Smallmouth baits non craws 2024

Jamie68 reply :

What are some lures / colors / techniques that you recommend for smallmouth that don't include craws? The lake that I typically target smallmouth there aren't any craws in the lake and haven't had the most luck of craws.

MIbassyaker reply :

There are crayfish in virtually every permanent body of water; I'd be very surprised if there aren't any in your lake!

But try 3-4 inch tubes, grubs, stickworms, and paddle-tail swimbaits.

Munkin reply :

Find out what the dominant baitfish are in the area. The maybe feeding on some sort of shad or maybe goby's. I could tell you what works around here but it will be different than your area.

Allen

A-Jay reply :

Hard to imagine smallies with no craws -

But, I bet they'll eat a perch . . .

A-Jay

Jleebesaw reply :

I'll second the 3.5" tubes. They nearly always work. Also, I dropshot KVD dream shot worms and have good results. It's hard to beat a smallmouth hitting topwater lures too. I swear by the super spook junior. When smallies hit that thing it actually scares me sometimes.

J.Vincent reply :

On 3/4/2019 at 7:51 AM, Jamie68 said:

there aren't any craws in the lake

Ok then fish a live crawfish on bottom and come back in a few days to tell us what happens. I would be very surprised if you don't catch a smallmouth.....but if not then I would consider soaking a 3 or 4 inch Leech either live or the Berkley Gulp Leeches.

WRB reply :

It's hard to imagine a smallmouth bass lake that doesn't have a crayfish (crawdad) population, it's the primary food source.

Are you asking about soft plastics without claws? Worms, tubes, grubs, beavers, flukes, Senko's, Sluggo's, etc, etc. RI Smallie Beaver replicates several prey types for example.

Tom

PS, set a crawdad trap out for a few nights.

Swbass15 reply :

Non craw baits that have produced for me are:

squarebills, deep cranks, poppers, whopper plopper, roboworms, senko, Small spinners, scoungers, tubes. Use mainly shad imitations for the color.

FryDog62 reply :

Throw a 5 inch Caffeine Shad rigged on 4/0, 3/32 oz Owner Twistlock Light. Cast out to a high percentage spot... let it sink (and do it’s thing for 4 seconds) then twitch, twitch (and do its thing 4 seconds)... twitch, twitch... Rinse and repeat...

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Strike_King_KVD_Perfect_Plastic_Caffeine_Shad_5_8pk/descpage-SKPCS.html

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Owner_Weighted_Twistlock_Light_3pk/descpage-OWTL.html

It flat out works for Smallmouth...

I like Pearl, Glacier and Siren for Smallmouth. Buddy of mine swears by Bubble Gum...

Can’t argue...

roadwarrior reply :

This is the only lure I have that has out-fished live bait:

TOXIC reply :

Yamamoto 5" Pro Senko on a Ned head will get your arms torn off. At least on the lakes I have fished in Wisconsin. Also a drop shot with a Shad Shape Worm by Yamamoto.

roadwarrior reply :

Another VERY productive lure is the BPS Tender Tube #71

Junk Fisherman reply :

I highly doubt there are no crawfish in the lake. There was a shallow, weedy lake in southern Michigan and one year in the spring I helped reel in and clear out a debris cover for a cottage owner. The cover sat on the bottom for about 40' and it went out about 15'. It was used to collect all the leaves that would accumulate on the shoreline so as to preserve a nice sandy beach for the cottage owners. Oh my- the amount of crawfish that were in this small section of shoreline was staggering. I never really thought of the lake as a crawfish lake and figured the bass just eat bluegill but this made me realize how much they eat crawfish. I used to swim in this area all the time and was always looking at the bottom of this clear lake and never saw anything. To get back to your question, there's crawfish there and you don't even realize it. Those suckers are not always easy to see.

Turkey sandwich reply :

Lots of great smallmouth baits ... because smallmouth, if they're active and you find them, will eat d**n near anything they can choke down. I'd argue 95%+ of smallmouth waters have at least 1 species of crayfish. They also love: gobies, madtoms, perch, small sunfish, virtually any fry or minnow species, helgrammites (and lots of other nymphs and adult flies), shad, alewives, frogs, mice, leaches, sculpins, etc. They're super versatile predators.

928JLH reply :

Slow roll AYU color Keitech Fat Impact Swings on underspins. Ned rig. Biffle bugs on swing heads are great. Spy baits.

diversity210 reply :

Small mouth tend to be fairly aggressive when the bite is on and the will eat pretty much anything you have tied on. I have produced many smallmouth on Berkley Power Bait 10" Power Worms. The small mouth just cant resist them especially on warmer summer days. 4 to 5 inch Keitech Easy Shinner on a 1/8oz weighted gamagatsu swimbait hook or an owner flash swimmer. Zoom Salty Super Fluke will get the job done as well.

smr913 reply :

I catch a lot of smallmouth at the lake I fish on 6-10 ft diving crankbaits casting parallel to the bank and bouncing them off rocks. We have lots of shad so I go with those colors. If you have more bluegill, perch, or other baitfish you may try those colors.

J Francho reply :

I've fished a lake that had no crawfish because they would be unable to survive in the low pH acidic water. That is a very rare situation, though and there were no smallmouth in the lake. Most freshwater lakes have them. There are over 300 species in the US.

I've found that cranks and jerkbaits in various colors work well for smallies. Another go to would be a walking/popping topwater. I like the Popmax.

DropShotHotShot reply :

Try a hair jig, Feider Fly from outkast tackle is a good option.

EKYbasser reply :

Great thread!

T.A.L38 reply :

I'll throw a curve ball in here that has been a big producer for myself with smallies: spinnerbait. KVD Double Willow, Sexy Shad 1/2oz

Another lure I've made a regular in my smallie arsenal is the MegaBass Dark Sleeper. The profile is perfect for the mouth size, a weedless presentation so you can bounce it much like a jig. A little pricey but absolutely effective.

BoatSquirrel reply :

Size 8 and 10 Rapala XRap in silver, moss back shiner, and clown.

umckibben reply :

Tubes, smaller tubes, ned rig...... and squarebills in green pumpkin or some variant of gp!

rayrock99 reply :

For me the smallmouth are chasing baitfish right now, nothing tops a Keitech 3.3 Fat Impact. we have alot of Alewife in our waters so thats the color ive been using.

DropShotHotShot reply :

Hair jig, check out the Feider Fly

A-Jay reply :

On 5/2/2019 at 5:55 AM, DropShotHotShot said:

Hair jig, check out the Feider Fly

My go to.

A-Jay

NHBull reply :

Last year I re-fell in love with the fat ika, hula grub, and I always have a megabass JB tied on

hamma reply :

im surprised no one has mentioned inline spinners, or spoons.(unless I missed it)

Roostertails, mepps agilia's, and countless other inlines have been responsable for many smallie wallhangers, also 1/2 oz Johnsons weedless spoon tipped with a 3 inch white grub swam through weeds, or a daredevil, little cleo, hopkins, crippled herring in open water.

Any type of topwater, spinnerbaits. or even try approaching this with a "different" forage base like: catfish, pike, musky,''' or even dare I say cannibalism. and Ive yet to find a body of water a 4 inch white slug-o didnt catch something.

No crayfish? very odd. this place must produce giants, otherwise,?,..why fish it

bowhunter63 reply :

x alot on hair jigs,3 or 4 inch swim baits on a swim jig.

Dangerfield reply :

On 5/2/2019 at 9:12 AM, NHBull said:

fat ika

I'm giving this one a try this year. They look like a grub with a tube dress. How do you rig them? I was thinking a swinging jighead or a tokyo rig

NHBull reply :

On 5/4/2019 at 1:53 AM, Dangerfield said:

I'm giving this one a try this year. They look like a grub with a tube dress. How do you rig them? I was thinking a swinging jighead or a tokyo rig

Many time upside down, like a palm tree. Youtube has many videos on them.....I usually just use 5/0 EWG

J Francho reply :

If you rig them unweighted, as @NHBull says, they sail away from you. Great dock skipping bait.

Dangerfield reply :

On 5/6/2019 at 8:54 PM, J Francho said:

If you rig them unweighted, as @NHBull says, they sail away from you. Great dock skipping bait.

Thanks! I'll give this a shot.

FryDog62 reply :

On 5/2/2019 at 9:12 AM, NHBull said:

Last year I re-fell in love with the fat ika, hula grub, and I always have a megabass JB tied on

I agree. Another one on the same ilk as the Ika is Keitech salty tube...

Ineedanewscreenname20190512 reply :

Never had any luck with craws around my area either. My go-to smallie bait has always been Tubes. Personal favorites are Strike King Coffee Tubes, jig em off the bottom, or swim em, either way works pretty good for me. I'd give her a try personally ????

ww2farmer reply :

Smallmouth in the spring are far less picky than any other time of the year. I have caught them on frogs, and chatterbaits while largemouth fishing. And then things like the ned rig.....you can't NOT catch a smallmouth on it, even if you soaked it in gasoline.

TnRiver46 reply :

I consider a tube a “craw bait.” I catch most of my smallmouth (and largemouth) with a plastic worm

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