Stringjam

If you're targeting fish over 20', there are only a handful of cranks that will actually do it. The Poe's 4500 LR, which you mentioned not to mention (even though it's one of the best out there).. 3/4 Hot Lips Express from LJ - - pulls kinda like an anchor, but it'll get down. Big M Cedar Custom.....I can get into the low 20's with that bait. I'm pretty stoked to try out the Rapala DT-20 as well.... Tiemco Mad Pepper Magnum & LC Flat CB20 will get in that range - - but I don't have enough experience using either to recommend them. I think I'll give the Mad Pepper another try this year.

DT Flat 03 DT FAT 03 The Fat 3 is a Balsa B sized plug.....I'm referring to KB sized plugs, which seem to be a lot more effective in my waters. The Flat 03 also isn't really a finesse crank.....more specifically I'm referring to small-profile balsa cranks with a very lively action.

Steve - - it might be helpful if you were specific about exactly what kind of cranks / conditions you're looking for - since there is such a broad range of recommendations. The Rapala DT series is probably the best bang for the buck out there.....they're designed extremely well - - I think the DT-16 is a classic. There are some things they don't offer, though.....like flatsided shallow cranks or smaller round cranks. There are a lot of awesome custom cranks that don't cost $25 as well - - Big M, JawJacker, and Flat-Shad immediately come to mind. It just depends what you're looking for. Also....don't trip on the wood thing. A well designed crank is a well designed crank.....regardless of whether it's plastic or wood. O.S.P. makes plastic cranks as good as any wooden bait out there.

Just watching the videos of the action - it seems that some of the positions were a little redundant. The profile really isn't very shad-like.....so I can't imagine buying that bait and choosing it over a good shallow crank or jerkbait for the diving position. I think I would rather have a great topwater and a great shallow crank instead of a one bait that made mediocre attempts at doing it all. But - having no real experience with the bait - I would reserve judgment about it until actually having tried it - - which might be a long time, as I just don't see any real reason to drop my cash on it.

I use braid exclusively for all crankbaiting.....especially deep cranking. There's several reasons....one, it gets the baits to maximum depth without giving up strength. I throw my deep cranks in gnarly stuff - - 8 lb. test mono doesn't belong there. I also like to feel everything my bait is doing.....every wobble, stick and pebble. Deep bass often just inhale the bait and the only indication will be a dropped wobble. NOTE - - I use a short section of mono leader to absorb abrasion from rocks.....here in the Ozarks everything is made out of jagged sharp rocks (even the trees and squirrels are made from rocks). Braid doesn't like rocks, so using the mono leader fixes that issue. I realize it's not for everybody - just like anything else. You have to give it a try (long enough to learn its attributes) in your home waters with your personal style of fishing. It'll either jive or it won't, but at least you'll know. Like Fin@tic said.....it takes some getting used to.

I picked one up a 1/2 oz. awhile back.....don't have much time on the bait yet. I think at this point, I like the original design for what it is - and still prefer other baits for more subtle presentations (Rapala DT, Poe's 300). I'll give it some more time next year.

Pete Reynolds "Lil Petey" Metal-lipped Arbos and Bombers 70's straight-lipped Bagley DB3's "California" Poe's Not that old, but discontinued for several years now. Flat CB SR 1/2 oz. Storm Lightnin' Shad

Big +1 - - you could teach a one-handed monkey to make jigs. Learn to make them yourself and you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner! Of course, I go through jigs like candy (craggy Ozarks rock). I was either going to go bankrupt buying $3-4 a piece jigs or learn to make them myself.

Lots of good points mentioned - especially regarding speed. Crankbaiting (and deep cranking esp.) is all about FEEL. .....especially when fish aren't just suicidal. It only comes with lots and lots of time on the water. Fish don't always want a crankbait busting around along the bottom.....that's an aggressive presentation that doesn't always work. Sometimes fish prefer a lure that is just ticking the cover or bottom instead of plowing into it. If you know you're on fish and they aren't hitting your normal presentation - burn it. I don't like spongy crankbait setups.......I tried a big glass rod with mono and a big deep crank at depth feels like mush. Now I use a 7'6" moderate action graphite stick and 20 lb. braided line. I like to feel every wobble, stick and pebble. Not a huge fan of really slow reels either - - I've tried a few of the really slow reels and I feel like I'm always losing contact with the bait, and if you want to speed it up it's really a PITA. I'm most comfortable with something around 5.0:1.

Have a handful of the original 70's straight-lip angle DB3's. People would be surprised at how tight the original design's action was....very tight wiggling bait. Sometime around the early 80's(?) they gave the baits more lip angle (and a thicker lip) which gave the baits a wider tail kick. Not quite as lively as the old ones - but I like them for dirty water. I still throw those old metal baits (Mud Bugs) every now and then, too. They're not much for "deep diving" though....despite the large lips it's hard to get any of them past 10'.

I deep crank up to 25'.

Who makes that bait? I made a mold of a RC 1.5 that I pour bodies out of Alumilite Resin with microballons and add a poly lip. It is a slow floater and when I can find time to make some more I plan on sending you one to test. Allen It's made by T.H. Tackle (Japan). I can't figure out how to get them over here any other way except finding someone in Japan who is willing to go to a tackle shop and pick one up for you. Let me know how your foamy RC 1.5 turns out!

I think he went out of business......I tried to contact him a while back and he never would respond (and his eBay store is gone.)

;D Marty is pretty fearless when it comes to experimenting with these big Mags. Look at the teeny little DD22 cowering on the right...

Beautiful looking color mix on that top Petey! The walker looks very cool, too - - interested to hear how that turns out!

I gotcha, Muddy.... Thanks for the compliment as well - - I just wish I was half as good at fishing these things as some people think I am. Truth is, I consider myself a student of the art of crankbait fishing - and there are guys who are far far far far far better and more knowledgeable about it than me. I just have a lot of baits and a big mouth. ;D

You'll be hard-pressed to find a better bait than the DT16 in that price range - and even out of it. Poe's Comp Cedars 4400 is another great bait - - a couple bucks more but still under the $10 mark. More kick than the DT - good bait to use in a little more off-colored water.

I assume you're quoting me? I was referring to the "age old argument" that has gone one for years among crankbait enthusiasts about material selection - - it had no reference to the original poster's question. I would have thought the context of what I wrote would have made that clear - but I guess not. Sorry for the misunderstanding.

When bass are feeding on schools like that they'll hit a beer can - - the most important thing you need to consider is what bait you can actually get to them the fastest (castability - - as Roadwarrior mentioned). Lipless crank and Spook both sling like rocks. If you aren't comfortable with Spooks, spend enough time with them to get comfortable. Believe me (and everybody else)......they're WORTH it.

What about urethane foam? I think the argument is overblown - - - a well designed crankbait takes into account the materials used, whether plastic, balsa, jelutong, cedar, foam, PVC.....whatever. Obviously materials have inherent qualities that make one better suited than the other for certain applications........but there's definitely seems to be some overlap when it comes to balsa against plastic. So which one do I prefer? Easy....the one with the best DESIGN. If you don't think plastic can hang with balsa - - try an OSP Blitz or HPF. Good design is simply good design - and only dogged nostalgia can believe otherwise. My tackle box is filled mostly with wooden baits - but it's not because they're wooden, it's because they're designed extremely well and built by guys who are free to think apart from the considerations of building high volume. You can get profiles and actions you don't find from builders who have to invest major $$$$ to build molds for injection molded plastic baits. I don't trip on materials - - it just has to act the way I want. If it does that - it stays.

I - and also most crankbait makers - tend to use 2 terms when describing crankbait action. "Wobble" and "Wiggle" A lot of people use these terms interchangeably - but they are NOT the same thing. Here's a lowdown: Wobble - - Imagine holding up a crankbait and looking it straight in the nose. Hold the bait with your thumb on the bottom of the belly, and your index finger on the top of the lure. Now "roll" the bait back and forth between your fingers. THAT is "wobble." Some people merely refer to the characteristic as "roll" or "back-roll" - as it describes what is happening.....the lure's back appears to be rolling over, back and forth. Wiggle - - now hold the crankbait with your thumb and index finger on the sides of the bait instead of the back and belly. Twist the lure back and forth, so that the nose and tail of the lure move horizontally from side to side. This is "wiggle" - - the movement of the head and tail of the bait along a horizontal plane. Most of the time - crankbaits don't just have one of these actions, but rather a combination of both. A "tight" or "wide" reference is simply a description of how far the lure rotates during its action.

Indeed. I'm a huge fan of the flat crank.

Conventional wisdom is wrong......but it makes it easier for outdoor writers to make articles. Maybe "wrong" is too harsh a statement - - but it is DEFINITELY not always correct, and sometimes flat out wrong. I hate to throw around generalities - but I find that a tight, lively action works in pretty much any condition. Even in Yoo-Hoo water. My biggest fish of the year came on a very, very tight wiggling flatsided bait in some very dirty water. That said....sometimes fish will destroy a slowly retrieved bait with a wide action - - especially when fished near the surface. Shallow, off-colored water is one place I never rule out a crank with a wide, aggressive action. Sometimes fish will hit a beer can if you put it in front of their face. Despite fishing crankbaits pretty much all the time - it's a subject I still really don't have a handle on (understanding why the preference changes). I typically give fish both options on any given day just to try to get a better grasp on it - and in my personal experience, it just varies too much to lay down hard rules about it. Randall touched on a point that I generally just refer to as lively - - a bait that exhibits a lot of movement given a short distance traveled. Most of the baits in the top of my box exhibit that quality.

Upsizing the front hook will least affect the action.....a heavier front hook will, to some degree, alter the action, but not as much - since that is where the bait is ballasted. Upsizing the rear hook means the bait will have to swing that big steel back and forth. These aren't always bad things - - sometimes I intentionally hang heavier hooks on a lure to tighten the action on a bait that may be too lively for the conditions. So turn that frown upside down, my friend - upsize those hooks and be sad no more.

Thanks for taking the time to post a proper review, Micro. FWIW.....you just saved me $10.