Cranking my style part 2 |
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In this article I will be focusing on how to choose crank baits, the different types of lipped crank baits, twitch baits as well as modifying the Zara Spook. With hundreds of crank baits to choose from on the market, one must be able to have a more or less idea on how a crank bait will perform in the water and by knowing this it becomes easier when purchasing crank baits for the right situation and structure. The 3 main factors being:
Crank baits can be split into a few categories based on their use, action and physical appearance. The only crank baits I know of are diving, floating, suspending, lipless and jerk baits or minnows. Diving and floating cranks:These crank baits are easily recognized by a diving lip or bill. Some lips are carved or attached to the nose of the bait. When these baits are retrieved they push sharply against the water causing it to dive and wiggle. Crank baits vary in their buoyancy, some float, suspend, and others sink when they are at rest. The high buoyant cranks resist diving when retrieved causing the nose to go down and the tail up. This body position avoids the hooks from snagging or hanging up and causes the bait to make contact with structure normally causing the bill to make contact with the structure first. When not retrieved the bait normally floats up away from structure. This retrieve is used around heavy cover. Suspending crank baits are usually used around deeper open water with little or no cover, the reason for this is they do not float up and get easily hung up around heavy cover. In the figures below it shows examples of different lip crank baits. Rapala has introduced the DT flat series which has a coffin shaped bill. These are excellent to fish around timber or wooded cover because of their deflection. These baits work best when retrieved fast through cover. In part one I have explained the tackle required for these types of crank baits. Round billed crank baits:
Coffin shaped bills:
The following diagrams illustrate the movements of crank bait:   Some crank baits have a wider wobble and some very tight, sometimes a bass would react better to a wider or tighter wobble..depending on the condition and the mood of the bass Lipless crank baits {commonly known as Rattle traps}:The name lipless says it all; these baits have no diving lip. They rely on gravity to sink to their desired depth. These baits are not like the lipped crank baits which rely on their lips to give the bait action, but rather when retrieved give a slight wobble and vibration. The quicker they are retrieved the more they vibrate. Recently I have discovered that the falling action of these baits is very important because one can get a reaction strike on the fall. The new strike king red-eye shad is one of the only lipless crank baits that have a fluttering action on the fall; this can be deadly when fished at the right time. In the figures below we show the red-eye shad and other rattle traps. The tackle used for these type of crank baits is the same as diving or floating cranks only requiring a much faster retrieve, usually a six or seven to one retrieve ratio reel is perfect.  REDEYE SHAD
Jerk baits or Minnows:These baits have a long slender profile, small diving lip and a rolling swimming action. These baits are normally fished just under the surface or a few feet below. A very good example is the rapala x-rap. These baits respond well to twitches, snaps and jerks. One can vary the length and speed of the rod movement to create different actions from sweeps to aggressive darting. When fish are normally feeding aggressively a very hard twitch is affective. With the rod tip down use a short snap snap retrieve. When fish are suspended over deep water one should use a sweep retrieve. The tackle I use is a 6ft 9 G-Loomis spinner bait rod, model SBR 811. The line rating is 8 to 12lb. I pair this up with a Shimano Currado 100 reel with 10lb double x power line. One would ask why a spinner bait rod, I find when twitching this rod, it has the best springy action, basically serving as a shock absorber giving a twitch bait the best action.  The figure above shows the Rapala x-rap  The figure above shows the Smith wick rogue These are two of my favorite jerk baits Modifying the Zara Spook:There are two things one can modify on a Zara Spook, one being the hooks and the second being the eye on the nose. In the two figures below it shows the Zara Spook hook hangers being changed and the position of the eye on the nose being elevated. The reason for changing the hook mountings is to ensure the hooks move freely, so ensuring a better hook up rate. It also shows the eye of the nose being elevated so that when the bait is twitched it allows the bait to glide across the water and not making the nose dive into the water.  In this illustration they show how the hook hangers have been changed to allow the hooks to move much more freely.  Conclusion:In my conclusion crank bait fishing is a deadly weapon in a bass fisherman's arsenal. In my next article I would be focusing on cranking the weeds. Mumro Discuss this article: Cranking my Style part 2 |
