this is more of an opinion suggestion thing i want to know from guys who use craw baits for crik or river smallies and think which ones work the best or look most realistic in clear water situation ive been experimenting with many different craws and want to find some other fellow bronzie hunters like to use (i use primarily green pumpkin colors so craws that have color would be a bonus)

I think you may be whistling down the wrong path worrying about realism of appearance. Match a 3" tube pretty closely to the prevailing crayfish colors and learn to "skitter" it along cover edges and current breaks where smallies are expected to be.

oe

IMHO the "MadMan" is the most realistic craw I have seen but I have not had much success with it. That could be from not using it much since the first time or two I had it in my tackle.

Two schools of thought using craws.

First, the claws need to move slow.

Second, the claws need to move fast.

Rage Tail craws' claws move fast and I love them. So do the bass.

If you want a very good looking small craw for smallmouth check out the Munchies that are made in Louisiana.

http://www.overstockbait.com/Lindy_Munchies_Craw_Toob_p/cr.htm

Also be sure to check out the live crawfish where you are going to fish to note their color.

+1 for the Rage Tails

I also still enjoy catching real craws and using them as live bait in creeks.

They don't get any more real than this:

https://www.huddbaits.com/index.php?p=21&cat=1

Realistic is over blown. Make it look like an easy vunarable meal, or make them react to something wizzing by there faces, and thats that.

Lake fork Tackle has a very realistic craw and the smallies love them. *** sells them.

Rage Tail Baby Craw, Craw & Lobster. The Baby Craw is epic!

thanks for all the tips but the reason i asked about the realism is because usually the part of the crik i fish is extremely clear and the larger size smallies are very finicky when it comes to baits ive been using the zoom critter craw yum crawbug and yum craw papi with good success and i did match the hatch green pumpkin with a little orange on the pincers is deadly

Hard to beat a Hula Grub on a football head jig.

the only problem about the football jig heads is the crik i fish its mainly shallow and heavy with rock cover and limestone ive used a football jig a few times but its a real pain do you know any jig heads that are pretty good for rock?

I think you may be whistling down the wrong path worrying about realism of appearance. Match a 3" tube pretty closely to the prevailing crayfish colors and learn to "skitter" it along cover edges and current breaks where smallies are expected to be.

oe

As I told you before Gall, I fished that creek, realistic craws even in gin clear waters aren't always going to work as it needs to act like a craw. I really think the Yum crawbug is one of the top 5 most realistic, the "madman craws were very lifelike until they quit making them but the craw I showed you before works excellent in super clear water, you can get them in green pumpkin, green pumpkin with blue claws, orange claws whatever. What I noticed about the craws in that creek as well as the river it flows into is that in the spring the clas have a blueish color to them and so does the body but in the summer the tips of the claws get a bright orange so get some orange spike it dye or JJs magic if it comes in that color and put it on the tips of the claws of whatever you're using and it will make a difference.

I have done real well this Year with the 3.25" Predator Craw made by Winco's Custom Baits in PA. The color I use is called Mud Pie which is a Green Pumpkin with Copper and Purple Flakes. Zoom's Ultra Vibe Craw is pretty similar in shape and the Green Pumpkin Magic color is close to the Mud Pie color.

He also sell's a "Flutter Head" Weighted Hook for rigging the Craw that helps reduce the snags on Rocks. They are a bit pricy though. I have been using the Mr Twister weighted hook in 1/8 Oz and it works a lot better than a normal Jighead for snags.

yeah i noticed that the craws are a grayish blue with orange tips ive been trying to find a good dye that clearly makes the pincers orange i havent had much luck but ive been doing my usual retrieve and action which is slowly crawing and twitching it across the rocks into the pools but can anyone send me links of those craws you guys are talking about

Try the Hudd Bug or the Rage Tail Baby Craw. They work very well in the clear water.

I think you may be whistling down the wrong path worrying about realism of appearance. Match a 3" tube pretty closely to the prevailing crayfish colors and learn to "skitter" it along cover edges and current breaks where smallies are expected to be.

oe

I'm jumping on this wagon, match the tubes to the color of the craws in the river, flip over a few rocks and watch what comes out. Skitter them across rocks, off the shore line, even slowly reel them across open water patches. I've had plenty of smallies nail a tube being slowly reeled in. I've used a fair amount of "realistic" craws and they're al a waste in my opinion. Opt for the tubes, they're also cheeper so losing a few tubes and jig heads ins't going to break the bank.

ok ill give tubes more time i use them sometimes now the next question whats your favorite types of tubes?

Fat Gitzits 3 1/2 in, in brown or darker green based. rigged internally with a 1/8 oz jig head. Just play them, I use a medium/heavy 7' rod in the river and love the action I get with these off a twitch of the tip. I actually bought the rod I have for playing tubes in the river.

• Really the color depends on the local cusine but I almost always have a hit on dark brown in clear water and in darker or cloudier water. Any tube will do though, I just like the gitzits the best. What matters is the play.
  

ok thanks for the advice ill have to check them out do you use a tube jig head or an actual jig head

I like to rig them internally. Just jam the jighead down the tube and pop the eyelet out the side of the tube. It also adds a bit of protection against getting the jighead jambed between rocks. Save the painted heads for the grubs.

so do you use an actual jig head or tube jig head

Sorry, tube jig heads.

ok well i gotta find a color between a green pumpkin and grayish blue and ill be golden do you bounce it slow rewtrieve it or twitch it