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4/16 Gluten Free Crappies

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RonG

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
I spent the afternoon hoppin' and boppin' and crappie shoppin', hitting up 5 ponds.

Pond 1: A Schaumburg treasure. This place holds big crappies, yet I bomb out every time. 'Not quite sure why I keep trying it "one last time." As usual, I was bombing out. To beat the skunk I hung my lure in front of a drain pipe apron to get a green sunfish as they always hang out there. Got this dude instead.

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Next came a pumpkinseed, then an so-so crappie

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followed by 3 dink crappies. Then I casted all over the joint and turned up nothing else.

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Pond 2: Walking distance from pond 1. Skunked

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Pond 3: Walking distance from ponds 1 & 2. Skunked.

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Pond 4: The Mudpipe Pond. Finally a day without the poachers, but from their fresh litter, I could see they were already here today. They've been coming most every day and pillaging everything of size. Yesterday they started keeping the bass too. Soon the slabbos will be extinct and the the pond will suck like most other ponds in the area. I tried to talk some common sense into the ringleader, to no avail. I wish Charles Bronson was still alive. He'd know what to do to these idiots.

First cast: crappie! :mrgreen: I ended up with 22 more there, mostly dinks and a big and beautiful perch.

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Pond 5: I really don't know what to call it as none of these ponds have any real names. Lets just call it "the bigger pond I once fished with Mplant1 and JP the Hiphopper." Or as Tacklebox knows it as the "pond with the pump."

The pond is good for crappies for about 10 days each April and that's it. First cast here too produced a crappie. One bass and 10 crops total, then it got dark. Today, I caught 2 or 3 of the best crappies I've ever gotten here to date. Had I known that was going to happen, I would have came here first and probably ended up skipping the four other ponds.

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I don't eat any of these urban pond crappies, but they say they are gluten free if you would like to give them a try. Personally, I'm a glutton for gluten so I double-know they are not for me.
 
#2 ·
Well traveled and well worth it. The burbs are loaded with so many ponds like the ones you mention and I always want to stop and fish them. Nice job getting on some fish.
 
#6 ·
Nice report Ron. I just bought a pack of the same color crappie sliders. Had GBIII setup with them on Saturday casting and catching giant gills at a lake my friend lives on with his UL. They are great fun for adults and kids alike.
 
Discussion starter · #7 ·
DasGoby said:
Nice report Ron. I just bought a pack of the same color crappie sliders.
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Make sure to get some of the solid pinks. I did a similar multi-pond crappie search Saturday, and pink was the hottest color and works great on most days. I think the sold white and mostly white are a little too bright at times, especially if the water is really clear.
 
#9 ·
Hey Ron, your posts never disappoint. Thanks for taking the time. Crappy slider question for the lord of the crappy slider. How do you usually retrieve these and how much weight do you typically use? I always worry that when I retrieve them like a swim bait (they are like a mini paddle tail) I'm moving them to fast.
 
Discussion starter · #10 ·
Handler said:
Crappy slider question for the lord of the crappy slider. How do you usually retrieve these and how much weight do you typically use? I always worry that when I retrieve them like a swim bait (they are like a mini paddle tail) I'm moving them too fast.
Click to expand...
I'd be happy to answer.

Weight is the easy oner. 1/32 oz jig, almost exclusively. I never worry about jig color. It's that crazy tail action that brings them in. I've been using plain lead (no paint) jigs lately. Sliders are the best all-around crappie lures I've found, regardless of month. I've found it to be the best lure in the cold water (ice-out to maybe late Apr to early May when the water warms up) Once the water is warmer, I can do about as good with twister tails.

Handler said:
when I retrieve them like a swim bait (they are like a mini paddle tail)
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Years prior, I discovered that the little sassy shad-like swimbaits were the hottest thing for the ice-out crappies by a mile. The only problem all of them stunk and wouldn't move properly. The only awesome and consistent ones were made by Charlie Brewer. When I ran out of those, I was heartbroken to find he no longer made them and that's how I discovered the Sliders, also by Brewer. It was the same good tail, but with a grub body instead.

Speed is hard to define. Much slower in ice cold water. Faster when it's warm. Slower if the water is cloudy. Faster if it's clear. I prefer to fish without a float as much as possible (more fun!), but find myself using a float often, specifically these:

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Reasons for the float:

To slow it down when the water is cold
To cast farther than I can see
To keep the lure at a consistent depth
To keep it above weeds, timber or other snags.

Usually fish it 1' to 5' under the float. Usually deeper for a fast retrieve as the lure rises up the faster you go.

Lots of times, I'll use the present wind speed make the retrieve for me and the chop to provide most of the action. Even bobber-less, I'll get a big bow in my line and let the wind provide the speed. Overall typical stuff of adjusting the presentation and speed day by day for whatever works best. I love crappies. Sometimes they are ridiculously easy, but often they are finicky and weird and I love trying to figure them out and what colors and approach to use.
 
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