(Editor's note: The following is the latest installment in a series of fishing tips presented by The Bass University. Check back each Friday for a new tip.)
Throughout his career, four-time Bassmaster Classic winner and Bass Fishing Hall of Fame member Kevin VanDam has found the occasionally torturous process of throwing crankbaits in grass to be worthwhile. Done carelessly or incorrectly, it results in a lot of frustration, but by developing a detailed and integrated system it’s a recipe for success. Dating back to his earliest victories on tour, he’s found it to be an exceptional tool for finding big groups of bass and conquering them.
“From spring to fall, this is a great technique just about anywhere in the country,” he said. Of course, if you’re spending more time retrieving fouled lures or plucking grass from them, your success rate may go down. Efficiency is the key, and by choosing the right rod, reel, line and lure for a particular situation, you can maximize your strikes by ticking the tops and edges of the grass.
Part of that starts with knowing the different types of vegetation and whether they lend themselves to the technique. Eel grass typically does not, but crisp, green hydrilla is a KVD favorite. After that, it’s all about the attitude and the tackle.
“One of the big things is having the right gear,” he said. “It’s a lot of work to crank grass.” In particular, he wants a rod that can make long casts, rip the bait free from the salad and firmly plant those super-sharp trebles into the fish’s mouth. “You need something that has a lot of power.” He likes a Lew’s 7’4” medium-heavy composite rod for much of his cranking effort. It provides him with lots of backbone, lots of control over his lure’s diving depth and a great deal of sensitivity to tell him whether his bait is toting a sprig of grass or whether a light-biting bass has hit his Strike King lure. “I can feel every bit of the grass,” he explained.
Line is also critical in terms of maximizing action and controlling depth, and VanDam will often have several rods on deck, all with similar lures but with different strengths of fluorocarbon. Unlike some crankers who focus on light line all the time, KVD’s power fishing style allows him to use fairly heavy fluoro. “Seventeen-pound fluorocarbon is one of my favorite and most-used sizes when I’m cranking grass,” he said. A 5XD on 12-pound might go 12 to 18 inches deeper, but the heavier line has less stretch and allows him to “clear” his bait more easily. “It’s got a lot of power.” Sometimes he’ll even go up to 20-pound if conditions warrant it.
As for the bait itself, he tailors it to water temperature, water clarity and a particular fishery’s forage base, and urges each angler to learn the running depths and intricacies of each particular lure. Then you can use your Humminbird electronics – especially if you have 360 Mega Imaging – to purposely and precisely run your lure into the tapering edges and irregularities in the grass.
If you want to learn some of the other aspects of KVD’s legendary grass-cranking system, including some of his color choices for northern versus southern waters, check out his full video filmed on the water, available only by subscribing to The Bass University TV.
