Printable View
I've been trying different baits (mainly soft plastics) for Gills and Crappie. I seemed to catch many times more fish and just as many larger Crappie using tiny baits on light line (4-pound test), especially in clear water. I'm curious what other board members go to is for micro finesse.
1/64 or 1/48 black/red or black /chartreuse hand tie tipped with power bait !
also itty bitty Bobby garlands works well! Or 1” slider !
I bite my bigger baits down to make em smaller. Worked well this weekend in Michigan
I love the 1" slider bodies and just bought some 1/64th oz Marabou jigs. I plan to cut the Marabou back a little and use with a bobber. It should product a tiny bait with a slow fall under the bobber. Looking at a few soft plastic bodies that look like a cricket or stone fly. We'll see if they produce. I found out I can catch Shellcrackers consistently using a 1" slider body in Green Pumpkin so just looking for what I haven't tried. I also ordered some Nikko pin tail worms, they should be good for the Gills!
1/32 jig heads or smaller. I like to use 2lb test, going even lighter than most. I use hand ties and plastics, but smaller is better in my book, for what it's worth.
Trout magnets on 1/64 trout magnet jig heads. I use 4lb test and sometimes a very small float for gills. Seems to catch a slightly larger than average fish than live bait. When using it on crappie I've used a split shot up the line to help cast to them. Black crappie on these deep and clear highland reservoirs in middle TN can be notoriously finicky. The smaller baits seem to work better at times.
4 weight fly rod with hand tied hair flies/jigs with 4 pound flourocarbon leader
Sent from my SM-A037U using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
I agree. Smaller is better for me too. I'm a crappie magnet, trout magnet junkie.
I do catch fish on bgbs and jokers. Sometimes I'll cut the length down on those two.
I always cut one leg off the joker and sometimes trim it's body profile just to use them up. Black crappie like skinny baits. Even tubes get their legs trimmed down. The only other bait I use now that's not plastic is a shineee hineee.
A red and black fly tied to 2lb braid with an Adjust-A-Bubble bobber that you add water to for weight so you can cast it on a small UL spinning rod. Loads of fun.
Keystone minnow
Slab eye makes a small dueces wild.
I will say that anything that resembles a mollusk will have a higher odds of singling out a SC. Trout Magbet Man has made a decent living out of catching SC on a bison colored trout magnet
Sent from my SM-N970U using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
My secret to shellcrackers on artificials was 1" slider in Green Pumpkin on a 1/32oz jig head. I'd twitch and bottom bounce it and catch a bucket many days. I'd hunt for them deep on rock and shell beds instead of spawning. I must have spent three years before I figured it out, LOL!
They spend there time 10ft+ deep till that majical moment that has passed. Then they dance in 3-5
Sent from my SM-N970U using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
I have had good experiences on all panfish with the Z-man Larva. They work great for me.
I also really like using the small trout magnets. Caught plenty of nice crappie on those.
I tried the Z-man Larva yesterday under a small bobber. The fish wanted something with vibration and flash, but I think this bait is a keeper for Gills, especially when you encounter fish on beds or rising to a mayfly hatch unexpectedly. Later in the summer I'll try it deep on a 1/30oz jig head in ultra clear water and see if it works out.