Deep Crankbaits Tips For Fall Fishing Success
Deep-diving crankbaits catch big fish in autumn. If the open-water season was a hockey game, deep crankbaits would be the players delivering their best performance in the third period. Here are some tips to help you capitalize on the deep crankbait bite this fall.
Why Fish Deep Crankbaits In The Fall
A deep-diving crankbait is one of the best presentations for depths of 10 feet or more, which is where many largemouth and smallmouth bass, walleye, pike and other predators abide in autumn. Naturally, these lures excel for other reasons beyond reaching the strike zone effectively. Their baitfish profile appeals to predators looking for a sizeable meal. The wobbling, swimming action of a deep crankbait also consistently attracts and triggers strikes from fish in cold water.
Where To Fish Deep Crankbaits In Autumn
Deep, healthy vegetation holding baitfish regularly attracts predators. Swimming a DT 08, Shad Dancer 07 or Jabber Jaw Deep parallel to an outside weed edge is a reliable way to catch bass, walleye and pike.
Casting a deep crankbait to points is another strategy. Large points pushing into deep flats are good, but even small shoreline points jutting into deep water are worth casting. Try a Jointed Shad Rap 07 for working 7 to 15 feet and a Wiggle Wart Deep for 10 to 20 feet.
If there are baitfish offshore, you can expect predators to be there, too. Casting humps, saddles, reefs and other structures using a DT (08 to 16), Wiggle Wart Deep or Down Deep Husky Jerk is effective for catching offshore fish in the fall. Reliable, too, is working a CountDown 09 or 11 around fish suspending 7 to 14 feet below the surface.
Many predators hunt perch and other baitfish on deep flats. Fan casting a deep crankbait covers water and increase the number of fish you’ll catch from these large areas. Working a sinking Rap-V Blade crankbait along bottom will also produce good results.
Rivers are incredible fall angling locations. You’ll catch all kinds of fish retrieving deep crankbaits around channel ledges and current breaks created by points, tributaries, sand bars, wing dams, log jams and other obstructions.
How To Fish Deep Crankbaits In Autumn
Choose a crankbait capable of swimming at the depth where fish are feeding. For example, when smallmouth are chasing baitfish along a 12 foot ledge, a 07 Shad Dancer or Jointed Shad Raps will reach the strike zone. Walleye cruising bottom in 25 feet? Swimming and hopping a sinking Rap-V or Rippin’ Rap along the floor will put them in the boat.
Don’t be afraid to overshoot depth to maintain steady contact with bottom if this is what fish want. For instance, use a DT 16 instead of a 14 to maintain a slow, wide wobbling action with plenty of hits along the floor when fish are bottom oriented in 14 feet.
As a general rule, the colder the water, the slower the retrieve. Regardless of speed, though, adding small tempo changes and pauses can set off fish and prompt bites.
A long cast gives a deep crankbait more time to reach its maximum running depth and keeps it in the strike zone longer. However, short casts are better when fishing an irregular weed line.
One of the best ways to catch walleye in the fall is s-l-o-w-l-y reeling in Shad Dancers (07) and Shad Raps (07 to 09) at night over shallow flats, along shorelines and around inflowing tributaries. The crankbait won’t dive deep, and that’s perfectly fine. What it will do, though, is steadily kick and send out vibrations that walleye will easily detect and locate through hearing and their lateral line.
Deep Crankin’ Combo
Using a technique-specific rod is beneficial for many crankbait tactics. These rods have moderate-fast or moderate actions and a soft tip for increased casting performance and better hook-up and landing ratios. The 7’1” and 7’4” Omen Black Cranking rods, and the 7’4” Fate V3 Chat-R-Crank (FV3C74MHM) are a few good options.
Use a slow to medium speed baitcast reel for fall cranking. A Concept A3, Concept A or the Origin Series with a 5.5:1 to 6.6:1 gear ratio will fit the bill nicely.
Ten to 12-pound Sufix Advance Monofilament is an excellent line for deep cranking. Although, Sufix Advance Fluorocarbon has a higher density index and will cause a diving lure to run slightly deeper than when the same bait is fished on a monofilament line of the same diameter.
A couple of caveats on the above. If you’re slow-rolling crankbaits for walleye at night, we suggest a medium spinning combo will be easier to fish with in the dark. You may also prefer this set up for fishing light Rap-Vs and Rippin’ Raps. Use 30-pound ProMix Braid attached to a VMC Titanium Leader when targeting northern pike with crankbaits.
If you’ve been wondering how to catch more fish in the fall, casting a deep crankbait is a sure-fire presentation. The Jointed Shad Rap 07, Rap-V, DT 08 to 16, Wiggle Wart Deep, CountDown and other lures noted above are essentials for reeling in big bass, walleye, pike and other predators in autumn.