Crappie Basics: Z-Man Crappie Cheat Codes

When is the last time you caught oodles of crappies all day on a single softbait without reaching for a replacement?

In recent seasons, the rise of superplastics—those extra soft, long-lasting, buoyant and energetic baits made from ElaZtech® – have lured anglers and panfish alike with their almost mind-bending collection of talents. Here is a laundry list of tips and tricks from Z-Man lures.

#1 – Dock Shooting Done Right

Everyone knows the biggest crappies live way up under the darkest, gnarliest nooks of the boat dock. Essentially, the angler pinches the jighead between a thumb and index finger, using the power of a flexed rod to propel the bait beneath the dock like using a slingshot.

But there’s a catch. Dock shooting exposes your fingers to the hookpoint as the jig fires forward. Hooks in fingers hurt and cut into valuable fishing time.

Try this sneaky solution instead: First, create a permanent dock-shooting missile by adding a dab of Loctite Gel Control glue to the base of a Micro Finesse ShroomZ™ or Micro Shad HeadZ™ jighead before snugging the bait tight to the collar.

Give the glue a minute to dry and then, fire away! Pinch the tail of the stretchy yet resilient Micro Finesse bait—rather than the hook or jighead— to guarantee a safe under-dock shot, propelling the bait forward like an arrow.

#2 – The ‘Over-the-Eye’ Trick

The “stretch-but-don’t-tear” nature of ElaZtech yields a valuable bait-keeper solution.

First, thread the bait onto the jighook right up to the collar. Using a second, larger barbless hook, impale the bait’s head, pulling and stretching a bit of the soft material and forming a small hole. While gripping the larger hook, continue stretching the plastic until the small hole slides over and snaps into place on the jig’s eyelet. Tie your favorite knot and benefit from a padlock-tight bait-to-jighead connection.

#3 – Natural Hovering Action

This cheat code doesn’t require anything special on your part. It’s simply your reward for using naturally buoyant ElaZtech. Whether rigged on a jighead, dropshot rig or beneath a bobber, buoyant baits like the StingerZ™, Micro WormZ and LarvaZ™ can enliven many presentations with automatic tail action and effortless motion— even at the slowest retrieve speeds or at rest.

Even when fish go negative, these subtle, self-activated bait motions continue tempting panfish to bite.