really deep diving crankbaits

[coombro]

I've purchased in the past super super deep ( to me their deep ) diving crank baits. Big lipped and to much to use with by cranking with a reel. Supposedly desingned to dive 20 to 30 ft. Thats deep to me for a crank bait. Not much experiance on trolling them behind a boat. Only time I've ever trolled was in the gulf of mexico. Have tossed them out behind the boat at 1 mph (manufactures recomendations) and don't feel they are diving to such said depths as I've crossed 8 to 10 ft of water and not felt bottom. Any one have have suggestions on what I'm doing wrong? Thought about carolina rigging them to get them down. Any suggestions besides down riggers?

[The Fish Whisperer]

Hi,

I know a guide that does that method
Fishfinder General

He knows what he is doing
Get a couple of guys and rent him for the day

He will show you. Worth the money.
Split three ways , not bad from wasting a summer or two of learning trail by error

Rick

[walkeraviator]

First thing is first... long casts... you gott ahave a lot of line out there to get that depth. Then you gotta have the right line. I believe i read somewhere that all of the depth ratings are based on 10lb mono. if you use flouro, it will go deeper. if you use thinker line, you will drastically reduce that depth. You also have to have the right rod position. Get that rod tip right down next to teh water... it is a common technique to actually stick the rod straight down in the water up to the reel to get just a few more feet down. If you are gettin tired throwin these things, get a lower gear ratio reel. It will allow you more torque without wearin yourself out. A nice long reel handle is a bonus here. I nice 7'6" MH moderate tip rod will help you get that lure out there as far as humanly possible. I like BPS crankin sticks, but if you can afford better gear, go for it.

[coombro]

First thing is first... long casts... you gott ahave a lot of line out there to get that depth. Then you gotta have the right line. I believe i read somewhere that all of the depth ratings are based on 10lb mono. if you use flouro, it will go deeper. if you use thinker line, you will drastically reduce that depth. You also have to have the right rod position. Get that rod tip right down next to teh water... it is a common technique to actually stick the rod straight down in the water up to the reel to get just a few more feet down. If you are gettin tired throwin these things, get a lower gear ratio reel. It will allow you more torque without wearin yourself out. A nice long reel handle is a bonus here. I nice 7'6" MH moderate tip rod will help you get that lure out there as far as humanly possible. I like BPS crankin sticks, but if you can afford better gear, go for it.

Well first thing I've got my rod at around 11 o'clock so you've corrected me there. Not to much intrested in crankin these big lures more intrested in dragging them behind the boat. I'll lower that rod tip and see what that does and yes i'm cranking with a high speed reel. I'll change to lower ratio and give it a try. Might just change my mind about dragging behind boat. Thanks for your input.

[kyjake]

If you have trolled in the gulf you might be familiar with Mann's Stretch 25's
or Bomber 26A's.They should go 25' deep at 2.5 mph.Never tried them here but they should be good for stripers.
Jake

[coombro]

If you have trolled in the gulf you might be familiar with Mann's Stretch 25's
or Bomber 26A's.They should go 25' deep at 2.5 mph.Never tried them here but they should be good for stripers.
Jake

Not sure what we trolled with off the coast of Louisiana. Seems it was some kinda top water lure and lots and lots of cold beer

[bigrod]

Long soft rod is a must to get a very long cast. You want to cast that thing 50 yards. A low gear ratio reel is also a must to give the bait time to dive. If you go to KY Lake in the summer you will get a lot of use out of those big cranks

[walkeraviator]

Another idea is to use some KVD line and lure conditioner. It actually does improve your casting distance a little.

[kygorski]

dragging a deep running crank bait, I use 20/6 braid line, the no stretch factor helps in hook sets and the small diam gets the bait down deep.Next ypou need a l;ot of line out to get that bait that deep,a min of 25 yds in some cases. On the retrieve instead of fighting the lure with the reel. I pull back on the rod and then reel. Something you may want to try is trrolling planers from lure jensen, they come in different sizes from 10 to at least 30 ft, they require a fairly stout rod but trip when you get a strike, they float at rest and dont usually snag up.You can use a floating rouge on a 20ft planer or a a 200 series bandit on a 10 ft planer over 20+ water.You can get them from cabelas, I got some off the counter at BPS in northern ind. But braided line is almost a must, there is a lot of stretch with mono.

[MagikSmallie]

I've managed to put together a setup that gets crankbaits down really deep. First I use a 7'3" G-Loomis MH Deep Flex Crankbait Rod with 12lb Seaguar Flourocarbon and a Revo Winch. The 12lb flouro makes sure that line sinks and gets that bait down a foot or so deeper than normal. The rod allows you to cast super far to again get maximum depth and the reel allows to crank very very slowly since its 5.4:1 which keeps the bait from rising too fast. This combo will let you get those deep divers down deep like you want. You can expect true depth out of your DD-22's and others.

[coombro]

Man you guys make my head spin. More to it than just opening the package and tossing it out. Thanks for the info. Can't wait to get the boat out and see how your tips pay off. Believe I can get it down deeper than I have been from your tips.

[ANCHORHEAD]

Coombro- if you are going to be trolling, invest in a guide book called Precision Trolling Big Water Edition - it provides specific depth curves for most popular lures, using various methods such as leadcore,Dipsy Divers, Jet Divers, In-Line weights and Planer Board use. If you want specific information related to just crank baits with depth curves with mph graphs then get the Precision Trolling Crankbait Edition- they have laminated pages so you wont ruin it out on the water, basically a trollers bible if you will, for about $30 bucks a great investment......