Ultra-Light Crankbaits Are No Toys

by Spence Petros

Despite their toylike, diminutive looks, the ultra-light crankbaits on the market are no joke. They are deadly fish catchers. They can make catching smaller fish a lot of fun, and at times they are the best way to catch larger fish.

By my definition, ultra-light crankbaits are those weighing one-sixth ounce or less. Most are in the one-eighth or one-tenth ounce range. They can be cast or trolled and, unless weighted, most run fairly shallow.

I've used these lures successfully on many occasions, and they have often been the answer to catching clear-water bass.

Sure, you'll get your share of 10- to 14-inchers, but I've taken enough bigger bass (up to six pounds) to make it interesting. The little cranks are particularly effective in small clear-water ponds, quarries, strip pits, and shallow bays.

When you're fishing shallow water on clear, calm days and the bass are extra spooky, or when trying to pry open a bass's mouth during or after a cold front, these lures will often get strikes when larger presentations are ignored.

These mini-crankbaits also work great in streams and smaller rivers, especially when the water and skies are clear. Their light weight creates a minimal amount of splash when hitting the water, drifts naturally with the current when retrieved, and, if necessary, can be worked quite shallow, particularly if your rod tip is held high.

They will work in both warm- and cold-water streams. Warm-water species such as bass, pickerel, and various panfish fall hard for them. These lures can also be effective for trout, especially wise old browns that have seen it all.

Small crankbaits can be real killers for bigger-than-average panfish. Often they'll help you get past aggressive smaller sunfish and perch that would have just nibbled your live bait to pieces, not allowing larger panfish the chance to hit. You may not always catch as many on crankbaits, but you'll often get the lunkers.

Mini-crankers aren't just for clear waters or tough fish; they also produce outstanding results in off-colored waters. Often the vibration and sound patterns they produce help hungry fish zero in on them. Many times I've done better with these lures on crappies, sunfish species, and perch than I was doing with live bait or a finesse presentation such as a jig.

In stained waters the key to success is the fish's activity level--if panfish are fairly aggressive, small crankbaits may be the answer to catching better-size fish.

Small crankbaits are often killers on suspended panfish, especially crappies or white bass. I particularly like the lipless vibrating type lure such as Bill Lewis' one-eighth ounce Tiny-Trap and Norman's one-tenth ounce Tiny Enticer.

All these lures slowly sink and can be counted down to check various depth levels for suspended fish. Sinking at about three-quarters of a foot per second, a count of four before the retrieve begins starts the lure coming in about three feet under the surface. A count of six puts the lure at about 4-1/2 feet. The more you allow the lure to sink, the slower the retrieve should be to maintain that depth level.

For suspended fish small crankbaits allow you more depth control than a jig. They will maintain an off-bottom depth better under a wide range of retrieves or trolling speeds.

Small lipless vibrators also work well when trolling for suspended panfish. When panfish are close to the surface, long-lining a few lures behind the boat works well. Adding a split-shot or two a few feet up the line gives you a few more feet of running depth.

I frequently use only a variable-speed, stern-mounted electric motor to troll these lures. You might find that trolling downwind at a "two speed" or against the wind at a "three speed" on your motor works best. Try various combinations. usually there will be at least one that puts your lure at the depth level and speed fish prefer.

When using these small crankbaits anglers may encounter difficulty getting a little more speed to trigger or attract more fish, while still maintaining a deeper level. This problem can be solved two ways.

One is by using a mini-lure and, instead of retrieving it in a steady crankbait manner, working it like a jig: let it sink to the desired depth (counting it down), give it a rip of about 6 -18 inches, let it sink a bit more, another rip, and so on. The rips give you speeds to trigger strikes, yet this rip-and-pause sequence will allow the lure to stay down.

A good deep-water trolling tactic is to run the small crankbait on a dropper rig in conjunction with a larger, deeper-diving crankbait or a weight. I particularly like to use lipless vibrating crankbaits with this rig.

The last instance where this paid off was when fishing white bass on Lake Mendota in Madison ,Wisconsin, with my good friend Jerry Belz. We noticed some deep fish on our depth finder and suspected they were white bass, but couldn't get our small crankbaits down to them. We rigged up some one-eighth ounce Rebel "Spots" on a three-way swivel pulled down by a one-ounce weight. As we slow-trolled, out rods were constantly pumped. Fish after fish pounded our lures in the 20-foot depth range.

Sometimes bigger fish feed on smaller forage and just won't hit a larger lure. Often I've seen smallmouth bass refuse medium to large lures, but fall all over something in the one-sixteenth to one-eighth-ounce range.

Twice I've encounters bunches of striped bass (eight pounds and larger) that were actively feeding on very small shad and wouldn't hit a lure larger than 1-1/2 to two inches. The small lipless vibrating crankbaits had closely imitated the size and color of shad, but the small treble hooks wouldn't hold up to the powerful stripers. The solution: take off the smaller treble hooks and put on larger and stronger single hooks. As long as the weights of the hooks are similar, the lure action won't be affected.

Most of the time I'll use these small hard baits on a spinning outfit spooled with four-pound-test. I prefer a soft line that won't hurt the lure's action, opting for Berkley's XL (Extra Limp) mono. The rod must have a soft tip. A tip that's too stiff wouldn't let you cast as far or as accurately, and, worse yet, it will easily rip the small hooks out of a fish's mouth on the hookset or while you're playing the fish.

I attach the lures to my lines via a small, lightweight black snap--not a snap swivel! I'd recommend a black size-1 Berkley Cross Lok snap.

Used with scaled down tackle, that one-pound panfish or two-pound game fish will require more skill to land than a three-pound bass flipped into the boat on a 20-pound-test line. And you know what? You'll catch your share of lunkers too!

Choosing the Right Ultra-Light Lures

My favorite lipless crankbaits in ultra-light sizes are Cordell's (1/8 ounce) Ratt'l Spot Series (which also included the new Neon Spot Lite and Ratt'l Spot Minnow), Bill Lewis' (1/8 ounce) Tiny Trap, Norman's (1/10 ounce) Enticer, and the Sugar Shad (1/8 ounce).

Excellent small-lipped divers are made by numerous companies. Rebel's "Mother Nature's Look-A-Likes" as friend Lanny West calls them, represent a variety of lifelike forage in the 1/8 to 1/10 ounce range. Look at Normark's ever popular Rapala lures--size 5 Floating Rapala (1/16 ounce), Mini-Fat Rap (1/8 ounce) and Countdown #3 (1/8 ounce). Storm's Pee Wee Warts (1/8 ounce), Heddon's Mini Tadpoly (1/10 ounce), Cordell's Wee Shad (1/9 ounce), and Lindy's size 5 Shadling (1/8 ounce) are more excellent lures. The Shadling balances with relatively large trebles for a small lure and has proven outstanding for trolling tough-to-catch walleyes in 5- to 10-foot depths. It can be used with 6- to 8-pound-test lines.

Small surface lures can be very productive. Look at Heddon's Tiny Torpedo (especially for smallmouth) and the Zara Pooch (1/8 ounce).


Copyright (c) 1996 Spence Petros. All rights reserved.

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