Crankbait Storage & Annual Maintenance Tips

March 13, 2020
BONUS TIP - Write the dive depth of the crankbait in permanent marker under the lip. Makes it very easy to find the bait the dives to the correct depth.

In this article we show you several annual crankbait maintenance tips, , a hack for keeping track of how deep each one dives, and a storage trick to keep them from getting tangled together.

Crankbaits tend to get tangled when stored together

This can lead to a tangled mess and lost time on the water when fishing.  We have a few tips and tricks to make storing and finding the correct crankbait easier

Dental rubber bands to the rescue! These may look familiar if you ever wore braces.

Be sure to get the 5/16″ dental rubber bands. They make smaller sizes, but they are too hard to work with.

Wrap the dental rubber band around the treble hooks to hold them tight

Securing the treble hooks. Be careful… those hooks are sticky!

Tiny rubber bands work great even on bladebaits, lipless crankbaits, jerkbaits, and more

Both treble hooks are nice and secure with a single small orthodontic rubber band

With the treble hooks secure, getting a crankbait out is easy

BONUS TIP – While you are at it, inspect and replace any worn, dull, or rusty treble hooks. It’s a good idea to inspect them annually

BONUS TIP – Write the dive depth of the crankbait in permanent marker under the lip. Makes it very easy to find the bait that dives to the correct depth.

BONUS TIP – Label each of your boxes so you can quickly find and grab what you are looking for. I prefer to write on white duct tape instead of directly on the box.

Crankbaits are a very effective way to catch gamefish such as bass or walleye.  Their hook up ratio is very high due to the number of treble hooks on them (usually 2 or 3 sets of hooks).  But… because of the number of hooks, storing them can be a pain. Often they get tangled together so when you go to pull one crankbait out, you pull out several of them and have to waste minutes untangling your lures.  

In this slideshow, Vincent Wondra from Fishnetics.com, goes through his annual crainkbait maintenance, shows off a simple crankbait storage hack to eliminate the tangle of hooks, as well as several bonus tips to improve your efficiency on the water.

EQUIPMENT SHOWN

Orthodontic Dental Rubber Bands – https://amzn.to/2vkZYJk
Storm Arashi Rattling Square 05 Hot Chartreuse Shad – https://amzn.to/2ICGtVe
Storm Arashi Silent Square 05 Crankbait Wakasagi – https://amzn.to/2UzOSKz
Strike King KVD Square Bill Crankbait – https://bit.ly/2DvH8n5
VMC Round Bend Treble Hook 7 pk – https://bit.ly/2vikyK2
Plano Hydro-Flo 43620 Utility Box 11″x7″ – http://bit.ly/2IRatM9

Vincent Wondra

Obsessed with fishing since a child. Vince loves to share his knowledge of the sport, while helping encourage selective harvest and protection of the resource. He shares fishing reports, tips, tricks, and more during his never ending quest to be a better fisherman. PRACTICE CPR: Catch. Picture. Release.
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