Entry 180-1

Mark Davis on Crankbaits

Part 1: How to Select a Crankbait

Editor’s Note: One of the most-versatile lures in a bass fisherman’s tackle box is the crankbait, and one of the most-knowledgeable Strike King Pros on crankbait fishing is Mark Davis of Mt. Ida, Arkansas, past Bassmasters Classic winner and nationally-known angler. There’s rarely a time or a place when crankbaits won’t produce bass, if you know how to select and fish them properly.

Mark DavisQuestion: Mark, how do you select the right crankbait when you fish on a particular lake, on a specific day?

Davis: Fishermen select crankbaits for several different reasons, including size and color. But I often choose my crankbaits for different reasons than other fishermen do. My first consideration when I’m choosing a crankbait to fish on a particular day, on a specific lake is the action of the crankbait. All crankbaits aren’t created equal. Some of them have really-fast, short, wobbling actions, while others have wide, slow, back-and-forth wobbling actions. I believe the action the crankbait has is the first decision a bass fisherman can use to help pick a crankbait to fish on a particular lake, on a specific particular day.

Question: How do you choose the right action for the correct day?

Davis: Water color and temperature are my primary factors in choosing the action of the crankbait I’ll fish. If the water’s hot or muddy, the wider the wobble the crankbait has, the more effective it will be in causing a bass to strike. Now, if the water’s clear or cold, I want a tighter-wobbling crankbait.

Another factor I like to consider is how actively the bass are feeding. If the bass are actively feeding, I prefer a wide-wobbling crankbait. If the bass aren’t feeding actively and aggressively, then I like a more subdued, tightly-wobbling crankbait. But when you’re selecting a crankbait to fish, the first consideration must be the action of the bait, not the size or the color of the crankbait or the depth to which it dives. Always choose the action first.

Strike King LuresQuestion: Okay, what’s your second consideration?

Davis: I next think about the water depths I’ll be fishing. I want to use a crankbait I easily can get down to the water depth where the bass are holding and feeding. There are plenty of things you can do to a crankbait without altering it to make it run more shallow or deeper. Lighter line makes crankbaits run deeper than heavier line does.

If I pull into a creek in a tournament and see Kevin VanDam fishing the spot I want to fish with a Strike King Series 5 crankbait, which runs 8- to 10-feet deep on 12- to 14-pound-test line, then I’ll think to myself, “Okay. Kevin’s on my spot, and I’ll have to fish there after Kevin leaves. I’ll bet that he’ll have all the bass caught off that place. How can I possibly go in behind Kevin and catch those bass on a crankbait?” If I know the bass want to hit a crankbait and not a jig or a spinner bait, I try to decide what can I do to make the bass bite when I have to fish behind one of the greatest bass fishermen in the nation.  

Now, if I were fishing behind someone with a plastic worm, I’d fish a different size and color worm, in a different way than the other angler. However, if I know the bass are at a specific depth, I can’t change the depth of the crankbait I want to fish. The first thing I’ll do is select a smaller crankbait. Most bass fishermen know you get more strikes when you downsize your lure. Instead of using the Strike King Series 5 crankbait, I’ll choose a smaller crankbait.

Strike King LuresI know I’ve got to get it down to the same depth as the Series 5, therefore, I’ll choose a Series 3 crankbait. To get the Series 3 to run down to the same depth as the Series 5, I’ll use a spinning rod instead of a baitcasting rod, and I’ll fish 8-pound-test line, instead of 12- to 14-pound-test line. With a spinning rod and light line, I can cast the Series 3 much further than I can cast a Series 5 on 12- to 14-pound-test line. Everyone knows the further you can cast the crankbait and the longer you spend retrieving that bait, the deeper the bait will dive.

So, by using light line and being able to cast further and retrieve longer, I can get the Series 3 crankbait to run through the same depth of water as the Series 5. This way, I can go to the same hole where Kevin has fished, fish that same school of bass, show those fish a different lure, and possibly catch some of the same fish Kevin has been catching.

In another instance, I may use a Series 5, which is a larger crankbait to fish in shallow water. What’s important to remember is most fishermen use a certain size crankbait to fish in the water depth to which those crankbaits have been designed to dive. For this reason, all the bass holding at a certain water depth will usually see the same size crankbait. But when you change the size and the profile of the crankbait those bass are seeing, your odds drastically increase for catching more bass that have already seen that size crankbait.

If I want the Series 5 crankbait to run in shallow water, I may fish it on 20- or 25-pound-test line because the diameter and the buoyancy of the line will cause that crankbait to float and swim higher in the water than it was originally designed to swim. So, anytime you’re fishing behind another bass fisherman who’s using the right size crankbait for the water where bass are holding, change the size of the crankbait you’re fishing by using the methods I’ve described, and you’ll get more bites.

Strike King LuresRemember, if we all cast the same lures and fish those lures in the same way, none of us will have very much success. But by changing the lures and the way we fish them, we’ll get more bites and catch more bass. If you want more bites when fishing behind someone, always downsize your lures. If everyone else is fishing little crankbaits in shallow water, you should fish big crankbaits in shallow water to get more bites.

Too, when you’re choosing cranking rods to fish, make sure you have 6- or 8-pound-test line spooled-up. On a different rod, have some 20- to 25-pound-test line spooled-up. Always carry a spinning rod with either 6- or 8-pound-test line spooled-up, so you can change the size crankbaits you’re fishing and the depth at which you’re fishing them.




 

© 1996-2008 Strike King Lure Company