Crankin Tips

[CrawlerKing]

Just wondering if any of you guys who troll cranks alot have any tips you would like to share. What type of line do you use? If you use a "superline" do you add a mono or flourocarbon leader? Do you dead stick your lure or do you work it?

I usually use #10 or #14 smoke Firewire. I usually tie the line to a small rapala snap. I don't use a leader and I seem to consistantly put more fish in the boat than people I fish with that use mono. I usually have my drag set fairly light, because without the stretch in the line, I don't want to have the fish rip off. Generally the only time you have to set the hook is if the fish is swimming towards you when it hits the lure.

It seems to me that I have the best results, when trolling on Mille Lacs, if I add action to the lure by working the rod. But then again on some nights you just have to put the rod in the rod holder and let the speed of the boat dictate the lures action.

One other little tip that I will do is that on a #11 or #13 floater I will replace the front treble with a smaller size hook. This seems to do two things for me. First it seems to reduce the number of times that the first and second trebles become fouled and I think it makes a subtle change in the way the rap works.

My last tip would be that I have a saying "When in doubt, let more out" don't be afraid to let out more line. Don't get caught in a rut....you have to be willing to experiment...try enough options and eventually the fish will tell you what they want. Just pay attention to details so that you can repeat the pattern and have a memorable night "banging the eyes"!

[Crossin' Eyes]

I think you just said a mouthful.
I troll with fireline for a number of reasons. #1 I get a lot better feel for what the bait is doing especially when using a long line and trolling around sporadic weed growth. How many times have you reeled in and had a small weed on your line and think "****...what if..." #2 Fireline has saved me an awful lot of money because I have a much better success ration of getting snagged lures back. At $5 a pop, they really add up.
Speed, rod movement, lure size, lure color, amount of line out, and depth are all stuff I constantly experiment with until I gain some confidence.

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Good Fishin!
Crossin

[Navigator]

Not to take anything away from Mike or anyone else...here's my 2 cents...I use mono (10# test min.) when I'm trolling in shallow rocky areas AND my line length is less than 40'. The line has a "boing - twang" effect when you bounce rocks or hit a fish. "Can you tell that I watched saturday cartoons as a kid??" What I mean is, the line has some forgiveness and stetch to take up the shock and head shaking done by REALLY big walleyes

Now, stretchy line at long lengths (greater than 50') can hinder a positive hook set. So this is a place for superlines OR here is another option if you are concerned about chewing through your rod guides which sometimes happens with the superlines....No-Bo line. It has the same low stretch properties as a superline. I use it on the river and have found it to be an exceptional product for trolling. Nav

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Jon Navratil
Navigator Guide Service
www.naviguides.com
Serving Central MN rivers & lakes

[Crossin' Eyes]

Hey John.
Don't you worry about your lure running that close to the boat? Not that it's the answer, but I almost always have 100+ ft of line out when trolling for walleyes. the only exception is if I'm running a planner board. Then, I too, like to use 10 lb. mono. I haven't even tried using boards at night on Mille Lacs. I have to believe it would be more hassle than it's worth.

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Good Fishin!
Crossin

[Navigator]

Mike,
Depends on the type of lure I am trolling with and the structure I am fishing. If an area has alot of inside and outside turns and I am concentrating on a specific depth then I want the lure to be closer to the boat.

On the river, I use enough line to make contact with the bottom and sometimes that maybe less than 20' of line. Side note, ever had a smallie hit a plug trolling that close to the boat...it's pretty cool, they go ballistic and run at the boat.

Last Saturday we were trolling Andersons reef and I wanted to follow the west side break from 4' to 6'. We caught our fish within 30' of the boat, BUT there are nights that you need to adapt to the conditions for example longer lines (100') and switching lures.

I guess, start with a presentation that you are confident in and go from there. Nav

ps. If you're looking for someone to fish with in the future on Mille Lacs, let me know. Mid-week & weekend trips are always possible

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Jon Navratil
Navigator Guide Service
www.naviguides.com
Serving Central MN rivers & lakes

[fishing addict]

Question for you guys?
when trolling a reef do you try to follow a certain contour or do you go back and forth over the top of the structure.

Also is this an effective way to fish around the malmo area. my brother has a shack at Castaways and would like to give it a try around there around the october full moon.

[Guest]

Follow the steepest break as best as you can. As the night progresses, cover the top.

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Mille Lacs Guide Service
651-271-5459
www.millelacsguideservice.com

[Borch]

About the only time I don't follow a contour is when the fish are scattered in the deeper flat areas around the reefs. We've popped many pigs out there trolling #18 rapalas.

As far as length of line out. I usually start short and add length as I need to. Many nights I have outfished my partner 3:1 because my lure was getting to active fish before his was.

All but one of my trolling rods have fireline on them. I keep mono on one for very shallow presentations or with short lines out.

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I bad day of fishing??? I honestly don't know what you're talking about!

[Willy]

If I can add a question: Do you guys run boards when trolling these fish shallow or do you just long line them? thanks

[CrawlerKing]

I just long line them.....I started using boards this summer for the first time on Pepin and Big Stone and really enjoyed it. I haven't used the boards on Mille Lacs for the following reasons: 1 Most of my trolling passes are fairly short as I find the majority of my fish relating to very specific spots. If I was trolling some larger shallow flats I would consider using them. 2 The nights I have been fishing this fall have all been fairly windy and I feel that the fish aren't quite as spooky as on a calm night. I always have my boards with me and if I'm up there when it's calm I may try the boards. 3 Boards, to me, seem to run the best trolling with the wind and I've had my best luck this fall trolling into the wind. 4 I don't want to take the time to put boards in and out. 5 AND THE NUMBER ONE REASON.....I love to feel those big pigs when they bang the rap and nearly rip the rod out of your hands!

[Borch]

I would add to crawlerking's respond boat traffic. If you choose to fish one of the reefs there'll be no room to run boards. It's tough enough to quickly crank in your line as someone cuts in right behind your boat. I've lost several lures to these guys without a clue.

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I bad day of fishing??? I honestly don't know what you're talking about!

[Mykal]

CrawlerKing or Crossin'Eyes, do you ever troll Huskies or Super Rouges with fireline? I was experimenting with 4/10 fireline for the first time this weekend. I generally run 10 lb mono or Flouro, but with the fireline I could not get very much line out before I was banging bottom. Or do you guys primarily pull floaters in 8 feet or under. Maybe I was pulling the Rouges too slow?

[This message has been edited by Mykal (edited 10-05-2003).]

[mthunter]

What is a good speed for pulling cranks for eyes? And what is the max speed you pull them. This is my first year with my own boat so I haven't had to worry about the little things before.
Thanks for any advice.

[This message has been edited by mthunter (edited 10-05-2003).]

[CrankinEyes]

Mykal, in 10' of water or less I run floaters. Either a #11 or #13 floating rapala or a Rogue of similar size. I run nothing but fireline. I will run 200' of fireline anywhere from 10' to 6' depths.

Mthunter, a good speed to start is around the 1.8 mph I will go as high as 3.5 depending on the wind and the bite.

Also if you are going to do a lot of this type of fishing invest in Rod Holders.

[Crossin' Eyes]

Mykal,
I use fireline and a longer softer tip rod when trolling husky jerks. I really like the feel that fireline gives, and the longer, softer rod keeps the fish hooked a lot better. Fireline will make your cranks run slightly deeper. I usually have just enough line out to tick the bottom. If I'm fishing less than 6 ft of water I will switch to a floater instead of a husky jerk. Mille Lacs is so clear that during the full moon phase, a large dark silhouette has had more impact for me than a rattling bait.
Good luck to all this week and weekend. There will be a bunch of us on the pond from Thurs. - Sunday. I'll try to sneak in a report or two.

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Good Fishin!
Crossin

[CrawlerKing]

Mykal I guess I've become spoiled with my success using floaters and shad raps...I don't own a Rouge (I know, shame on me, but I do own over 100 floaters and shad raps. And to think that I tell my wife it's cheaper when I troll at night because I don't have to buy live bait!) I've never had as much luck on the Huskies, but plan on trying them more this next weekend. When trolling in 3 to 6 feet of water I use #14 fireline with my floaters...in 7 to 9 feet I use #10 fireline...deeper than that I usually switch to shad raps.

mthunter My GPS is almost as important as my graph when I'm trolling. My first trolling pass I'll try 1.7 mph then my next pass about 2.7 mph...If no luck, then I'll try some where in between...

Tip: Instead of trolling in a straight line..try using a S pattern and pay attention to which line is getting the most hits...inside line may indicate that the fish want a slower presentation...outside line may indicate that you need to speed up. Also if you are trolling on top of a reef...try trolling the length of it, then try criss crossing across the top...some nights the fish will be stacked on top and on other nights they will be sitting on the edge just waiting for your rap to come off the break.

[Mykal]

Thanks! See you on the water.

[bigeyes]

Crawler-if you don't cut me in on some of those cranks, your wife may get a copy of this thread.

[CrawlerKing]

BigEyes--Not to worry.....my wife doesn't know who CrawlerKing is!!!