I have been fishing for crappies primarily with a size 8 hook, a bucket full of mini fatheads and a cork bobber in a nearby lake. I usually have pretty good results in april/may and parts of june. A good trip would consist of 20 ranging from 8-13 inches. Are there any better suggestions for bait or tackle? My buddy i fish with seems to get 5 or 6 more every trip. It would be nice if i had a “tip” on getting a few more. I saw on basspro.com there is a crappie bug jig for only $.99 for 2. What suggestions do you have to increase my crappie strikes?

Well if I had to guess I bet your buddy is using line that is lighter than you are. Crappie is a very wary fish. As you increase your line size you will decrease your hookup rate as a counter balance. I would start with a good light action rod that allows you to feel strikes. Crappie often pickup an offering in their mouth and spit it out at the first line of trouble. You want light line and a fine light action rod that will allow you to identify these hook ups. The second think you may want to make sure of are your hooks. The size is okay, the smaller the better for Crappie is my opinion. The most important factor is how well they are sharpened. When a Crappie attacks an offering you generally get one short chance to hook the fish. You want to make it count by using hooks that are extra sharp. Before each trip make sure you have a small supply of new sharpened hooks. As for bait you could try hooking the minnows through the lips instead of the back if that is what you currently are doing. You can also fish in conjunction with a jig head. If you go this route I advise using florescent pink or chartreuse as these colors are proven over the years to be best for Crappie. The last hint I can give you is fishing depth. Crappie sometimes adjusts their feeding depth hour by hour. If you are not catching fish try fishing a depth that is a couple feet shallower or deeper.