Crappie cranks

Last fall I got on a good bite over several days, about two weeks, using some real small crappie crankbaits. I used two different sizes and both worked very well except they needed light line and the pike and largemouth bass had a desire for the little cranks as well. The 4 pound fluorocarbon I was using resulted in my needing to paint up more of both sizes this season so while it snowed off and on the other day I painted one of the two sizes, the last three of the bodies I have un-painted.

This bait is only and inch and three quarters long with the body being an inch, barely. The got a white pearl base coat, then the belly colors went on. A thin gray pearl was applied to the flanks then transparent black went across the back and lightly feathered down onto the flanks. Clear top coat with a blue to purple color shifting pigment was sprayed over the black, eyes applied and the baits dipped in seal cot and hung to drip dry. # 14 Mustad hooks are hanging.

Right from the package these baits were four foot divers so I drilled and added some #5 shot to make them sink ever so slightly a rest but on the dive they make 8 feet with no problems on the 4 pound fluorocarbon line and will go deeper if allowed to rest after cranking them down. That rest time is when they get blasted.

This has been my go to color pattern when using the small crankbaits. Its out performed the brighter colors by far so that really helps narrow down what I really need to make.

Damm I am always impressed your your painting skills Tom.

Add me to the list of always impressed. My favorite fishing… crappies, and I have not doubt you have forgotten more than I will ever learn.

How do you decide where to drill to add weight or are you not concerned about a slow sink and being level?

I have a stream right behind the house so I just drill, add weight and head to there for some trial casting to watch the action. The ones seen in the picture were done in this fashion last fall. Right now these are the largest of the bodies I have on hand and the action was optimal with the weight towards the back. The bodies are clear and there was a baffle between the front where the rattle weight was and the back. I tried extra weight up front and behind the baffle and the bait had much nicer action weigh to the rear.

On the tiniest of the cranks I drill just behind the bill. I have a half dozen somewhat larger than the smallest bodies I just painted after applying foil to the bodies and these will be shown later today. They’re about half way in size from the smallest to what is shown here and have a slightly more aggressive bill than the smallest but not near so what these shown have. There’s also a baffle in these but the shot had to go ahead of the baffle to get the best action. Largely its a matter of trial and error if you haven’t got somewhere to put them on a line and actually try them after weighting but before you seal them unless you take them fishing with you to try.

The amount of weight depends on what you are trying to achieve. Me, I’m looking for neutral buoyancy so I can cast, crank them down, let rest, then crank again to get them deeper yet.

Thanks Tom

Have you ever tried fooling with the shape of the bill to change action.

I haven’t Tom. I’m pretty happy with the actions of all these tiny cranks as they come so I’ve never messed with the bills.

On these small baits the bills if trimmed have to be extremely well balanced, very close in the amount trimmed side to side as anything up front out of balance can ruin the action all together.

Does anyone do better trolling crankbaits? I caught four species – one a catfish – trolling a Rapala Risto Rap last year.

Tom that bottom lure with the yellow belly is really nice! I have noticed over the past couple years lures with orange or yellow bellies have really good success for walleye and crappie.

Mahtofire…..good eye. Great observation.

I have the best of both worlds when painting baits or injecting the plastics as I can manipulate the colors. The chartreuse/orange on the belly of hard baits is a real double whammy on crappies and walleye/sauger. I’ve tried both a solo orange belly and a solo chartreuse belly on small cranks and found that each will catch fish but that the combo color does a much better job of it.

The over-all color combination of those shown in this thread is the best producing color I paint with crappies in mind. The color seems to mimic a natural minnow. The backs appear to be a shade of or shades of black as the colors feathers down along the flanks, but that purple to blue color shifting top coat across the back goes nut in the water while the sides have gotten a shot of the color shift as well and will subtly show the same shift.

I make lots of color patterns in my crappie sized baits and most have the chartreuse/orange throat patch bellies. For a good reason.

For casting walleyes I love the Shad Raps with the Purple shad color. I buy them then add the chartreuse and orange throat patch. Then they work super well.

Tom – I love everything about the looks of these, and would love to try casting cranks for crappies instead of the same old crappie minnow on a jig under a slip bobber. 2 questions, if I may –
Can you manipulate these somehow to runner shallower? I’m thinking early season near banks, overhanging brush.
As to adding the chartreuse/yellow throat patch, if I wanted to do that to some baits I buy, is there some special kind of paint I should get.
Thank you and good luck fishing.

Nice Fella wrote:

Tom – I love everything about the looks of these, and would love to try casting cranks for <em class=”ido-tag-em”>crappies instead of the same old <em class=”ido-tag-em”>crappie minnow on a jig under a slip bobber. 2 questions, if I may –
Can you manipulate these somehow to runner shallower? I’m thinking early season near banks, overhanging brush.
As to adding the chartreuse/yellow throat patch, if I wanted to do that to some baits I buy, is there some special kind of paint I should get.
Thank you and good luck fishing.

I use orange nail polish. Seriously. Last year when I went to Green Bay for the walleye spawn I ran out and went to target and the color I use was sold out! It was the only color of nail polish that was sold out so clearly quite a few anglers were at Target buying nail polish. HA!

Nice Fella wrote:

Tom – I love everything about the looks of these, and would love to try casting cranks for <em class=”ido-tag-em”>crappies instead of the same old <em class=”ido-tag-em”>crappie minnow on a jig under a slip bobber. 2 questions, if I may –
Can you manipulate these somehow to runner shallower? I’m thinking early season near banks, overhanging brush.
As to adding the chartreuse/yellow throat patch, if I wanted to do that to some baits I buy, is there some special kind of paint I should get.
Thank you and good luck fishing.

All of the small crappie sized cranks I order [from China off Ebay] are shallow runners. O-4 feet. I weight most of mine to act neutrally buoyant but leave a few as they come for shallow water bites. The spring bit when water has hit about 55 degrees and again in the summer with warm water both offer some great early morning surface bites. Crappies on shallow bedding water will tear into these with a vengeance.

As far as paint, I use an airbrush and acrylics but I know a lot of people who use spray cans and do an amazing job on simple color patterns.