Spinner Baits

In this article, I am going to go through the Spinner Baits: When to use them, what blades to use, and in my book I always recommend using a trailor.

There are so many companies that make Spinner Baits but the one that to me holds the title KING of KINGS is got to be Strike King. They have the Premier, Redeye, and the Midnight special. Those are the ones I use most often.

I know at Bass Pro they have a whole aisle dedicated to Strike King Spinner Baits, and I will not even go into the colors. I will put it this way. If you have a special color, I bet Strike King has it.

I've had good results landing the bass hogs with the Premier Spinner Bait. Below you'll see the anatomy of a spinner bait with the Premier used as the example.

The only thing I got to say about the Mid-Night special. It is Black/Blue and has a large Colorado black blade on it and makes plenty of vibration after dark. Try one and see if you do not keep a few secrets to your self.

The Red Eye Spinner Bait that has caught on real good. It seems like there has to be Red on it like it is injured.

If you recall in an earlier article I wrote, I said that any lake I go to one of my rods will have a Spinner Bait on it. These baits are what I call fish finders meaning they cover a lot of water fast and are very effective on getting some hogs. In Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter, always keep one tied on a 6 ft 6' Med to the Med Heavy Rod.

Use of a Spinner bait would be my first thing to throw beside a log or wood that is laying in the water, in and around a dock, pier, or marina. My, and many other fishing folks, favorite color has to be a toss up between a White or White and Chartreuse. These bait are also very productive on a sloping bank, and on what I call a stair step bank. Make sure you make contact with each step depending on which level the Bass Hogs are hanging out on. Grass is another place that is great for Spinner Baits.

Story TIME: Last October, I was pre fishing for a tournament at Pickwick Lake. It rained all week, but the second day I figured out the pattern. The bass were holding in the grass and wanted the spinner bait to come ripping through the grass and they would hit it.

I would cast up to the bank and on the retrieve I would let the Spinner bait go just under the surface and just on top of the grass. Just before I cleared the grass, I would drop the Spinner Bait into the grass then rip it out. That is when I was getting my strikes.

I was using a 1/4 ounce Spinner Bait and it was a quad blade (4 Blades). The first one was gold willow leaf and the other three were silver willow leafs all on the arm. During that week, I caught over 60 pounds of bass using the Spinner Bait.

Okay, back to the anatomy of a spinner bait.

Anatomy of a Spinner Bait

The spinner bait is comprised of five parts.

Number 1 is the head that is the weighted part of the lure
Number 2 is the arm/wire and some folks call it the safety Pin frame to which the blades are attached
Number 3 would be the blade/blades to cause vibration and flash when you are reeling it in
Number 4 is the skirt can be either rubber or a synthetic dressing hiding the hook
Number 5 is the trailor which can be a pork/plastic material. All this does is add attraction to the bait or make it fall slower in the water depending on how you are fishing it.

Something else, they do make trailor hooks and my advice is use them. I get a lot of short strikes and this hook that is behind your Spinner Bait will still catch the fish.

The blades I go with are three different types:

Number 1 would be the Colorado it is rounded and heavy cupped. This is the blade that will deliver Maximum Vibration. I would use this in muddy water or maybe even at night when I want the fish to hear this bait and it would help them find it.
Number 2 is the Indiana Blade it is tear drop shape and another good blade for stained water, usually you will see more than one Indiana blade on the arm.
Number 3 is the Willow Leaf Blade Thin long and just a slight cup to it. This is the blade I would use when I want Maximum Flash; probably the closest thing to a real live bait fish. Best if used in clear water.

Retrieve Tips:

Retrieves will vary depending on what the bass are telling you. Some like it fast while other bass like it slow. That is where you hear the saying "slow roll". It means let the spinner bait sink and do a very slow retrieve. Sometimes I will pause it just to give the spinner bait the looks of a injured bait fish; sometimes that is all it takes.