are great at certain times of the year.
But, in the Magnolia state those fish are spoiled rotten and demand minners hanging behind that jig!!

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:scratchhead :dono Still trying to figure it out but when long lining no minners and when rigging minners and jigs sometimes and jigs only sometimes. Don't hardly fish with one pole anymore

I've always used both but I have been building my arsenal of plastics.

90% of the time on big 4 if you ain't got minnows you maight as well stay home except during crankin season.

I long line troll plastics most of the time. I will occasionally tight line minnows during the dead of winter. I am going tomorrow and plan on tight lining with minnows. Got to do what you got to do.

I always tote the shiners just in case. They rule. In the summer, tote a basket full of crickets as well for fun.

Minnows almost exclusively, unless I'm traveling on vacation. Then minnows can be a hassle.

MOST of the time I use jigs. I pretty much gave up taking minners ALL the time, about 30yrs ago. BUT .... the minner bucket is always in the boat. I may be stubborn, but I ain't stupid. :biggrin

when I was a kid all we had was minnows mostly for crappie fishing, maybe a few odd looking doll flys. For close to fifty years I have fished with plastics or hair jigs and nothing else. I know minnows have a place and sometimes out fish the plastics but to me that is rare and only in certain circumstances. of course this is just my opinion.:)

If I can find fish, I catch them on plastics and light jigs. Last time out - 54 fish/ 5 different species.
Started using some curl tail grubs yesterday and did okay, but my own designs (4) do better any time of day.

tail of a plastic worm
Attachment 248557

bottom two were hand poured
Attachment 248556

1/32-1/8 oz jigs and I'm all set.

Back when I first started fishing for white perch I always carried shiners. One day I went to a good spot, baited one pole with shiner and placed in the water. Picked up a jig pole with small hair jig and caught 4 fishing beside shiner. Didn't get a bite on live bait. I do put grass shrimp on my jigs, fish luv them.

It really doesn't matter as long as you are catching and having fun! If you aren't catching get to the marina for a dozen minnows and fish them. Who really cares anyway? It is a fisherman's preference and i will never hold it against anyone that uses what ever catches fish.
I see people that belittle others that use minnows. Those are not true fisherman.
I for on know I have had more LIMITS in one year by using minnows than standard jigs and I get minnows by the pound which is cheap!

Stopped using minnows years ago.Don't know about other lakes throughout the country but the ones I fish the crappie nibble is a game changer. I absolutely would not head to the lake without them.I was made a believer from the best crappie fisherman I had ever known and have done the same with many people who have fished in my boat.

Have to say there's nothing like dropping a jig in a brush pile loaded with crappie. With that said, I have minnows in my boat 98 % of the time. I have seen to many days especially in the winter, where you can straight line minnows with a niblet and catch bigger crappie than on artificial bait. I do believe you can catch quantity with jigs but if you are fishing for big crappie, a minnow is hard to beat. Just my preference but I would rather go through the hassle of taking live bait and catching 10 big crappie versus using a jig and catching 30 short fish. I know there's a lot of big fish caught on jigs but if I had to make a choice there would be minnows in the boat.

I always git some minners. The type minners I git depends on what the store has in the tanks. Sometimes I git the JB Market type minners and sometimes I git the Contry Junction type minners. However, sometimes I have to drive to Big Sandy and git the big Sandy type minners cause Contry Junction is out of Contry Junction type minners or they is closed and/or changed ownership again.

When Billbob isa coming, I drive over and git some Milan minners as the Milan Minner farm @ $7 lb.

Unlike spoonie, I can always find fish cause Ima lucky.

This is a true story.

I figured that CP, just like me.

Minnows can be a PITA but they are my confidence bait. If I'm not using minnows I will use gulp alive minnows or southern pro stinger shad. I buy a pound Everytime i go out. However, I have an oxygen fed system with a large Engle bait cooler. I can keep them for days in the HOTT summer so long as I add some frozen water bottles.. for me minnows = bigger crappie.

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As of last year I only use minnows when I expect the bite to be tough or when I spider rig.

as many people have said do what you are comfortable with. I use minnows and jigs both. I let the fish tell me what they want and go from there. I am not a pro but I have seen many of them use them.

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90 % I use soft plastic minnow imitators tipped with crappie nibbles. There are those times when nothing else will do except a lively minnow. I always have some. The fish will tell you what they want on that day, at that time and what type of presentation. My personal favorite is to slip cork them.

Do what the fish tell you to do

98% of year, jigs ,But that one week in the Spring when they are on the bank an visable scructure, shallow beds n stumps it tuffy time , 53 years old, thump addicted but got Hooked on it watchin that slip float go under,Wow how many nights I have laid in fish camp bed with eyes shut trying to sleep an still see that bobber going under !!Kinda magacial in my book ,especially with A 2lb black on purple male attached to it .still good times

I always prefer fishing jigs but I do not let my preference stop me from catching fish. Since Ohio permits an angler to use two poles. I bait one with a slip bobber and minner. The other gets a meat free jig or a jig plastic tail. There are days that both produce well. There are days when only one produces. Only a true fisherman knows how really picky the fish can be at times. Other times they seem like lemming just waiting to commit suicide on anything that hits the water. But most days fall somewhere between those two extremes.

I have had days when they wanted small minnows. I also have had days when they wanted minnows that were actually chubs. Partner and I were surrounded by 15 or so boats all using store bought crappie minnows. We were using 3-5 inch shiners that we had seined. We initially had set out to pursue walleyes hence the larger sized bait. The other boats caught a crappie every now and then. Partner and I had to go down to one pole as the action was just furious for us. As the crappies were located in a huge stump field. The secret was not our spot but the size of the bait. When we finally ran out of bait . It looked like the sooner land grab for our vacated spot. They refused to believe the bait was the " magic " secret.

I wished I could tell how fish would react on any given day. But since I can't . I pack everything that has worked for me in the past. If some want to look down on me for using a certain method or bait. I could care less. The pile of golden fried fillets on my plate will soothe any hurt feelings I might suffer.

Jigs mostly last 2 yrs cause most the stores around here they r 2.00 dozen and their is no such thing as an extra or 2 anymore .