But some guys like to thump while drifting .06 MPH. The thing i dislike about drifting is when the fish are feeding on 1 to 2 inch shad a small slab will not stay near the bottom when drifting.

.3 mph drift is the key or spot lock and thump. It brings em in! The bait needs to be vertical for the best action and results.

Thanks guys !!!
Great info!!!!!!! Been a while since info like this is shared...,

Thanks again

Dennis I would have to write a book! lol

I've spent a good part of my life trying to put all that information together and still have a ton to learn. We've sacrificed a lot of what could have been great numbers trips fishing the same ole patterns by getting out of our comfort zone and eliminating water through trial and error. I don't mind giving general tips and hints for others to put in the time and explore themselves but I'm not going into an extreme level of detail on a public forum. Mostly out of respect for my brother who depends on having a competitive edge to make his living.

With that said, for someone like yourself who has put in the time and been so gracious in sharing information over the years I'll make an offer. I am re-powering my Triton right now, but as soon as I get it out of the shop I'll take you out on Cedar Creek and show you what I've learned about deasticking it. We can swap stories about other lakes we've fished over the years and the techniques that work. Please bring ED as well, he's one of my favorite guys to fish with.

And as for your weather scenario, I would need to follow up with the following questions before making an assumption as to what the fish are doing. Trends are more important that specifics when establishing a pattern.

Cloudy
Air Temp 50
Wind 5
Water Temp 45-50

Cloudy: Is this the first cloudy day in a while? Is it the second or third cloudy day in a row?

Air Temp: Is 50 the high, or the low, or was it 35 at daylight with a high of 65 and now its 50 mid morning? Is this 50 degree day pre or post cold front?

Wind 5: What direction? That is extremely light wind so this time of year its probably either the second or third day after a front. If so, it would be North 5-10 in the morning light and variable throughout the day transitioning to SE in the evening. If its South at 5 then its probably the third or fourth day after a front and not the day before the next front because it would be 10-15+ from the Southeast.

Water Temp 45-50: There is a huge difference in 45 and 50 degree water in East Texas. Is the water on a warming trend or a cooling trend? What time of year is it? This scenario could play out Jan-March. Chances are the majority of fish wont be in the same section of lake that entire window.

Fishing is problem solving at its finest, wrapped up in the mystery of the fact that we will never truly understand exactly what goes on under that murky water.

If you want to drift in that scenario you would need to slow to .3 and use lighter line with less drag if you wanted to use a small slab. What I prefer to do is use a 1 oz jig head for weight and tie on a crappie jig 18" above it to match the hatch

Personally I catch more fish drifting vs. spot locking when dead sticking

I have done both and prefer drifting also, as dad said if I fish 10 spots and you fish 1 who's liable to find more fish?

The I pilot link is really good for the deadsticking season. With the link you can set the exact speed you want to go and it stays really close to that set speed. You then can go through the school of fish and once you quit marking fish then you can turn around and go back through them without reeling everything in and go back through the school. His is easily accomplished with the Backtrack feature. This feature works really well as long as you don't have a stiff wind pushing the boat and in that case you would have to hit the school from the original starting point or a different angle. This has made fishing easier for me anyway

Very good read, Chris! I have 48 to 52� as prime time for DS also for size and numbers. But the trend is warmer water temp dropping to 50� and not vice versa.

I fished hubbard yesterday noon to 4pm. 10 different spots, thumping. Fish did not response. Graph looked like a dessert! Water temp dropped 44.5� and I never did well on hubbard when the temp is that low. Hubbard is about 1 ft low which is pretty full. Deepest is 41ft down by the dam. Hubbard is relatively shallow compares to other lakes. Buddies went today and it was very slow as well.

Went out today on CCL from 8-11 and caught 10 from 17-22 all in 40-48 ft with the fish suspended at 18-24.