Stringjam

Well, I'm not sure how small you're looking for, but the Lucky Craft D-12 does not fit my definition of small for the relative depth it achieves. The Poe's Competition Cedars 4400 has a similar sized body and can hit 16+......quite a bit deeper than the LC. I don't know of any crankbaits with a small body that will actually dive 20'. The smallest that come to mind that I've used are the Poe's Competition Cedars 4500 LR and a Big M Cedar Sub......which I've hit 22'+ with. Keeping in mind that these lures will spend enough time hitting the depth zone that I'm describing.....and I crank using 20 lb. braid that has the diameter of around 8 lb. test mono. I've actually hit more than 18' with my Comp Cedars 4400, but I consider it a usable deep crankbait for depths around 15'. Another bait to look into for the low-mid teens would be the Imakatsu IK-400. Very small bait for the depth that it achieves - - and hands down gets the award for best casting deep crank I've ever used in life.......that little bait is a rocket. The body is quite a bit smaller than the LC D-12. Lastly, the Daiwa Hyper Crank Ti (the biggest one) will dive into the mid-teens easily. Also has a way-cool dual line-tie that lets you switch from a mid-wobbling bait to a tight one (I like the tight one a lot). Casts super well.

I use 20 lb PowerPro with various sized P-Line CXX leaders (depending on cover conditions). The CXX leader takes the abuse from rocks and crankbait lips, and the braid mainline allows me to get maximum depth and sensitivity. I've been using braid for cranks for the past 13 years, and fish all styles of cranks from sub 1', to deep cranking up to 25'. Rocks, cedar piles, mud flats, stumps - - whatever.....if it's in the water I'm throwing a crankbait at it. It's just what works for me. As always, your results may vary.

I don't fish an actual "spoon" much, but I have spent a lot of time throwing Silver Buddy-style baits.....which arguably can be used in the same conditions. I like the blade baits because you can hop them down ledges a little easier than a spoon.......and I replace the trebles with a single hook in the rear to reduce hang-ups (and hold fish better). They work just as well vertically.....blades fall very quickly and can actually be fished in a slower fashion than a spoon if needed, since they vibrate while being pulled upward.

No disrespect to those fishermen - but the gamut of crankbait fishing covers way too much base to generalize about what equipment to use for all of it. Throwing the "smallest diameter mono" where I generally throw cranks will get you nothing but a broken line and lost fish. If I'm fishing a cedar tree in 20' with some angry 5 lb. bass in it, there's no way I'm using 8 lb. mono to get my crank down there. Braid enables me to get maximum depth without sacrificing line strength, and the sensitivity lets me work the bait around the branches with much more precision than mono. I don't have any problems hooking or landing fish, either. The bottom line: those guys put in the time to learn what set of tools works best for the conditions they face, and we can take their advice, but we eventually have to decide for ourselves, through experimentation - actual on-the-water experience - what is going to work best for us. As always.....just MHO, FWIW, etc...

Spring: Zoom WEC Hicky & Z-Flat Coffin Pointer 100 Eakins-style jig Post-spawn: Big M "M-Flat" and Tapp-style crank JawJacker straight-lipped mid diver John Mills 1/2" stock flatsided crank Zoom Mag II Eakins-style Jig Summer: Zoom Mag II Same cranks as above - also: Richard Manley Shakeyman Fall: Homemade buzzbait Above crankbaits + Flat-Shad Model B and Sonny B Eakins-style jig What didn't work this year? Thanks to some pretty severe flooding occurring very early this year, and high water remaining even until now - - the deep crank bite never seemed to materialize.

1. What crankbait are you using? 2. What connection are you using to it (split ring, snap, both, direct to eyelet, etc....) Sometimes a snap can foul in the line-tie if it is a certain orientation on the lip - - Norman Speed Clips are especially pesky about doing this. Also - if you are tying directly to the line tie (without a split ring or snap) the action of the bait is restricted - which can also cause a blowout at high speed. Does the particular crankbait have a line-tie molded into the lip? If so, it can loosen over time and during the stress of the retrieve begin to move - causing the bait to run out. I've had this problem with a lot of Poe's. FWIW....braid is awesome for cranking, and it's all I use. You get maximum depth and maximum sensitivity....and if you fish heavy cover with these baits - especially in deep water - you need to feel every pebble, stick, and rock. As always, that's what works for me, and I realize it doesn't work that way for others......you simply have to put enough time in with the tools to figure out what works best for YOU.

Superb!

Water temp is in the mid to upper 60's here and fish are still inhaling a crankbait or a jig. Northern strain bass here in clear Ozark lakes get along very well in cold water, however.......I have no qualms throwing a Spook until about Christmas. If the water is anywhere above 50, they're still game for a lot of different techniques.

I hope the lure design itself is better than the Rattlin' Rapala - - probably my least favorite vibe. Absolutely worthless for low-speed and drop fishing.

Plastics dry out? :-? I have bags of plastics that are going on 15 years old that are in the exact same shape and texture now as they were when I bought them(?) And they're just plain plastics without any scent or impegnation.

The most versatile, consistent jig style I've used in life. Shallow, deep, dirty, clear, smallmouth, largemouth, spotted - doesn't matter.....it murders everything in every condition I fish. I pour my own now..... Nice! What are those trailers? They look like the Zoom creepy crawlers I have been using all year? I use the same style jigs in GP or brown and baby brush hogs in this situation. Allen Those are Yamamoto twin tail grubs, but I have been known to use Creepy Crawlers as well. My favorite is Bobby Garland Double Hyper Tails - - I've got about 200 or so left of them in green pumpkin, so I'm thinking I'm set for awhile there (thanks eBay!) I just seem to do better with any good twin tail grub trailer over more static action baits like Beavers and stuff. Probably because I fish a lot of rock ledges with these things, and they spend a lot of time falling (and consequently "swimming" with grub tails).

The most versatile, consistent jig style I've used in life. Shallow, deep, dirty, clear, smallmouth, largemouth, spotted - doesn't matter.....it murders everything in every condition I fish. I pour my own now.....

Double Tail Hula Grubs Sometimes weightless.......the Fat Ika was not the first palm tree to be fished in this manner. An old Bobby Garland Hyper Tail Hula thrown weightless is a beautiful sight to behold in clear water. Other than that, a Zoom Mag II or an Eakins-style jig.

I only have two of his baits.....a Mighty Bee and Little Bee. Of the two, I prefer the Little Bee. It's an aggressive bait with a big kick.....an excellent flatsided crank for fishing around heavy cover. The Mighty Bee was supposedly a Little Petey style bait, but there are other cranks that do the Petey thing a lot better (IMO). Flat-Shad for one.....for about $7 less. The Mutt is great - - love throwing that thing around the bushes. It is a little easier to fish around cover than the Hicky or Z-Flat (more buoyant + shorter, thicker body). The D-Bait was the first handmade flatsided crank I ever bought.....and the one that really hipped me to the design. They've put a LOT of fish in the boat for me over the years. The only thing I have against them is it seems like some of them have some really soft balsa.....I have one that I can squeeze the sides in with my fingers. Speaking of D-Baits - - if you like little round plugs, check out his "Fat Boy." He doesn't list this bait on his website, but if you call and ask for it he'll build it for ya.

jjmills@myjaycounty.com He has a PhotoBucket account with pics of a bunch of his baits.

The first 3 are all made by FD Custom (Masaru Oniyama). He builds a supurb crankbait - along with some really unique finish ideas. The black one is actually wrapped in carbon fiber, and the top one has a thin layer of abalone shell. I dig the abalone shell - - it's beautiful when the sun hits it just right.....(like this earlier pic). Unfortunately - - getting ahold of any of the Japanese cranks is a PITA. I was just fortunate enough to have a contact visiting Japan who was willing to pick up and order these while he was over there.

Some more crank porn..... The bait on the right is a DD22... ;D

They look so pretty because I take these pics immediately after receiving them (kind of like a custom crank inventory ....... yup - I'm a crank nerd!) You'd be surprised how long they keep that "pretty" look, though.......almost all of those baits have an epoxy coating of some sort (Devcon, Dick Nites, etc...) and can take a LOT of abuse from fish. Surprisingly, some of the weakest finishes seem to come from the Japanese baits - - - with as much effort as they seem to put into bait design and precision, they seem to go a little weak on the clear. I don't trip on it, though.....the more beat up the bait gets, the merrier. I have balsa cranks where entire chunks are knocked off the bait......still produce and I still throw em'.

It's a lip material...otherwise known by it's actual material or trade names (Garolite, Micarta, G10) It's very thin and strong, and thus popular for lip material. I personally don't really trip on whether my cranks have it or not - - - I think the actual design of the bait is more a determining factor of it's effectiveness......I like Lexan lips just as well.

Pearl / Black or Yellow / Black If every crank in my box was one of those 2 colors, I'd still have just as much confidence as with the current rainbow of shades that resides there......but let's face it - colors are FUN!

Rapala (I think you're gonna hear that one a lot!) Storm Wiggle Warts Some of the Bombers (there's just something about a firetiger 7A), also the Flat A. Bagley is priced right at $10......the G-Force B Flat II (both shallow and diving) are GREAT lures. Honey B's, Killr B's, etc....lots of good baits. IMO you're better off getting the 70's, 80's lures on eBay....some of the new ones are really junky. I've picked up a lot of old Bagleys for between $4-$8 on the 'Bay.

What ever happened to him? He was a big help around here. I'm not sure why he doesn't post here anymore......I've seen him around a few other places. I love his little teardrop finesse cranks.....those things always seem to get bit - - way fun to fish!

Very good! Am I seeing some new round-bait designs here? I don't think I've seen the 3rd one down before......or the last one.

My favorite custom crank makers, with a few pics just to show some of their work. Marty Burns (Big M) Rob Cochran (JawJacker) Richard Manley Bobby Kelly Nomad Lures (form. BlackJack) John Mills Flat-Shad Zoom WEC Brian's Bees Here's some from Japan I really like...unfortunately it's a pain to get them over here... > Flutter Baits Nakamura Kaihatsu Woodream T.H. FD Custom

I'll dig some of them out of the boat Sat. when I hit the lake and get some pics for ya - - been awhile since I've thrown a buzzbait (I've been addicted to crank for some time now...) I bought everything - mold, wire, lead, blades, hooks, etc., from a local tournament-geared tackle shop that stocked a lot of building supplies (it's very popular around here). Keep in mind - this was some 12 years ago - - the internet retail gig hadn't really kicked on yet. I don't think Stamina or Jann's were even online at that time. As far as the hook/wire connection - I just bent the wire around the hook eye.