Cover Factors
The type of cover being fished is a
major deciding factor, too. A tighteraction
bait is usually better in grass
since the bill is less likely to hang and
isn’t as liable to get bogged down.
“The complete opposite of that
would be a wider action is better
around wood,” Pace says. “You have a
larger bill, which is what creates a larger
action, but it also helps protect the
hooks and helps it deflect.
“To be generic about it, your pointier,
rounder-bill baits are more effective in
grass,” he adds. “Baits with squared-off
lips are more effective in wood.”
You should also consider how long
the bait will make contact with the cover.
“If you throw a crankbait around a
tree, it’s only going to make contact
at one point when it hits the tree,”
says Pace. “When cranking grass,
most of the time you’re cranking the
outside edge. So, you crank it down, it
comes in contact when it hits the
grass, then comes free and back into
open water. When you crank rock,
whether it’s riprap or chunk rock or a
gravel bar, once you get the bait on
that cover, it’s going to stay there.
You need a bait that maintains good
bottom contact if you’re going to
crank rock with it. You need a bait
that recovers real well.”
In wood, you want a bait that will
deflect and, preferably, one that can
float out of a snag, which is why highly
buoyant, wide-wobbling balsa baits
have always been popular for cranking
shallow wood cover. Look for the same
characteristics in a deep-diving
crankbait if you want to fish offshore
brush piles.
For grass, several types can work,
but Pace often chooses tight-action,
straight-running plastic crankbaits.
They can be ripped clean easily, and
many have rattles, which help to draw
fish out of the grass.
Baits that Hunt
Hunting is built-in action, and it’s a
hallmark of some classic crankbaits
and dozens of handmade balsa plugs.
When a crankbait hunts, it wobbles like
normal, but will also veer left or right 6
inches to a foot and then come back to
center.
“A lot of baits say they hunt, but
they really don’t,” says Pace. “I really
like that style bait for cranking wood
and for cranking rock because I think it
generates more bites. It makes the bait
look more natural to a fish. I do not like
that style of bait for cranking grass
because, typically, a bait that has a
good hunting action like that is not
going to break free of grass very well.”
More on Plastic vs. Balsa
Speaking generally, plastic has
advantages over balsa, and balsa has
advantages over plastic in certain situations,
but you can’t disregard the specific
design elements already described
and choose only based on the material.
“Balsa baits are normally going to
be more buoyant. They’re great baits
for cover. That’s what they’ve always
been known for,” Pace says. “Plastic
baits are going to have a lot cleaner
finish. You can get so much more realistic
with plastic baits. You can do all
your transparent colors that you can’t
do with balsa, which makes plastic
baits pretty much dominant in your
clear-water environments. When I say
clear, I mean gin-clear.”
Plastic baits also can be made with
rattles and weight-transfer systems
that aid in making longer casts, which
is why they often dominate for cranking
at the deepest end of the bass-fishing
spectrum.
The Black Label Slim (top) has flat sides and a
rounded lip. It's designed with a subtle, hunting
action. The new Black Label Peanut (bottom) has
a similar body shape with a shorter, fatter lip. It’s
made for banging and hunting through rocks.
PHOTO BY GARRICK DIXON
Pace shows off the Black Label
CBS 1 (left) and Jackall Aska
square-bills that he used during
his 2019 BPT win in Wisconsin.
Embrace the Variety
The most important takeaway when
it comes to crankbait selection is that
anglers should take advantage of all
the options on the market these days.
There are dozens of flat-sided
crankbaits, square-bills, round-bills and
on and on, and they come in balsa,
plastic and other materials. Two seemingly
similar baits can have widely different
actions. Each has its place.
“Anglers need to understand that all
crankbaits are not designed for any
and every application,” Pace adds.
“You can definitely fine-tune your
cranking lure choice just like you can
fine-tune everything else. In the world
we live in now, the bait options are
nearly endless, which is great as a fisherman,
but you have to understand all
those little nuances.”
JUNE-JULY 2020 | MAJORLEAGUEFISHING.COM | FLWFISHING.COM 87