According to my experiences at Watts Bar ... the White Crappie tend to stay out on the deep channel edges, and the Black Crappie like to hang around deadfalls or brushpiles in the 25-30' depths. The White Crappie seem to stay out where they were during the Summer heat, while the Black Crappie seem to be the ones that follow the Shad back into the creeks in early Fall. I have been known to catch them (Black Crappie) as shallow as 10-15' deep around brush, docks, and cliff banks (Oct-Nov) and as deep as 30' on deadfall trees.

Of course, a lot depends on what "type" of lake you're fishing, too !! But, overall ... they gotta eat, so finding the baitfish is key #1, and finding ambush spots where the baitfish can be intercepted is key #2 (considering the depths being used by the baitfish as a factor).

... cp