Spinnerbaits are just the ticket for bass in a wide range of situations. (File photo)
August 13, 2024
By Shane Beilue
Whether it’s a local Tex-Mex restaurant or a comfortable T-shirt that fits just right, everyone has certain “go-to” favorites that never fail. While guiding clients for bass on a North Texas reservoir some years ago, my go-to lure was the spinnerbait, knowing anyone who jumped in the boat with me, regardless of skill level, could catch bass with it. In early spring, we “bulged” the blades under the surface for ferocious strikes. In the summer, we would let the spinnerbait fall among stands of timber. And in winter, we crawled it along submerged road beds. Thanks to its adaptability to almost any fishing situation, the spinnerbait managed to produce bass year-round.
While somewhat overshadowed since the emergence of the bladed jig and swimbaits, the venerable spinnerbait has likely wrestled more bass to anglers’ clutches over the past 50 years than any other lure.
The arrangement of lead, wire and blades appears gangly and unnatural when lying on the boat deck, but the lure transforms into an efficient fish-catching machine when pulled through the water. A variety of wire frames, blade types, skirts and accompanying plastic trailers make spinnerbaits incredibly versatile and ideal for matching specific water and weather conditions on any given day. Consider this a treatise for breaking down the complexities of fishing the classic spinnerbait and its modern offshoots.
Of course, the basic appeal of a spinnerbait is the metal blade (or blades) rotating around a wire axis, creating both flash and vibration in the water. Various design ideas have emerged over the years, born of necessity, with different concepts for the marriage of wire and blades with the accompanying dressing and hook. Each is highlighted below.
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In-Line Design The streamlined design of the single-wire, in-line spinnerbait excels at navigating through thick, shallow vegetation efficiently. For this reason, it is frequently selected for fishing aggressively through patches of heavy vegetation or within lily pad fields.
While this style was more prevalent several years ago, a few manufacturers have updated the design somewhat recently to include higher-quality components, as noted in the Hildebrandt Snagless Sally and the Picasso All Terrain Weedless Inline Spinner Jig.
Smaller versions of the in-line design, such as the Worden’s Rooster Tail, are popular choices for fishing ponds, streams and reservoirs, as they catch just about any species of gamefish that swims due to their ability to mimic the small forage found in these waters. Reeling these small spinners quickly just under the surface on 8- to 10-pound fluorocarbon line will get the attention of any nearby bass.
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Clip-On If your destination is the stained, brackish waters of coastal marshes for redfish or bass, include the clip-on style of spinnerbait in your arsenal. The wire frame is an overhead design adorned with a single blade—usually a Colorado for added flash and thump in dirty, shallow water—turning above whatever weighted, soft-plastic body you decide to attach. Like more conventional spinnerbaits, clip-ons allow further customization thanks to the split ring utilized to connect the blade.
Strike King’s Redfish Magic is a good example of a clip-on, while the popular Johnson Beetle Spin is a time-proven, downsized version often used to pond-hop for bass or crappies. In addition, the lure’s small blade and body sometimes afford the best option to coax a few strikes during an otherwise tough bite.
Overhead Arm The most prevalent spinnerbait design for bass fishing has the A-frame shape of the overhead arm with a single or multiple blades turning above the hook, skirt and trailer. The line is tied to a closed twist-loop, the single coil of a safety pin tie or the more popular R-bend, each offering loads of options in blade configuration and retrieves.
The taller profile of the overhead arm spinnerbait can limit its effectiveness in extremely shallow vegetation, as the rotating blades tend to wrap and bog down in the grass. However, this style of spinnerbait is considered the go-to design for most other bass fishing applications.
The Booyah Covert, Stanley Vibra-Shaft and War Eagle spinnerbaits are shining examples of the many overhead-arm spinnerbaits available, offering an overwhelming number of options in blade shapes, skirt materials and colors, and soft-plastic trailers. To avoid paralysis by analysis, consider the following factors in configuring a spinnerbait:
Blade Options The majority of bass aficionados are prone to always reach for a favorite spinnerbait with a particular blade configuration. Instead, one should consider how the lure needs to perform based upon the prevailing water and existing weather conditions, then choose the blades accordingly. Specifically, water temperature and clarity, combined with the amount of wind and clouds, will impact both the choice of blades and the retrieve.
Colorado Blades The rounded shape of the Colorado blade displaces more water than a willow-leaf blade as it turns, creating more pronounced vibrations in the water. That makes the Colorado blade a great choice for stained or muddy water, as it allows the fish to better sense and locate the lure with their lateral line, that string of nerve endings stitched along either side of a bass.
Similarly, a single large Colorado blade has long been a top choice of nighttime anglers who count on its pulsating action to help bass home in on the offering in the dark.
The increased drag or water resistance against a Colorado blade also slows the spinnerbait during the retrieve. Therefore, a single or tandem Colorado setup slow-rolled near cover is well suited to match the slower movement of baitfish in water less than 50 degrees.
Willow-Leaf Blades The increased surface area of a willow-leaf blade results in more flash, yet its elongated shape produces less vibration in the water than a Colorado blade. Because bass are primarily sight feeders, the flash from a willow-leaf blade has tremendous drawing power for actively feeding fish in clearer water.
Burning a spinnerbait in warm, clear water is a great tactic, as the speed from the lure gives the bass less time to diagnose it as a fake. The reduced drag from tandem willow-leaf blades makes them the choice for reeling at a fast clip, with the blades causing the lure to “lift” in the water column during the retrieve.
A common blade arrangement is the Colorado/willow-leaf combo. This is popular among spinnerbait makers, as it lends itself to multiple applications. It works well high and fast in the water column but has less lift than tandem willow blades, allowing the spinnerbait to work well when reeled at greater depths. When in doubt about the precise blade combination, it’s hard to go wrong with this tandem setup.
Indiana Blades The hybridization of the willow-leaf and Colorado blade is the extended teardrop shape of the Indiana. Though not as commonly found on store shelves, these blades split the difference in providing a little more flash than a Colorado blade with a little more thump than the willow-leaf. The Indiana is a good all-around shape for stained water.
Regardless of blade style, the size of the blade accentuates or minimizes the effect of flash and feel. For example, in clear water and bright skies, smaller blades reduce the unnatural flash and mirror effect of the blades in direct sunlight. Conversely, when bass are aggressively chasing forage during cloudy or windy conditions, one can upsize the blades to get added flash and drawing power. Lastly, one can also increase the blades’ size to slow the lure, which can be a key tactic in cold water.
Skirt Choices While the skirts on classic spinnerbaits once consisted mainly of strands of rubber, silicone is now the predominant material used. Silicone is less prone to gumming up in the tacklebox over time. It also has great action in the water and is available in just about every color imaginable.
White and chartreuse are can’t-miss colors for stained to muddy water, while strands of blue added to a chartreuse skirt soften the vibrance and is a great color scheme for clearer water. In ultra-clear water, translucent colors can help disguise the bulk of the lure and more closely mimic a variety of baitfish.
Soft-Plastic Trailers Though not mandatory, the addition of a soft-plastic trailer gives a spinnerbait added bulk and symmetry. Thick-bodied boot-tail trailers also add more drag on the retrieve, slowing the lure further. Thinner, more streamlined twin-tails, meanwhile, enhance the action and are perfect for burning the spinnerbait quickly to the boat.
Color selection for trailers should either match the prevailing skirt colors or add some contrast. One of my favorite skirt/trailer combos over the years has been a chartreuse skirt with a white trailer.
The Yamamoto Paddle Tail Zako, the Yum Pulse Swimbait and the Strike King KVD Swim’n Caffeine Shad are among the top bulky trailer designs for added movement. The Zoom Split Tail Trailer, Z-Man Elaztech Split Tail Trailerz and Tightlines UV Spinnerbait Trailer are some of the best thin, streamlined trailers that minimize drag in the water.
Applications Regardless of a spinnerbait’s make and style, varying the retrieve speed is a consistent method for eliciting strikes. When burning a double-willow-bladed spinnerbait under the surface, mixing in an occasional surge of the rod tip causes the skirt to flare and the blades to pulsate enough to trigger a full commitment from a following bass.
When fishing around shallow cover, directing the spinnerbait into the cover, be it stumps, bushes or submerged vegetation, causes the lure to suddenly change direction and speed, producing reaction strikes from impulsive bass holding within the cover. Similarly, “killing” the lure to let it fall vertically next to cover imitates a struggling baitfish, identified by any lurking bass as an easy meal that shouldn’t be passed up.
For years, crawling a 1-ounce spinnerbait in 20 to 25 feet of water, where few crankbaits would reach effectively, was a tactic I relied on often. Though it has gained popularity of late, it’s still a productive means of showing bass a lure they don’t often see at those depths. And the bigger profile of the heavy spinnerbait tends to attract quality bass.
This article was featured in the June/July 2024 South issue of Game & Fish magazine. Click to subscribe .
