Shad vs ...

[John Michael Barry]

When it comes to crankbaits for walleye, the options for size/color/profile are endless. But when it comes to profile, it seems so often that a shad profile prevails when it comes to what people use or recommend. Whether the shad raps, flicker shads, shadling, smash shad, etc... it seems to me that with north Dakotas predominant forage being smelt, perch and other species... should we (if you're not already) use profiles that more "match the hatch" per se? I mean, it seems ironic how many shad bodies I have... in perch color. Just a thought.eta hear your guys'

 

[Sub_Elect]

Shad profile bodies match what a young perch look like, so that's why they work. Shad profiles are also close to crappies, which is why that works on Oahe, banana baits are great on sakakwea as well as shad profiles. I think you answered your question?

 

[SDMF]

All the different crank bait profiles work differently in different waters at different times of the year because of the way they are.

 

[dean nelson]

My go to crank is often the minnow rap. I've just had better catch rates with them enough that they will be one of the first out the gate when trolling.

 

[KDM]

I let the fish tell me if they want a tight wiggle or a wide wobble much like the bar scenes for you single fellas.

 

[Sum1]

I don't think it matters to thier pea brains. Most cranks don't look anything like minnows and catch the crap out of fish. I have yet to see a minnow swimming around with a big plastic lip or a chartreuse back, or pink back. Whats a spinner supposed to look like? The bass guys tell me a spinnerbait is supposed to mimic a bluegill.....what? I'v heard the pros say bass jigs mimic bluegill AND crayfish......WHAT? Are they smoking dope? I have yet to see a bluegill or crayfish thats black and blue with a hundred rubber legs growing out of it. They still catch the hell out of them on those lures though.

 

[Captain Ahab]

I don't think it matters to thier pea brains. Most cranks don't look anything like minnows and catch the crap out of fish. I have yet to see a minnow swimming around with a big plastic lip or a chartreuse back, or pink back. Whats a spinner supposed to look like? The bass guys tell me a spinnerbait is supposed to mimic a bluegill.....what? I'v heard the pros say bass jigs mimic bluegill AND crayfish......WHAT? Are they smoking dope? I have yet to see a bluegill or crayfish thats black and blue with a hundred rubber legs growing out of it. They still catch the hell out of them on those lures though.

Ha ha. I laugh when I look at a spinner and crawler harness. I wonder what kind of super worm travels through the water @ ~1mph following a chunk of lead and wire with beads and a flashing spinner on its head?

 

[Still_Learnin']

I don't think it matters to thier pea brains. Most cranks don't look anything like minnows and catch the crap out of fish. I have yet to see a minnow swimming around with a big plastic lip or a chartreuse back, or pink back. Whats a spinner supposed to look like? The bass guys tell me a spinnerbait is supposed to mimic a bluegill.....what? I'v heard the pros say bass jigs mimic bluegill AND crayfish......WHAT? Are they smoking dope? I have yet to see a bluegill or crayfish thats black and blue with a hundred rubber legs growing out of it. They still catch the hell out of them on those lures though.

I think there always a bunch of factors that play into how a fish (of any species) views any lure. Water clarity, sunlight penetration, action of the lure, color of the lure under the above conditions... All of that affects the way a lure is viewed.

Now for what us bass guys say certain lures mimic... well, we're fishermen like the rest of you so we are obviously full of shit!

Seriously though, I've always believed that a spinnerbait more resembles a small school of baitfish but that even is a stretch. And Jigs really do imitate a bluegill or crayfish (or any bait) depending on how you retrieve them and the colors you use.

- - - Updated - - -

All the different crank bait profiles work differently in different waters at different times of the year because of the way they are.

This is largely what I believe. I think the "draw" factor of most lures is less about matching the hatch and more about playing on a predator fish's aggressive nature. That's why cranks wobble wider than other cranks or have the outrageous bright paint schemes.

 

[camoman]

I would be more hesitant to call fishing crank baits a type of "matching a hatch". When I think of matching a hatch I think of fly fishing because you are trying to imitate an invertebrate that is naturally moving in flowing water - whether it's on top of the water, floating in the water column, etc. It's important to "match the hatch" because the hatch is what the fish are eating, period, because of its availability. I don't think fish hit a crank bait because they think it looks like something tasty or like something they normally eat. They hit it because it's moving, like something alive and it will fill a void.

 

[Traxion]

I do think there are times where a profile matched crank will outperform others. But, I also think a bait presented at the depth the fish are feeding in, in the general speed range, and in a color they like, will catch fish regardless of profile. Color for me has been a much more important factor. Some days one color is just lights out while others only catch a few. My pearl white Shad Raps look like they have been a scratching post for a cat they're so tooth marked up.

On Oahe it's been a lot of years since we were totally smelt driven. I still use some lures that are more smelt shaped but it's because of the wobble or depth the crank will run. I have had high hopes for lures like the Minnow Rap but still lean towards the shad style baits.

 

[dean nelson]

I don't think it matters to thier pea brains. Most cranks don't look anything like minnows and catch the crap out of fish. I have yet to see a minnow swimming around with a big plastic lip or a chartreuse back, or pink back. Whats a spinner supposed to look like? The bass guys tell me a spinnerbait is supposed to mimic a bluegill.....what? I'v heard the pros say bass jigs mimic bluegill AND crayfish......WHAT? Are they smoking dope? I have yet to see a bluegill or crayfish thats black and blue with a hundred rubber legs growing out of it. They still catch the hell out of them on those lures though.

That's not really what the over all driving factor on most all the baits you listed. For starters the fish's eyes don't see like ours and the colors that they or even humans see changes literally by the foot as you descend through the water column and even that is variable based on water clarity. The things that matter to the fish are size, action, speed and some days color although that is far more important to us then it is to them. Lots of people talk about one color being better then another myself included but often thats more about what we use the most because of personal preference then actual fish preferences. As for what does a spinner look like....it looks like a small erratically moving object in the water. Since predatory fish feed on erratically moving possibly injured or dying baitfish this is a thing that attracts them to the bait. Same holds true with bass spinnerbaits in that they look like a couple flashing small minnows being closely trailed by a larger entity which is something bigger fish see every day as they pick off smaller fish than themselves. Of course the baits don't look or act like the real thing thus why they are generally far less productive even if you're using live bait. Ive stood on my dock many times watching fish turn up their nose on a Lindy rig tipped with a live fish only to take that same fish off the hook and toss it in on its own and have the same picky fish explode on it almost instantly! You have to think of fishing lures like you would a robo duck. Does it flap it's wings and move like a real duck....no not even close. But step back and you will see the dark followed by the the white side of the wings causes an extremely close approximation of a landing ducks wing flash thus drawing in the real birds to your fake party.

Some days fish want something with a fast tight wiggle and some days they want somthing low and slow. The key is not to worry about what you think they want or more so what you want them to want but what they actually want. That's easier said than done for anyone who's fished for any length of time because we almost always enter every situation with preconceived notions of what will work even though we might be completely wrong causing us to miss what the fish are trying to tell us. It's hard for us fisherman to get out of our own way sometimes.

 

[WT2121]

Well done Dean. I agree completely. Most of us no matter our experience get stuck in a presentation. Change may be difficult but necessary.