Bass Fishing Hacks
Simple Hacks and Tips to Help You Catch More Bass
How do I choose the perfect crankbait?
Choosing the right crankbait depends upon a few different factors. What time of year is it? What is the water temperature? How deep is the water? What types of bait are around?
These are some of the questions that you will have to ask yourself if you want to catch a whole lot of bass fishing with crank baits. Crankbaits are one of the most easily fished lures that are out there. Just like their name implies, you just cast the lure and crank it back to you at varying speeds.
You can find a crankbait that mimics just about every creature that a bass likes to eat. They come in crawdad colors for the springtime. They come in bluegill colors and shad colors too. You can find a crankbait in just about every shape and color that there is.
I am a Bass Fishing Charter Guide on the Treasure Coast of Florida. I have been catching bass in the canals, lakes and ponds all over Florida for more than 40 years. In the article below, I will teach you what I know about crank bait fishing for bass.
Let’s get started.
Watch the video below and catch more bass with crankbaits.
When should you throw a crankbait?
One of the great things about crankbaits is that you can throw them all year long and still catch bass. The best months are Spring, Summer and Fall but you can throw a crankbait in the Winter if you can work it slow and deep enough to get a bite. Bass are cold and sluggish in the Winter and don’t want to have to chase down dinner with too much effort.
A shallow running crankbait is usually a good choice in the Fall and Spring when the bass are in the shallows. You will want to get yourself a crankbait with a short, square bill for shallow water bass fishing. These lures work the best in shallow water conditions from about 1 to 5 feet of water.
The short, square billed crankbaits are a good choice for the shallows on those super sunny days. Those are the days when the bass are more discerning about the lures that they will hit. A crankbait will usually get you more hits than a spinnerbait on those sunny days in the shallows.
Medium diving crankbaits are great for early pre-spawn bass. These lures have a longer bill up to about an inch in length and can cover the water column from about 5 to 10 feet deep. This is a good choice in lures as the bass are starting to move out of the deeper water where they were in the Winter months. A crankbait with a one inch bill will dive down to about 10 feet in water depth.
Deep diving crankbaits are a good choice for the hottest parts of the Summer when the big bass are down deep. The long bills of the deep diving crankbaits can get your lure down to about 20 or 25 feet deep.
Just remember that it takes some distance for the crankbait to get down to that level. If the bass are staged up in 20 feet of water where you are, then you will have to cast past them to get the lure down to where they are.
What is the best color for a crankbait in clear water?
Bass have excellent eyesight so the more natural and realistic the lure, then better it will perform in clear water. In general, you will want a crankbait that is lightly colored and somewhat translucent. In clear water you will get less reaction strikes than you would in dirty water so your lure needs to match the hatch. Give them a crankbait that looks like whatever they are feeding on.
So you will have to speed up your presentation in clear water conditions to get those reaction strikes that you want. Trust me when I tell you that a bass can catch your lure if it wants to so don’t be afraid to do some serious cranking with your crankbait in clear water conditions.
Normally bass fishermen tend to fish their lures too quickly but in clear water conditions that is nearly impossible to do. Burn that baby through the water column.
What is the best color for a crankbait in stained water?
When the water is a little bit stained a solid colored crankbait with some flash is a good choice. You will want to try and match the hatch but the bass can’t see your lure as well so it is not as important as when you are fishing in super clean water.
What is the best color for a crankbait in murky water?
When you are fishing in murky water you will need a lure with some contrast to the dirty water. This is when the chartreuse colors will work very well. You want something bright with a lot of wobble to get the reaction bites that you are looking for. Red and gold colored crankbaits can be another great choice for dirty and muddy water conditions.
Watch the video below and catch more bass in the Spring.
What action rod is best for crankbaits?
You will want to pick a slow action rod for crankbait fishing for bass. A slow action rod has a lot of bend to it and will bend about half way down the rod when you put some pressure on it. This weakens you hook setting abilities but that is a good thing for crankbait fishing because the fish usually hook themselves anyways.
In contrast, a fast action rod will only bend at the tip of the rod. Fast action heavy rods are good for bass fishing in the weeds and lily pads.
What is the best crankbait reel?
Many bass fishing enthusiasts swear by reels with a 5 to 1 gear ratio for fishing with crankbaits. This slower type of reel will slow down the bait and give you a lot more power when you are fighting a bigger bass.
The high speed reels like a 6 to 1 or 7 to 1 gear ratio reels are good for getting big bass out of thick vegetation. It all depends upon what type of bass fishing that your are doing. You can always just get a high speed reel and turn the handle more slowly and make it perform like a slower gear ratio reel.
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