Crappie Fishing Questions

[zwalleye]

I agree on great eating.  They sure do fry up nice, YUM YUM

[zwalleye]

One more thing about crapie now a days.  It seems like most lakes have decent numbers and size fish.

[Clintontwpspartan]

Thanks to everybody for all the advice I am hoping to get out this weekend if I am not snowed in!!

[The Splash]

 I fish crappie at night. Find deep water (preferbly a hole surrounded by shallow water) a dropoff will do. Drill your holes, setup the shanty, turn the lantern on, and watch the flasher. Have to have a flasher!
 I use live minnows on a tiny teble hook with a slip bobber, frosty spoons, buckshot spoons, different jigs, and even soft plastics. I suggest having all colors of glow spoons and jigs. May catch a few on blue glow and then they wont touch it. Send down a red glow and they nail it? I also swithch it up and go to spikes, then just a piece of a minnow.

Get set up with these



 And soon you will get into these



 Hope the pics help you when you go lure shopping. Good luck.

[DR.SPECKLER]

i also use micro trebles with minnows really increases your hook ups.

[Burksee]

Thanks Splash! That was one great post. 

I'm a fan of dead sticking minnows for crappie so I'm wondering, do you dead stick the spoons or jig them? Thanks again!

[brokenline]

thats a nice catch!!! mostly at night?

[captain54]

I almost never use minnows,Do really well spoon feeding them,Small Frosty',Demon spoons,Forage minnow,cast masters,pimples,slender spoons,tipped with spikes or waxy in the day,some times in 30 foot or more ,but fish are 99% of the time suspended,at night I down size to small Ratso's and Ratfinkees in glow brite or green glow(try to down size to match the zoo plankton) tipped with spikes or clean. My best advice is to play around with different things till one works and give them the that,every lake is different.

[perch]

Splash has got it right, NIGHT-TIME for the crappies!!!  I've caught them at all different times, but the night bite is the best for crappies.  In upstate NY we (at least me) usually use very small fatheads (minnows) or spikes tipped on teardrop jigs.  If the bite is on they go after anything though.  At times, I have also ripped the bottom lip off an already caught one & used it on a teardrop...works real well.  Never tried the minnows in a 2 liter bottle trick or used any illumination, but think I'll add these to my arsenal on those slow bite nights...Good luck & tight lines!!!

[The Splash]

Thanks Splash! That was one great post. 

I'm a fan of dead sticking minnows for crappie so I'm wondering, do you dead stick the spoons or jig them? Thanks again!

 I don't deadstick with spoons or jigs. On the jigging rods I use a spring bobber. Get most hits when you pause for a second. The spring bobber is just my prefernce, sometimes even the biggest ones just suck it in lightly and I can see that with the spring bobber.

 I have others, but the really light spring bobbers like this are great.

 and yes, ALL at night.

 Just a few pics in daylight the next day

 I'm going to try to get out the night after Christmas, but this snow will make it a workout!
PS. All crappie in pics were caught on a PUBLIC lake in Oakland Co. They are there, but you have to fish at night! I don't catch ones like that during the day, wish I could.

[coyotecallinfool]

My two favorite species for ice fishing are perch and crappie.  My best luck has been like other folks, by heading out late in the evening and night.  Usually seems to have two bits, the first shortly after dark and then again later.  Perhaps 10-11:00.  I use 2 rods, always with spring bobbers.  crappie seem to have the lightest bits so the spring and the vexilar seem to help hook them up.  One rod is a tear drop usually with a mossie and the other a minnow.  I use a small trebble hook in the middle of the back which seems to work well.  I have gotten a few during the day but my best in the winter always seem to be at night.  I usually fish at Devils Lake, Sand Lake, and Kelly Lake in Lenawee county.

Good luck!