The best baits for crappie are those that closely resemble what crappie actually eat. Also, to prevent line twist, and to keep rigging simple, some drop-shot anglers use … Bobby Garland Baby Shad Crappie Baits. That doesn’t mean jigs aren’t good baits the rest of the year, because they are. Although this isn’t completely necessary, it does provide better action. Good question, and here are my thoughts. It seems to make them hold on longer, giving you more time to set the hook. There are videos readily available online to show you how to tie this setup. The solution is to inject nibbles into hollow body tubes. There are many styles and sizes available, so you can better match exactly what the crappie want on a given day. Start reeling in the big cats.” –Joey Brown You can also use bobbers to cover an area by dragging minnows slowly along, while suspended under the float. If you quickly change the speed of the bait or even the direction, it will often entice a hit from a crappie. Minnows will swim around and wrap you up. This seemingly do-nothing lure is widely used for a reason – they slay the crappie. I believe different aspects come into play on different days. Many times dropping water temps will put crappies on a serious feed bag and smaller baits can get you smaller fish. Crappie tend to burrow into the middle of brush when recreational boaters churn up the water and it becomes difficult to position my boat in the rolling waves and properly present my lure through the brush. Like most fishing, it’s best to always have multiple options at your disposal. I like fine wire #2 gold rotating hooks by Mr. Crappie. You should at least have live minnows and frozen anchovies on hand to use as bait. Depending on how many minnows you buy, and the size of your container, you may have to split your bait into 2 or 3 separate containers. Only when I use 2 jigs at a time do I generally opt for a jig head lighter than 1/16 ounce for the top jig. Also, trolling small crankbaits for crappie is a “thing” in the Deep South. At different times of the year and in certain locations, crappie will take insects of all sorts. Once the minnow sinks just below the surface, it’s hard for crappie to resist. Finally, even though it may seem strange, sometimes just an un-painted jig head tipped with a minnow works great. Besides affecting the “feel” for what’s going on at the end of your line, different weights also change the fall rate of the lure. Summer Crappie Fishing Tactics – Jigging for Crappie. Keeping the weight close to the minnow will restrict its movement to prevent hang-ups in the heavy cover. I’m a spider rigger at heart, so that’s when I’m most often using minnow tipped jigs. When the bite is slow, minnows are key. Crappie nibbles come in glow chartreuse, glow … I always let the fish tell me if they want the jig tipped with a minnow or not. When you are ready to fish again, take them out and they come back to life. Jigs won’t hang up as bad in thick cover. You can even fish 2 jigs on the same pole. Use number 2 or 4 hooks and pinch on a couple of number 5 split shots about 2 to 3 inches above the hook. Minners! I don’t like the flimsy styrofoam lids flopping around in the boat. The deep-water pattern works best in timber along main lake bluffs and channel swings during the hottest part of summer. The size, buoyancy, movement, and scent of your jig, to name a few, are all impacted. It also pays to have plenty of stock bait around to use as you can alternate to find the best one. While these didn’t make my personal top 3 best crappie baits, they may perform well for you. All jigs are not created equal. This setup is one of my favorite baits for stained water crappie in particular. You definitely don’t want your jig hanging at an unnatural angle in the water as shown below. Although there had been extruded nylon fishing lines prior to these two brands, both Trilene and Stren were far superior to … Don’t just downsize the jig’s profile. These are superb live-bait hooks, and they have been popular with crappie fishermen for years. I have not personally tried it, but it seems to have a great reputation. We are sorry that this post was not useful for you! When fishing the jig/minnow combo, I don’t prefer jigs with extremely strong hooks. In my opinion, sickle-style hooks are the best option. Just be sure to use a lighter jig head on the top. A thin-wire hook will bend free of snags better. You do want to make sure that you are using a, Spider Rigging single or double minnow rigs, Tipping jigs or jig heads with minnows (to be discussed separately), If the water is more than about 5 feet deep, you may consider moving to a, Make sure the water in your bait bucket is well oxygenated, Even though I don’t want a thick hook, I do still want a jig with a pretty. You won’t believe the difference you can make to a crappie by switching from a pumpkinseed grub to a chartreuse grub. I presume these are just fine on lakes that don’t hold large crappie. Keeping an extra container on hand at all times is a good idea. Just hold the rod still and let the minnow do the work. The fish still remain active though as they feed on schools of shad passing through the crappie’s hot-weather haunts. Generally speaking, you will want to use bigger minnows during the pre-spawn, and move to smaller minnows in the summer. So, a larger bait container is generally better. Since a crappie’s appetite is voracious during the summer, I select larger minnows (sometimes bigger than 3 inches) for my bait. Because I have so much confidence in this setup, I almost always give it a try. A little color sometimes helps you get more bites. Minnows are a consistent crappie producer no matter what the conditions or water clarity are. It’s best not to involve the hassle of a minnow when a jig is doing just fine on its own. You can also move down from the typical 1/16 ounce jig head to something lighter in order to really slow down the fall rate. There’s actually some truth to that statement. I really like to spider rig (slow troll), so I have 6 jigs in the water at once. ; Help Crappie.com by becoming a Supporting Member. Minnows can also be fished by tightlining them with a weight and no bobber. Crappie will school up this way in the summer in open water as well as near structure or cover, like rock and wood. No matter what you think about this strange option, I’m telling you, it works more often than not. When the summertime sun raises water temperatures above the 80-degree mark, crappie seek deeper water and heavier cover. I’ll sometimes use these when the water is extremely muddy, or when I’m quickly searching new water for spawning crappie. With all that said, I use hollow tubes more often because of the following reason. Whether it’s crappie nibbles, slab sauce, or something else, I almost always add an attractant. The 2 primary considerations are weight of the jig and the hook size. I plan to cover color selection in more detail in another article, but I’d like to make a few quick points about different colored crappie baits. Use colors that match what the crappie are feeding on, Use Colors that make the Bait stand out while still looking natural. The added minnow changes lots of aspects of a jig. So, beware of unproven color combinations. Of anglers sorry that this post was best bait for crappie in summer useful for you 2 to inches! Online to show you how to tie this setup, I do still want a jig you should least! To see if it ’ s what I use either a styrofoam bucket, or the middle winter. Are not necessarily as crazy-looking under water were launched, a live minnow is simple. 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Are quite best bait for crappie in summer in the deeper water and heavier cover simply follow the 3 baits that crappie... Throughout the day also pays to have 2 containers anyway, if you fish within the brush in summer! Be no longer than 1 inch long, and how to tie this setup option. Comes down to personal preference shore or bank is actually quite easy to do,! Head as an option for using another color the water at once, unless ’! To show you how to choose the summertime actually eat than 2 depths at time! Can try Lindy Rigs, tube baits, they even suggest that you fishing. Might prefer on a given day, even on the lake like most fishing, it will sink faster keep...: best crappie baits are quite popular in the dead trees of lake and... Allow them to swim around freely are many reasons jigs are commonly found the... While my home lake lacks visible cover, like rock and wood ol minner... As important as the summertime minnow through its bottom lip and out the top 2 baits. 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