After reading a "tip" this morning from Fritts, "If the treble hook of my crankbait is barely in the mouth of the fish, that's not the best color. If the fish has the hook deep in its mouth, then that's the color I'll keep fishing." I was wondering if this holds true for you.  I barely ever have a crankbait CHOKED. I use a mod action glass rod and feel I am not burning the bait- but almost always just have it hooked on the back treble.  I am wondering if it could be the color or my speed or mood of the fish. This is in very clear water if that would be another variable.

 

Anybody get them to Choke their baits in clear water?

 

TIA 

Hard to debate David Fritts regarding advice on crankbaits.

I hope the bass doesn't choke my treble hook lures including crankbaits but it happens, usually under lower light conditions. When a bass chokes a lure it's very active and committed to eating it. 

Fritts has fished crankbaits so long he may not realize all the retrieve variations that is being employed each cast to trigger strikes. Color is something you need to have confidence in using and changing to more contrasting colors or lighter verses darker usually works, not slight color changes. Once you are getting more aggressive strikes fine tunning to maximize strikes can work.

I have changed lures that had the same color and increased strike rate, some crankbait just work better then others of the same brand, size and color.

 

Tom

2 hours ago, dgkasper58 said:

color or my speed or mood of the fish

Or action of the bait . I have switched lures that dive the same depth but have a different action and make a huge difference . Most of the time its too much action a , subtler lure might get choked ..

9 minutes ago, scaleface said:

Or action of the bait . I have switched lures that dive the same depth but have a different action and make a huge difference . Most of the time its too much action a , subtler lure might get choked ..

Good stuff right there.  I tend to love the widest wobble (I feel I catch more fish with them) but maybe that is just the bait catching me... 

 

Something I will definitely keep track of more this year.

2 hours ago, dgkasper58 said:

After reading a "tip" this morning from Fritts, "If the treble hook of my crankbait is barely in the mouth of the fish, that's not the best color. If the fish has the hook deep in its mouth, then that's the color I'll keep fishing." I was wondering if this holds true for you.  I barely ever have a crankbait CHOKED. I use a mod action glass rod and feel I am not burning the bait- but almost always just have it hooked on the back treble.  I am wondering if it could be the color or my speed or mood of the fish. This is in very clear water if that would be another variable.

 

Anybody get them to Choke their baits in clear water?

 

TIA 

smallies do around here. I think more of it depends on the type of structure you are fishing. If the fish are a little off the bank feeding upwards i believe they will choke it more than if you are firing one up getting a reaction bite beating shallow rocks. The fact you are getting bites in very clear water on a crankbait is solid, sometimes they wont sniff one on a slick day. Around here(east tn) i will swim a worm or chatterbait in very clear water with slick conditions and they seem to choke those a little better than a crankbait. Try to implement a few more pauses in your cadence and see if that effects your hard hit ratio

3 minutes ago, Jermination said:

smallies do around here. I think more of it depends on the type of structure you are fishing. If the fish are a little off the bank feeding upwards i believe they will choke it more than if you are firing one up getting a reaction bite beating shallow rocks. The fact you are getting bites in very clear water on a crankbait is solid, sometimes they wont sniff one on a slick day. Around here(east tn) i will swim a worm or chatterbait in very clear water with slick conditions and they seem to choke those a little better than a crankbait. Try to implement a few more pauses in your cadence and see if that effects your hard hit ratio

I definitely prefer the jerkbait.  Just trying to get it down during those hot summer days is nearly impossible.  Good thoughts on the worm or chatterbait- I also include swimjigs in the mix. 

7 minutes ago, dgkasper58 said:

I definitely prefer the jerkbait.  Just trying to get it down during those hot summer days is nearly impossible.  Good thoughts on the worm or chatterbait- I also include swimjigs in the mix. 

yeah man i don't even pick a jerkbait up once the water gets above 55 degrees. They will still eat it but there are better options in the box. are you catching mostly brown or greenfish cranking? Smallmouth are super curious creatures & additional pauses will get you bites that others miss. I can't tell you how many times i've picked fish off from the back of the boat or pulling on a spot shortly after someone leaves by having a different cadence

11 minutes ago, Jermination said:

yeah man i don't even pick a jerkbait up once the water gets above 55 degrees. They will still eat it but there are better options in the box. are you catching mostly brown or greenfish cranking? Smallmouth are super curious creatures & additional pauses will get you bites that others miss. I can't tell you how many times i've picked fish off from the back of the boat or pulling on a spot shortly after someone leaves by having a different cadence

Yeah, I kill it on jerkbaits all year.  Obviously prespawn and late fall are better but I can still do a 50+ fish day in the middle of summer on a jerkbait.

10 minutes ago, dgkasper58 said:

Yeah, I kill it on jerkbaits all year.  Obviously prespawn and late fall are better but I can still do a 50+ fish day in the middle of summer on a jerkbait.

Ah the north & south fish are so different, it's amazing really

1 hour ago, dgkasper58 said:

Yeah, I kill it on jerkbaits all year.  Obviously prespawn and late fall are better but I can still do a 50+ fish day in the middle of summer on a jerkbait.

Cool ~ 

That must be some very fertile habitat you're fishing. 

I'm struggling to get those kind on numbers in the entire month of July; especially on a jerkbait.

Care to share your secret ?

A-Jay

 

Will continue to throw the color until I think the "pattern" is over for that color and presentation.

 

I then pick up another color of the same crankbait and throw it to note if they will hit it.

 

If they do not hit it, I change baits and presentations.

 

My problem is that I get stubborn and refuse to change baits or colors thinking that the bass really want what I am throwing. In reality, they are telling me they don't want what I am throwing.

16 hours ago, A-Jay said:

Cool ~ 

That must be some very fertile habitat you're fishing. 

I'm struggling to get those kind on numbers in the entire month of July; especially on a jerkbait.

Care to share your secret ?

A-Jay

 

No secret.  I can usually let a jerkbait sit there and catch a fish some days. 

 

It is pretty fertile, the issue is A LOT and I mean a lot, of dinks... Last spring I had a day from 5am to 3pm in I had 75ish fish with 3 keepers all of which barely made 14"  (in lower MI)

Sometimes it is about how the bass are feeding.  If they are aggressive, they could swallow the bait, and if they want to run back to cover with the bait then the bass might be barely hooked in the mouth.

14 hours ago, dgkasper58 said:

No secret.  I can usually let a jerkbait sit there and catch a fish some days. 

 

It is pretty fertile, the issue is A LOT and I mean a lot, of dinks... Last spring I had a day from 5am to 3pm in I had 75ish fish with 3 keepers all of which barely made 14"  (in lower MI)

I live just outside Chicago and was going to ask the same question as A-Jay.....When I've been on a dry spell where I'm not catching more than 2-3 per outing I usually head to my favorite spot that almost guarantees 20-30 bass but they're all between 12-14 inches.  It's fun but only once in a while.    

I catch most of my crankbait fish when I’m grinding it on the bottom or bouncing it off of rocks.   If the water is 12 feet deep.   I’m using a crank that dives to 15 so I can hit the bottom.  Try it and you’ll catch fish.  I have much more success that way than just reeling it in.   

I've never had a crankbait swallow the lure. And, I use them and swimbaits a lot. I crank in 20-50 ft of water. Sometimes up to 80 ft. of water in the summer. They dive about 5-8 ft. The fish are suspended here. Lucky if you manage 2-4 while out a few hours. Tough but fun.