I use a cast net to catch shad for bait all the time. Usually by late summer when you start to see them schooling up on the surface. Sometimes they are not big enough and they just slip through the net. You may have to try several schools getting just a few here and there until you get enough. They stay alive pretty good in my livewell. A minnow bucket is too small and they die. Haven't caught too many crappie with them but I have absolutely slayed smallmouth with them, around rocks with some current with a split shot rig.