Crankbaits will catch both active and non-active bass because of their unique characteristics — yet most weekend anglers overlook them.
The Three Basic Bass Bait Categories
Of course, I fish every day. Mostly walleyes because of demand by clients. But a few trips a week, I get the request for bass — largemouth or smallmouth. My answer is always: "Whatever works!"
- Surface baits (floating surface baits)
- Mid-level (spinner baits or diving cranks)
- Bottom (worm baits — Texas rig, jig, etc.)
I start at the top and work my way down, and depending on the activity level of the fish, will settle on one of the three — and many times it's the crankbait.
Why Crankbaits Outperform Spinner Baits
The beauty of the crankbait is that it is extremely versatile much like the spinner bait — fast, slow, deep, shallow, etc., and many color pattern variations to choose from. The main difference is the tight or loose "wobble" and possible rattle sounds that most spinner baits do not have. Frankly, most weekend bass anglers rely on spinner baits far too much! Crankbaits are far more effective when used correctly and deadly when other baits are not!
My Go-To Crankbaits
I'm a huge fan of the Bill Lewis Rat-L-Trap series MR-6 crank or the actual Rat-L-Trap itself. Both bass species (along with bonus pike) will crush them!
- Target weedy flats in the 10–14 ft. range with weeds reaching 4–8 ft. below the surface
- The MR-6 dives down around 5–6 ft. deep
- The Rat-L-Trap sinks — use the countdown method for depth control
- Vary your retrieve: fast, slow, erratic — experiment until you find the right one
How to Work the Water
Comb the flats by trolling and fan casting large areas throughout the top of the weedy complex. Do not forget the edge of the weed beds — the inside weed edge towards shore and the obvious deep weed line on the lake side of the drop off.
- Keep the boat deep, cast shallow, retrieve back down the slope of the break
- Then try the opposite: sit shallow, cast deep, retrieve towards the shallows
- Don't ignore the shallow inside weed line facing shore (most anglers do)
- If the bait snags a weed top, give it a quick "snap" to free it and keep crankin'
Choosing Colors
- Stained/dirty water → bright colors (chartreuse, fluorescent orange)
- Clear water → natural colors (perch, sunfish, baby bass patterns)
So next time you're bass fishing, branch out and try a crankbait! I love worm fishing or chuckin' spinner baits just like the next angler, but trust me, crankbaits should take up a large chunk of your tackle box portfolio! Lotsa Fish! Lotsa Fun!
