Noob Crankbait Question

[Phager]

Hey all,

I relatively new to bass fishing, so please bear with me. The thing is that I can't seem to figure out the proper way to use a crankbait (like a Rapala). Here's why I think I'm doing something wrong.

Last fall I picked up a Rap on a whim, and to be honest I've never failed to hook a fish. The problem is they're always foul hooked. Of the 5-6 bass I've caught with it, only 1 has actually been hooked in the mouth. I've snagged (For lack of a better word) them in the side, the gills, everywhere but the mouth. Like I said it's proven pretty productive for me and a part of me feels like as long as it's hooked it's all good, but I know if I actually was using this in the proper manner this lure would be deadly and I'd get more and bigger fish. Not to mention it'd be easier on the fish if it was hooked properly.

So you know where I'm coming from, my technique has been to use a fairly steady retrive, at kind of a medium speed, and occasionaly throwing a slight jerk on the rod to give the appearence of an injured fish. I suspect the they're getting "snagged" on the jerk. This tells me that I piqueing they're intrest just not enough to strike. So what am I doing wrong?

Sorry for the long winded and kind of stupid question, I tried searching for "Crankbait Techniques" and didn't get any results so I guess I'm using the wrong search terms.

Thanks in advance.

Pat

[Knot in leader]

You might try replacing the front hook and put on a red hook. The fish will hit the front of the bait and eat it better sometimes. Good luck

[shalom]

It sounds like you are fishing it correctly . Keep tring and the suggestion about the red hook is a good one .

[Hunt'nFish]

Phager,
I suspect your doing everything just fine.
What I think could be happening is the bass are slamming the bait to injure it or disorientate it and getting a big surprise in the process.
Hunt'nFish

[Phager]

Thanks for the tips, I'll definitely try the red hook trick. It's good to know that my general technique is sound, do you all think I might have more sucess if I were to impart the occassional pause in my retrive? I'd think a hesitation might draw curiosity from the bass. Like I said I'm really impressed with this lure, It's got to be about the best $5 I've spent in my fishing career!

Thanks again!

Pat

[Dave Smith]

Phager, first, nice job on those fish and way to build some confidence on a great bait. You are not doing anything wrong- that is the nature of a rapala. It's lightweight and is festooned with hooks. It is more or less designed to hook, anyway it can, any fish that is legitimately attacking the lure. I fish alot of swimbaits and I add stingers to TRY to convert the "swipers" and take advantage of the fact that these fish have a tendancy to hit and turn immediately. I catch lot's of them with one treb on the outside of the mouth and all good swimbaiters do. Bass bite different everytime and they don't all just engulf the bait. If you start catching them on the gill plate, then we might have a problem. On the retrieve. mix it up! a rapala is not a perfect fish replica so don't give them too much time to focus on the bait- especially smallmouth. Rip it around, pause, etc.,if it floats, cast it out and let it settle and then start jerking it on the surface while leaving it in the same spot. pause once in a while- this is deadly. Dave

[tnj8222]

dave has got it right for sure... a rapala is meant to replica a injured bait fish.. so you can pretty much do whatever you want with them... i like to use a suspending rapala like a jerk bait.. just give your pole a good sweep to the right about a foot to two feet and let the rapala just sit there for a second or two then do it again!!1 ( if you dont leave complete slack on the line during the pause it will make the rapala dive down, you dont want this.. make sure you have complete slack after the sweep. i have been catching almost all my fish like this when i use the rapala.. now with a crankbait i usually use a steady retreive trying different speeds to find some fish.. after i find them i like to stay in the spot for awhile. trying different baits.. i always throw a spinner and a senko.... hope it helps!!!!!

[Hans Kochs]

Thats One reason I don't like using crankbaits. Even when you do hook a fish in the mouth the other free swinging hook gets stuck somewhere in the fish. Sometimes in the sides and takes all the fight out of the fish. It kind of pins the fish so he can't turn and pull.I do use top waters with multiple hooks and the same thing happens. One thought is to remove the rear hook and replace the front one with a red hook. I would much rather fish a big jig n some kind of trailer or maybe a swimbait. If you are fishing tournaments it realy does not matter. Use multile hooks to get the fish in the livewell.Drop shotting is realy a blast with a single hook and a senko. You can even power shot, using more weight and pitching and swimming the bait to search for fish.There is more fight in the fish that is hooked cleanly in the mouth, plus the light line and spinning outfit makes for a better fight.If you are fishing in heavy weeds you have to go with heavier gear to horse the fish out. I love to flip jigs. I also drop shot heavy gear punching the bait down in the holes in the weeds.Well I pretty much got off the subject. Tight lines and God Bless

[WetBait]

You can steady retreive a crankbait and it will still perform. In fact, steady retrieves are prefered in some situations like bumping the crankbait off the top of a weed bed or off the tips of rocks.

Each crankbait has a different swim orientation at different speeds as well. A deep diver will be almost vertical in the water when cranked with the hooks behind it and the bill straight down. That straight down bill can be bumped off structure without the hooks getting into the structure.

A shallow running crankbait runs more horizontal with the hooks dangling down. These will likely snag more when swiming it over structure but if the crankbait floats, then it's often easy to get it free (especially on rocks). Over weeds and grass, you can rip it free when it snags vegitation and the ripping action will sometimes cause a strike.

Variable speed retrieves will often produce strikes where steady retrieves won't. Often times a bass will follow a bait and won't make a move on it until something about it changes. Stop and go with a crank will sometimes produce bites on the go and sometimes on the stop.

As far as foul hooking the fish, it's possible that your rod is too stiff. Often, bass will turn when they take a crank bait and if the rod is too stiff, the fish will lose the crank while turning. This will often put the crank along side of the fish with the potential to hook it anywhere down it's side. With a softer rod tip, the rod will give just enough to allow the fish to turn with the bait still in it's mouth and when the pressure is put on the line, the bait will likely hook the fish on the inside side of the mouth.

With so many hooks on a crankbait, it's often difficult to determine what was going on when you hooked the fish but if there is only one hook in the fish, you might be able to tell what happened by the orientation of the hook. Hook placement and orientation is something I look at with every fish I catch. Jigs are especially telling of the timing of your hooksets.

- Ray

Shallow

[yankemnbankem]

Jerk it a few times quick (I call it Rogers twitch) and let it sit a few seconds,reel in slack, then twitch a few times and again let it sit. Sometimes the bass explode from the water and scare the willies right outta you. I dont fish for bass much but I do like to use the floating rapala. I have to thank Roger (EXbassguide) for showing me how to use the rapala for bass.

[Basscaster]

Let me first off say I'm by no means a crankbait master. I have had this problem in the past though, it can be very frustrating. I've found that the hooking fish on the outside sometimes that means you are getting closer to what the fish really want. I have changed colors and sizes just a little bit and had them really starting eating the bait. Just something to think about...

[Phager]

0

[pitchnboy]

phager, i have found a solution!!! he he. depending on the area for me i do a med-slow retrieve, and when YOU SET THE HOOK!!!!!! just give a SLIGHT jerk. otherwise if you just reaf on it you will rip the fish's soft tissue in its mouth.

pitch