If you follow professional bass fishing tournament, you probably know that Greg Hackney loves to fish shallow. One of his favorite ways to catch them in less than 6ft of water is with a crankbait. In this bass fishing seminar class video, Greg Hackney shares some of the reasons that he chooses a shallow crankbait (whether it's a shallow diver, a squarebill or even a lipless crankbait) over other bass fishing techniques. A lot of debate about shallow cranking is wooden plugs vs plastic and Greg spends a good deal of time sharing the advantages and disadvantages of each material. In this shallow cranking instructional video, you'll also learn: how to trigger bites when fishing cover, the tackle you need for fishing shallow crankbaits, ensuring you land fish that bite your crankbait and more!

  • 0:55 What is shallow cranking?
  • 1:41 The evolution of the wooden plug tackle market to plastic. The advantages and disadvantages of wood vs plastic crankbaits and making adjustments
  • 7:01 Greg Hackney's shallow cranking rod specs
  • 8:36 The key to getting bites when cranking shallow wood cover when the fish aren't active, and the advantage of a crankbait over other baits in those conditions
  • 13:21 Hooks and reels speed for shallow cranking
  • 15:29 The 2 times a year that Greg Hackney chooses a flat side crankbait
  • 17:48 "The biggest deal with a crankbait" for catching bass per Greg Hackney
  • 18:34 When to fish the 3/4oz Red Eye Shad
  • 19:45 Keeping fish on the trebles and why Greg Hackney would rather have them bite close to the boat
  • 23:27 Monofilament cranking tips from Greg Hackney
  • 26:02 Approaching cover and making the best casts
  • 30:35 Considerations with fishing braid
  • 37:36 Characteristics of a hunting crankbait and an aggressively hunting crankbait
  • 38:33 Why not always fish a wooden plug?
  • 41:52 Keep catching bass in a school after they stop biting the lure that fired up the school
  • 46:13 Greg Hackney's Power-Pole drifting tip

Related Bass Fishing Topics

crankbaits greg hackney shallow wood

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