The way an angler sets up his or her crappie fishing rigs is a personal decision, and there are several ways to do so. However, depending on who you ask, there are preferred ways to rig up your pole for crappie fishing. What are some of the more preferred ways to set up crappie fishing rigs to catch the most and largest slabs?
If you are having a bad day, you may want to try some rigs that many anglers consider last resort crappie fishing rigs. These include the Texas rig, the Carolina rig, and the floating rig. While these are excellent choices for catching bass, these can be helpful on days when the crappie aren't biting. The Texas rig is a plastic bait rig.
You use a line, hook, and sinker, rigging the sinker on the line with the point of the weight facing up. Tie an off-set worm hook to the end of the line, and put your plastic bait on the hook. Because of its weight, the Texas crappie fishing rig is an appropriate choice when fishing pockets, especially in the winter when you'll find schools of crappie buried deep within these pockets to shelter from the extreme cold.
The Carolina crappie fishing rig requires a main reel line, a barrel swivel, somewhere around six feet of leader line, a weight, a brass (or glass) bead or rattle chamber, and a hook. While there are a lot of parts and pieces involved, it's definitely worth using, as it will achieve results every time.
Take the leader line (use tester line rated at least 2 pounds less than your main line for best results) and tie one end to an end of the barrel swivel. Set this aside and take the main line on your reel, putting on the weight first (perhaps a 1/2 ounce bullet or egg sinker) and following with a rattle. Tie the end of the main line to the remaining end of the barrel swivel, and tie your hook to the other end of your leader line, leaving you with about a three or four foot leader line. Bait the hook, and you are ready to go.
This type of crappie fishing rig is the most appropriate to use when working a downward slope that can range from about three feet in depth to about twenty feet because it allows you to stay in contact with the bottom of the lake. While the Texas rig may work in such a situation, it will lift further from the bottom in deeper waters, making the Carolina rig the most sensible option.
In thick grasses, while any of these options will work, the Carolina rig will provide the best results.
1. Insert one end of the leader through the hook's eye, extending it at least one to two inches past the eye of the hook.
Insert the other end of the leader through the eye in the opposite direction pointing toward the barb of the hook.
Hold the hook and leader ends between your thumb and forefinger of left han (or right hand if you are left handed). Leader will hang below the hook in a large loop.
2. Take the part of the large lower loop that is closest to the eye and wrap it over the hook shank and both ends of the leader toward the hook's barb.
3. Continue to wrap for at least seven or eight turns and hold wraps with left hand. Grip the end of the leader that is through the eyelet with your right hand (or left hand if you are left handed) and pull it slowly and steadily. Hold the turns with your left hand or the knot will unravel.
When knot is almost tight, slide it up against the eye of the hook. Grip the short end lying along the shank of the hook with a pair of pliers. Pull this end and the standing line at the same time to completely tighten the knot.
The Clinch Knot
The Clinch Knot is similar to Snell rig, and will work best for the Hook and Bobber combination.
1. Take the line, and bring it up through the eye of the hook. Give yourself plenty of room at the top to work with. Typically about 8 to 12 inches will be plenty.
2. Take the free end back, behind and then under the straight line.
3. Bring the free end back over the top to form a full loop around the line. Keep the loops fairly loose at this point, as you will tighten them later.
4. Continue looping the free end around the straight line in the same direction. Form about four to six loops. The line will look like a spiral around the straight line.
5. Once you have finished looping, take the free end of the line (at the top of your spiral) and run it back through the bottom loop closet to the eye.
6. Slowly pull out all slack in the loops. The loops should pull tight against the line.
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