help with not active crappie

[jackson ice man]

i have a killer crappie spot they just wont take the bait they just tap it any  ideas !

[captain54]

Thats pretty much what they do,use a spring bobber and watch for the up bite,if your line goes slack,set the hook.

[RLWagner]

i have a killer crappie spot they just wont take the bait they just tap it any  ideas !

A net!!

No easy button here either Bud. Sometimes they are just not interested. When this happens, I down size significantly. Try blood worms tied on a small hook if you fly tie. Also scuds and fresh water shrimp can get them to suck in the bait even when they are not hungry.

[1TIGGER]

Thats pretty much what they do,use a spring bobber and watch for the up bite,if your line goes slack,set the hook.

I agree and go with a micro jig when they bite like that .

[blue mule]

try fishing at night?

[A- bomb]

go with a horizontal ice fly no bait and just hang it in their face.  obnoxious bright and loud colors wk the best..  not too small a 10 or 12 wks best.  they don't really eat it just taste it...gotta be quick!

[jackson ice man]

go with a horizontal ice fly no bait and just hang it in their face.  obnoxious bright and loud colors wk the best..  not too small a 10 or 12 wks best.  they don't really eat it just taste it...gotta be quick!

thanks never tryed that

[jackson ice man]

A net!!

No easy button here either Bud. Sometimes they are just not interested. When this happens, I down size significantly. Try blood worms tied on a small hook if you fly tie. Also scuds and fresh water shrimp can get them to suck in the bait even when they are not hungry.

shrimp are great if you can find them ! thanks for the help

[Hood]

I am no master at crappie, I agree with the downsizing mentioned.

Another thing that has worked well for me is using a hali with a fathead. I hook the hali real shallow right behind the head, it allows the fathead to stay horizontal and wiggle like mad.

[rondog]

All of the replies above will help you get fish.I'm fishing a small lake right now,my screen is full of fish and the same thing is happening to me. My fishing partner and I fished Sat.I drilled over 200 holes looking for active fish and did fair my partner sat on a small area and over 4 hrs he  was just short of his limit. So go light 2 lb. test use a spring bobber and Patience .

[Shep]

An option that has worked for me is switching from a whole minnow to just the minnow head.  Keep it quivering, not jigging, and this could trigger the strike.

[fiesty]

Lighter line, smaller gear, and patience...

[Hood]

What kind of rod are you using?

A spring bobber could be super beneficial if you dont have one. ALso a super light panfish rod with a real whippy tip. I use an iceblue 30". You can see the tip wiggle from the motion of a 1 inch minnow.

[icetechy]

Jammin Jigs glo ant with red eyes and spikes, red glow gill pill size 12 with spikes, sometimes a bit of fish attractant will help you seal the deal when they get finicky...

[DR.SPECKLER]

Ya ever just try plain #8 thin wire tru turn hook and a minnow?

[toothfish]

If you can get a camera down to these in-active crappie , you may be surprised how they are acting. All these suggestions are great!!!
 But sometimes the crappie are doing their best to get the bait into their mouth. After watching some late winter crappie on camera one would wonder if they are ....drunk ? I would guess it's from lack of oxygen and maybe some build of toxins caught under the ice. If you get a chance to watch them on camera this time of year , I think you'll see what I mean. At times they appear to loose the ability to "suck" the bait in and try to swim up to the bait with their mouth open ... ?

[hardh2ofish]

Good ideas here,  Ive been on these kind of crappies.  A vex helps of course, but ive drilled several holes fishing these 'buggers' and used five different presentations in five dif. holes and caught on all rigs.  So lure choice wasnt exactly the deal.  The number one thing was depth.  Putting it right in front or a mere inch or two above them.  If spring bobber or bobber moved even as though breathed upon I found an easy carefull lift would set the hook.  dont set the hook any faster than your spring or bobber is moving.  A slow lift till you feel weight then reel like mad

[Mr.Vexilar]

Hood, those ice blue rods are the crap!!! I have one tho that is even more flimsy yet for a pannie rod!!

[JAZII]

Try fishing you presentation higher in the water column. Also let it free fall past them and then slowly reel it up past them, trying to get a chase. The chase method seems to work the best when they are off the bite.
JAZII

[iluvcrappie]

honestly i am having the same problem yesterday and today i went in the early am hours 4 oclock to be exact anyway i drilled my holes right on top of a huge school of crappie and they never left until about 730 and in that 4 hours i never had a bite.....why??    another thing i was in 26 fow and i was getting the fish to chase my waxie all the way up to 8 fow and still no biting action.........i thought maybe its because i wasnt using a spring bobber but tried that this morning for the first time didnt work but i am for sure gonna use that spring i think i fell in love all over again..........let me know what you guys think i should do to get these slabbers to bite.........

[michianafisherman]

Hide the hook with your bait and use smaller line like one pound test. No split shot and let it fall slow. They are full of all the gook from the bugs that hatch under the ice. The bite always goes slow after the hatch. I will agree that the camera will help but set the camera farther away from your jig. You may also set the camera to look down instead of straight across.

[UPSTATE ICEMASTER]

Jammin Jigs glo ant with red eyes and spikes, red glow gill pill size 12 with spikes, sometimes a bit of fish attractant will help you seal the deal when they get finicky...

AHH another firm believer of the fish attractant

[hammerhead]

Berkley used to make a crappie bait similar to their trout baits. There have been times for me (in the summer) when smearing it on our jigs definitely improved our success. I don't think they make it anymore, at least I can't find it here in Wyo.

[go dart]

I've found that a slow roll can pull some crappies out of a funk. drop the jig(s) to the bottom lift a ft, then slowly turn the reel, stop and a quick 1" rod snap and wait a few seconds, then reel again. when i say slow i mean slow. so slow you can barely tell your turning the reel. don't let the ones that bite in  less then 10 ft of water fool you. they followed you up.

[Hollywood703]

last year i was shown this trick, get some sizze #16 trout trebles and small minnows hooked behind the fin on top......the hookset was much better than the single hook i was using.....just a plain small treble with 1# test leader....if you cant find them in the regular section, check the fly fishing section....