i use a spear!!!!!!!!!!!

seriously, you asking the rods or bait and hook??????

a smaller jig i like red orange or chartuse colors. plastics?????????? not really sold on them totally yet. i do use them but if they dont work i like euro larve or if there even more finiky freshwater shrimp.

if that dont work..............i just watch the camera and drink beer!!!!!!!!!!!

thats another point........i've seen where if you have a camera and can watch the fish with or without use of a spring bobber, the camera aides in getting more fish hooked!

Sometimes changing from vertical to horizontal jigs works to, or vice versa.  Different presentations can be used.

Alot of guys get caught up downsizing when fish are finicky. Upsizing to small spoons etc.,  will sometimes turn the "lookers" into biters as well.

I'll go with trav here,Altho downsizing can get a bite going and the few you tease will take the smaller bait/lure, Upsizing with something that draws attention can get most of em in the mood to feed,once that happens it ON!!

I have yet to figure out the finicky walleye. I guess bouncing a Macho Minnow tipped with a minnow head off the bottom when the walleye are tight lipped. This works so so for me.

For the tight lipped Crappie, I love the red Demon Jig with a crappie minnow hooked through the back along side the dorsal fin. I use this with a spring bobber and pretty much any one of my ice rods.This seems to work pretty well for me.
A few years back I was shown a neat trick by a buddy of mine. If the fish are not active or are simply not in your direct area, sometimes taking the treble hooks off of a shiny (Silver or Gold) daredevil and jigging it up and down in a big motion a half dozen times will draw in those fish that are just outside of your range.

There is really know way of knowing if you need to go bigger or smaller thats rock solid.  I find though that when I use my underwater camera I can tell more of what is going on down there but still it dosen't really tell you to go bigger or smaller.  I think that's why it's called fishing and not catching.

My main go to bait when I can't get the fish to hit anything is an angel eye tipped with a small minnow or some sort of plastic. The blue glow is my favorite set up. I always have a walleye sweetheart with an angel eye rigged!

i would also say for finicky fish, you need to stay mobil. drill a few extra holes and head outside every once in a while to see if they will bite.