How to trigger Bass with Crankbaits
One of the things that I hear from customers about crankbaits is its too much work, well if your rigged correctly that’s not true. The next issue is about not ever getting bites well there is a way to trigger bites on crankbaits, and its not rocket science but a crank bait just must be seen to get bit and getting seen is easy.
One of the first things I do when I start cranking is rigging with light line, many times 8 lb. test line is as strong as it must be to bring in a big fish; don’t be shy bring out the light Vicious fluorocarbon line and don’t power reel a fish, work him slowly and just keep pressure on the fish with the tip of the rod and your line will hold up. The advantage of the light line is the pure fact that your bait has more action and allows you to get longer casts. The longer a crank bait is in the strike zone the more chance you have of catching fish. I’ve seen times where 8 lb. test line will give you as much as 40 ft. of additional casting length and that makes a difference. Lighter line also allows the bait to hit the depth it was designed for and hence get you to the fish.
Many times, speed excites deep fish so don’t be afraid to reel your crank bait with good retrieve speed; years ago, we prepped for tournaments by trolling crankbaits along edges to find fish. That presentation was pretty-fast as the motor drove the speed, and it created bites so speed up your retrieve and it will trigger bites.
Noise makes fish look and see your bait, use a noisy crank bait first, then turn to silent ones of they don’t bite; but noise give the bass a reason to turn look and strike and it generally causes bites.
Color is not generally the reason bass see your bait so don’t blind them with bright colors unless the water is real muddy. Us natural colors be consistent with noise, speed and light line and you will trigger more bites with crank baits. Crank baits catch fish and cause a feeding frenzy and you will have lots of fun.
Fish Lake Guntersville Guide Service
www.fishlakeguntersvilleguideservice.com
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Email: bassguide@comcast.net
Call: 256 759 2270
Capt. Mike Gerry