russ010
Well-known member
OK.. so here's something I've been meaning to share for some time, but the time for crankbait season is upon some of us and this is something I think should warrant your attention.
Crankbaits are one of my main baits from now until next spring season. I am a big fan of Norman lures for a few reasons: 1 - they last 2 - they catch big fish 3 - they are cheap (main reason). Most of the Norman lures I have ever bought run true out of the box, so it's more time fishing and less time trying to get it to run right. One thing about cheaper cranks - they have cheaper hooks (in my opinion) and seem to bend easily.
I replace all of my hooks with the following (and I buy them according to which one I can get the best price/quantity on). A few people may disagree, but most of the hooks I use to replace with are short shaft hook. I like them because when you get into the 3x and 4x, they are a little bigger diameter, and when they embed in the fishes mouth, They say there - they don't allow too much play in my opinion and it really makes a difference. This weekend during our tournament, I caught a nice one (6lbs 11oz), but I also lost 2 good fish. I think the main reason I lost them were on 2 counts - 1: I was using a heavy action rod to get the bait down to where I wanted it quicker (I lost them at the boat when my rod had too much backbone and not enough flex) 2: I never replaced the hooks on this particular crankbait and the bass simply threw it because they were lightly hooked after being hooked on a long cast.
I prefer the round bend style of hooks as well. I don't like the wide gap or extra wide gap because I feel it give more room for the fish to throw the bait.
One other thing I sometimes do (depending on where I'm fishing) is to upsize the hook by one size. So if the hook come with a #4, I'll replace them with a #2 hook, as long as the hooks don't tangle during the cast or retrieve. Sometimes I'll replace the front hook with the same size, then put a larger in the rear (*and vice versa - larger belly, same rear) But it's a personal preference, and you just have to find out what works best for you and the fish. One other thing to consider when upsizing is that the larger the hook, the more weight your adding, and this will affect how your lure comes through the water.
Here are my choices (in no particular order) for hook brands. (most of my crankbaits in the Norman lures use #4 hooks)
1. VMC 4x (Favorite for Deep Cranking (15-22'))
2. Owner 3x (Favorite for Medium Cranking (8-14'))
3. Mustad XXX (Favorite for shallow cranking (1-4'))
3. Daiichi Death Trap (I use these on topwater, but I've only used the Death Trap label and I've only been using them for 2 months on Rat-L-Traps).. so I'm still a little leary of this one
Don't be afraid to try it out - get in the ditches, creek channels, grass, rocks, stumps - it doesn't matter as long as you're hitting something to deflect the lure... All of my fish this past weekend and this week have come off the crankbait. 80-90* water temps, sunny and cloudy days - and even when the barometer was dropping once. Don't be afraid to lose your crank - if you're afraid to throw it into cover, I can almost guarantee you that's the the big bass is going to be hiding because unfortunately - he didn't get that big by being caught were everybody else is throwing...
Here's something I recommend to get your cranks back too - a good retriever. I've used the hound dog and pole types and they both work. But the hound dog is cumbersome to work in my opinion, and the pole just takes up too much room for me. I use a Woo Dave's Pocket Knocker and I have yet to loose a lure (unless my line was too small of a diameter or it was knicked up from abrasion).
Tight Lines! :beer:
Crankbaits are one of my main baits from now until next spring season. I am a big fan of Norman lures for a few reasons: 1 - they last 2 - they catch big fish 3 - they are cheap (main reason). Most of the Norman lures I have ever bought run true out of the box, so it's more time fishing and less time trying to get it to run right. One thing about cheaper cranks - they have cheaper hooks (in my opinion) and seem to bend easily.
I replace all of my hooks with the following (and I buy them according to which one I can get the best price/quantity on). A few people may disagree, but most of the hooks I use to replace with are short shaft hook. I like them because when you get into the 3x and 4x, they are a little bigger diameter, and when they embed in the fishes mouth, They say there - they don't allow too much play in my opinion and it really makes a difference. This weekend during our tournament, I caught a nice one (6lbs 11oz), but I also lost 2 good fish. I think the main reason I lost them were on 2 counts - 1: I was using a heavy action rod to get the bait down to where I wanted it quicker (I lost them at the boat when my rod had too much backbone and not enough flex) 2: I never replaced the hooks on this particular crankbait and the bass simply threw it because they were lightly hooked after being hooked on a long cast.
I prefer the round bend style of hooks as well. I don't like the wide gap or extra wide gap because I feel it give more room for the fish to throw the bait.
One other thing I sometimes do (depending on where I'm fishing) is to upsize the hook by one size. So if the hook come with a #4, I'll replace them with a #2 hook, as long as the hooks don't tangle during the cast or retrieve. Sometimes I'll replace the front hook with the same size, then put a larger in the rear (*and vice versa - larger belly, same rear) But it's a personal preference, and you just have to find out what works best for you and the fish. One other thing to consider when upsizing is that the larger the hook, the more weight your adding, and this will affect how your lure comes through the water.
Here are my choices (in no particular order) for hook brands. (most of my crankbaits in the Norman lures use #4 hooks)
1. VMC 4x (Favorite for Deep Cranking (15-22'))
2. Owner 3x (Favorite for Medium Cranking (8-14'))
3. Mustad XXX (Favorite for shallow cranking (1-4'))
3. Daiichi Death Trap (I use these on topwater, but I've only used the Death Trap label and I've only been using them for 2 months on Rat-L-Traps).. so I'm still a little leary of this one
Don't be afraid to try it out - get in the ditches, creek channels, grass, rocks, stumps - it doesn't matter as long as you're hitting something to deflect the lure... All of my fish this past weekend and this week have come off the crankbait. 80-90* water temps, sunny and cloudy days - and even when the barometer was dropping once. Don't be afraid to lose your crank - if you're afraid to throw it into cover, I can almost guarantee you that's the the big bass is going to be hiding because unfortunately - he didn't get that big by being caught were everybody else is throwing...
Here's something I recommend to get your cranks back too - a good retriever. I've used the hound dog and pole types and they both work. But the hound dog is cumbersome to work in my opinion, and the pole just takes up too much room for me. I use a Woo Dave's Pocket Knocker and I have yet to loose a lure (unless my line was too small of a diameter or it was knicked up from abrasion).
Tight Lines! :beer:
