texasfishingforum.com logo
Main Menu
Advertisement
Affiliates
Advertisement
Newest Members
TraeMartin, Power-Pole CS, T-Rigger, JoeGoes, EcKo
119150 Registered Users
Top Posters(All Time)
hopalong 120,575
TexDawg 119,517
Bigbob_FTW 94,886
John175☮ 85,892
Pilothawk 83,260
Bob Davis 81,480
Mark Perry 72,287
Derek 🐝 68,312
JDavis7873 67,416
Forum Statistics
Forums59
Topics1,037,829
Posts13,935,219
Members144,150
Most Online39,925
Dec 30th, 2023
Print Thread
PVC Crappie Tops #13317702 10/21/19 02:55 AM
Joined: Aug 2019
Posts: 120
B
Buckchaser Offline OP
Outdoorsman
OP Offline
Outdoorsman
B
Joined: Aug 2019
Posts: 120
I have some PVC that I’m making crappie tops out of. This is my first time to use pvc instead of wood. I’m planning on making 3 more out of the remaining pvc.

I’ve read that it is best to sand the pvc to promote algae growth. Fact or fiction? I’d love to get y’all’s opinions on this. I didn’t sand the one that I just sank. Hopefully that wasn’t a huge mistake. Can sand the next three if it will help.

Any ideas on how long it will be before crappie will show up on PVC tops? I’ve dropped green sweet gum in the past and they usually show up in a matter of days.

Also just sank three tops made from dead Bois D’Arc limbs. I have high hopes for these. First time to use Bois D’Arc also.

Re: PVC Crappie Tops [Re: Buckchaser] #13317734 10/21/19 03:05 AM
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 4,439
Gamblinman Offline
TFF Team Angler
Offline
TFF Team Angler
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 4,439
Algae will still form on the slick PVC, just may take a bit longer.

Placed where crappie want to be, it may have fish on it already.

Bois D'arc will work fine. Last longer too.

Re: PVC Crappie Tops [Re: Buckchaser] #13318073 10/21/19 02:57 PM
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 13,731
Cameron Offline
TFF Guru
Offline
TFF Guru
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 13,731
I dropped 6 pvc piles on Lake Quitman that held fish the same day. I think a lot of it has to do with available cover in the area.

Re: PVC Crappie Tops [Re: Buckchaser] #13318120 10/21/19 03:38 PM
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 7,332
ERNEST PATY Offline
TFF Celebrity
Offline
TFF Celebrity
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 7,332
Forget about all that prep stuff, the fish don't care and will get on a clean pile as quick as a dirty one. Algae and dirt will grow on them almost immediately anyway.

We have made piles out of PVC for years. Old yard chairs, picnic tables, anything the fish will relate to will work. They just want to see something. Same for the shad, they will hover around anything. If fish are in the area they will find it quickly. I have caught fish off new piles within a few hours of putting it out.

Try to put the pile where wind protection from the south is available/ I like a big flat where nothing is within 100 yards or so from it.

Last edited by ERNEST PATY; 10/21/19 03:39 PM.

Ernest Paty 214-202-7866
catchcrappie@aol.com

Re: PVC Crappie Tops [Re: ERNEST PATY] #13318898 10/22/19 01:06 PM
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 10,018
S
Spiderman Offline
TFF Guru
Offline
TFF Guru
S
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 10,018
Originally Posted by ERNEST PATY
If fish are in the area they will find it quickly. I have caught fish off new piles within a few hours of putting it out.

Try to put the pile where wind protection from the south is available/ I like a big flat where nothing is within 100 yards or so from it.



If your fishing an older lake devoid of structure, any brush on big flats will gather all of the fish in that area. Sometimes you will see a lot of fish suspended where they want to be. But they are hard to catch at times when suspended. On a brushpile it's like catching bream as fast as you can throw in there.

That said I like bamboo and cedar trees with about 1/3 of the limbs cut out. They won't last forever but will pull Crappie in quickly and last about 3 years.

Don't get discouraged, some areas will hold great numbers of fish and some won't. It's trial & error.


The Truth is six of the seven Dwarfs are not Happy!
Re: PVC Crappie Tops [Re: Buckchaser] #13319258 10/22/19 05:51 PM
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 15,277
M
Mo Offline
TFF Guru
Offline
TFF Guru
M
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 15,277
On a big flat , do you prefer in the middle of the flat , on the edge close to deep water , or
in your preferred depth , but as close to shore as possible.

good luck


Mo



MY BACKYARD , 20,000 ACRES , NO MOWING smile
Re: PVC Crappie Tops [Re: Buckchaser] #13319734 10/23/19 03:35 AM
Joined: Aug 2019
Posts: 120
B
Buckchaser Offline OP
Outdoorsman
OP Offline
Outdoorsman
B
Joined: Aug 2019
Posts: 120
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and wisdom.

I’m making 5 more pvc tops to sink this weekend. On two of them I’m using pvc cross fittings so that I can have horizontal arms sticking out from a main vertical piece, much like a tree. Arm length will vary from 4’ near the bottom to 2’ at the top. On the other three I’m simply stabbing a group of vertical pieces 5’ long each into the concrete, with some slant to the outer pieces. Has anyone experimented with predominantly horizontal pieces verses predominantly vertical pieces when building a top from scratch? I’ve seen pictures of commercially made plastic tops using both methods. I’m doing both just for fun to see if I prefer one over the other.

Re: PVC Crappie Tops [Re: Buckchaser] #13319955 10/23/19 01:34 PM
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 15,277
M
Mo Offline
TFF Guru
Offline
TFF Guru
M
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 15,277
We have horizontal pieces on all of ours, We place 4 or five buckets to make one pile.

Good luck
Mo



MY BACKYARD , 20,000 ACRES , NO MOWING smile
Re: PVC Crappie Tops [Re: Buckchaser] #13320765 10/24/19 04:13 AM
Joined: Aug 2019
Posts: 120
B
Buckchaser Offline OP
Outdoorsman
OP Offline
Outdoorsman
B
Joined: Aug 2019
Posts: 120
Thanks for the tip Mo. My plan was to put out one per site. I’ll try several per site instead.

Previous Thread
Index
Next Thread

© 1998-2022 OUTDOOR SITES NETWORK all rights reserved USA and Worldwide
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.3