Spinner Baits

[crankitup]

Okay.... So take this for instance. Say I have been using the spinner bait for close to an hour and I find the fish are periodically hitting below surface and on top with a medium speed retreive. What is my next step and what does this mean?

[BigBassin144]

It means you are getting close. What I mean by that is you may need to tweak your presentation a bit. Change skirt color, blade color, blade style, retrieve speed, etc. You could even try varying the retrieve: hit the spinnerbait against stumps, cover, anything you can. Rip the spinnerbait up, then let it flutter back down. Just try different things until you find one the fish like.

BB

[crankitup]

Okay. So this doesn't mean that I need to change lures as soon as they hit my spinner bait. And also as I am fishing fast looking for these fish cast 15-20 times using the same retrieve and then the next 15-20 cast change it up right?

[bamabassman]

you might cast a hundred times buddy. some of those hits could be little ones. so stay the course. and like everyone said. try ALL kinds of retrieves. then if they don't just hit the heck outa it, change color, skirt, blades. also...try a trailer hook with a pork or something else added. the old saying goes...the bigger the bait, the bigger the fish. good luck!!!

[crankitup]

Okay got it. So what if you cast this thing 1 millions ways from Sunday and still no bites. How do you justify when its time to change lures?

[zooker]

ok crank it what are ya throwing-who makes it? blade color?blade kind? weight? skirt color?? water color?? these lil things mean the differance.in catching and not catching..


justify throwing it...hmmm i try to justify not throwing it my self

oh yeah this really helps..






zooker

[crankitup]

Water: Clear 5' from the bank and Murky after 5'
I am thowing a single silver leaf white spinner bait that is 1/4 oz.

[bamabassman]

what color skirt? are you using a trailer? paralell with the bank? more info is needed friend. also, is it a single blade or double? if you have tried it a million ways from sunday....go to a worm. and fish....sssssssslllllllllllllllllloooooooooooowwww wwwwwww.

[3dkicker]

Originally Posted by crankitup

I find the fish are periodically hitting below surface and on top with a medium speed retreive.

The fish are hitting. It means that you have the right speed, location, and presentation. Continue to do so and enjoy unless you aren't catching fish then you need to alter one of the above to see if you have any better results.

[Rebbasser]

It sounds like you are fishing it right-you are getting hits. If you are fishing it on Travis as stated in your other post you are using the right size/color. Remember to fish it around structure-flooded timber, big rocks, etc. and if possible hit the structure on the retrieve. I've caught quite a few when it bounces off something.

Sometimes, though, they just are not active and hitting a spinnerbait. That is why I keep several rods rigged with different baits on hand. I put down one and pick up another one. Rarely do I fish just one thing all day-I experiment and let the fish tell me what they want.

[crab]

Nice fish Zook! Try different combinations as everyone says and alot of the time just useing a trailer hook will do the trick.

[CarpMan]

Something else you can do. Try reeling the spinner bait back just fast enough to create a "Bulge" just below the surface without bringing it to the top. This is a good pattern to use around wood, stumps, lay-downs, rip rap. It takes a little practice but it pays big dividends once you learn to keep it subsurface and it works in just about any kind of structure where bass are active.

[Jim80]

if you are in the mercy water try a darker color spinner ie black and red and don't be scared to try other colors either . here are a few of my go to spinners that are tied on at any given time .





it all depends on the conditions and like everyone else had said try different retrieve speeds .and when all else fails add a trailer , if your using a spinner with a white skirt try a chartreuse trailer .

[Rebbasser]

Jim, you been digging around in my tackle box?

[Jim80]

nah , i got rained on pretty hard so i was cleaning the puddles out of mine a figured well their out might as well . but it needed to be cleaned anyhow just had to have a thunder storm kick me in the a!! to do it .

[Rebbasser]

Yep. When a T-storm keeps you off the water messing with your gear is almost as good. Almost.

[Jim80]

ya got that , all though we made it to the water this time and the rain hit on my third cast , by the time we got back to the car we were thoroughly soaked even my pack of cigs was soggy

[crankitup]

Okay. So tell me if I got this right. If I cast a spinner bait for the better part on an hour and say I reel fast, medium, slow roll it, and then let it sink to a depth of 5' and do the same thing. After I go to the 5' depth I reel fast, medium, then slow roll it and last try a medium retrieve for three turns of the reel and then a fast twitch. Immediatly I get a hit. So I should say that out of all the presentations they are hitting below the surface 5-6' range with a medium retrieve and periodic twitch. Would you then throw that bait more or say change out to a 5-7' crank bait with the same retrieve?

[Jim80]

try not to over think the whole process here . if you are going 5-7' and you get a hit on that retrieve but didn't catch the fish maybe you just didn't react fast enough to set the the hook . you just have to find what is going to work for you on that day and try not to worry about it all to much .and if you feel more comfortable with a crank throw a crank .

[3dkicker]

You could but I'd spend a little more time with the spinnerbait and see how you do. If you continue to catch fish then why change? If the bites stop then I'd switch up to a crankbait and try that for a few minutes. If nothing then move on to another area as similar as to the one you were fishing and repeat with the spinnerbait.

[bamabassman]

i agree with jim80 and 3d. keep on doing what your doing. you may want to add a trailer hook with a pork or something. then you may not miss the bite.

[Bob Smith]

As well as I can read between the lines here, I am going to try and see if I can figure out a few "Other" things. I guess from RB's comments that you are fishing a central Texas lake this time of year that has water clarity about 5' deep. I can only assume the water temps are about 80 to 83 degrees by now on that body of water. I don't know if you are performing this little feat at the crack of dawn or on up in the day? If it is the crack of dawn, go with a colorado/willow leaf combo in about #3 and #4 respectively, white or white/chartreuse, thread on a white 4" curl tail grub on the hook (no trailer hook needed) and "bulge" the water around any rocks, stumps, laydowns, boat docks, or other obvious cover, on or near the mainlake points. I personally would opt for the buzzbait, instead. On up in the day if you still feel compelled to sling a buzzbait (assuming the same factors above), a smaller more compact spinner bait like the Strike King Speed Shad would be the ticket. You can burn that baby and still fish it a little deeper. The smaller profile fished faster in that clearer water will be more apt to draw a reaction strike since they won't have as long to look at it.

If you are getting bit, don't change. If you aren't, then change dramatically. Got to a completely different type of bait. With spinnerbaits, the only time you make subtle changes is when you are getting bites, but not voracious or fierce attacks (for example; the fish comes up and swats the bait, but doesn't eat it).

[crankitup]

Got it. I went by Cabela's today and picked up a 3/8 Wedge Plus white and blue spinner bait with 2 silver leaves, a 3/8 double buzz white and yellow with one silver and one gold propeller, and another 3/8 double buzz black with silver propellers. Are the double buzz spinner baits any good?

[Rebbasser]

Crank, every bait in your box will catch fish at one time or another. The challenge is figuring out what they want at the time you are fishing.

Like Jim said, don't overthink it but pay attention to what you are doing. You mentioned a retrieve where you crank 3 times, jerk it, and get a hit. OK: you got the hit retrieving it in a particular way. You have the retrieve figured out. Now: Open water? Next to a piece of cover? Depth? You get the idea. Once you have this info try to duplicate it in similar locations. It is called pattern fishing.

Here is an example: I was fishing a big stock tank west of Ft. Worth. There was a lot of weed cover in the water, but they were next to only one type of weed. I caught a fish off every one of that particular weed I fished, and came up empty on every other type weed. So, I had figured out a pattern, bypassing the weeds I knew didn't hold fish and fishing the ones that did.

[Mac10]

On a nearby highland reservoir, some of the locals remove the skirt entirely on a twin bladed willowleaf spinnerbait and put on a double tailed grub, smoke with silver glitter and do well on the smallmouth, occasionally catching a largemouth or a walleye. They use silver willowleafs on a quarter ounce white or chartreuse leadhead. As to how they present the bait specifically, not sure. Others take the same spinnerbait and put on the back half of a fluke coming out of the skirt.