What is a spinner? Something that spins. Easy enough, right? In Hainer's angling dictionary, let's define it as: An oval metal object that rotates on a fixed axis, that is easy to apply and catches megapounds of fish.
Sure, I'm painting a pretty, rosy picture for all lures classed as a spinner but the fact is that spinners can be the most effective form of artificial lure and they are grossly underutilized.
I never realized the latter point until talking with a few retailers who insisted that the common spinning lure was not a major mover on the shelves. It was hard for me to believe but it gave me the initiative to do some justice for a fine piece of equipment that is a basic, necessary requirement for any anglers' tackle box.
What is it about a spinner that turns anglers off? Most anglers, without knowing the potential of a spinning lure, walk into the tackle store and quickly realize that a quality spinning lure is comparatively expensive. I mean come on, for half a buck more they can purchase something that at least resembles a baitfish!
First of all, I strongly recommend paying a bit more for a quality spinner. In my past experiences, I have purchased some of the cheapest brands only to find that they have a hard time living up to their name, meaning they don't spin. A spinner that don't spin would turn off any angler and they would quickly blacklist anything that vaguely resembled this item.
Why does a spinning lure catch fish? That little oval piece of metal that rotates on a wire shaft or monofilament line catches particles of available light and reflects it wildly in the fishes watery environment. Ever take a close look at a minnow? Quite often minnows are silver sided. A crippled minnow is not only an easy meal to a fish but would also reflect tantalizing flashes of light as it swims. It is a proven fact that freshwater gamefish feed primarily on minnows, if given the choice.
Just remember that when you are fishing near some form of good structure there will be some fish present and your first objective is to attract their attention. A spinner will definitely attract their attention. Let's take a closer look at the different types of spinners and their applications.
There are three basics forms of spinners that I primarily use. They are named Colorado, Indiana and Willowleaf spinners. Colorado spinners are the most popular and can be identified as the ones that are boldly teardrop shaped. When a Colorado rotates on a wire shaft, it does so at an angle of approximately 45 degrees. By rotating at this comparatively high angle, this spinner would cut a larger path through the water sending out plenty of low frequency vibrations. Fish utilize low frequency vibrations to zero in on food sources, especially when the water is dirty and their sight is limited.
The other advantage of the Colorado is that its angle of rotation causes greater friction which allows it to spin at slower retrieves and makes it ride high in the water. A Colorado spinner that is cast out and not allowed to sink will maintain a level of no more than 5 feet when retrieved. This makes perfect application for shallow water or casting above submerged weedbeds.
On the other end of the spectrum we find the Willowleaf spinner, which is shaped just as its name applies. Its angle of rotation is approximately 15 degrees. It offers less resistance in water thus it will run deeper, up to 15 feet. Application is excellent for the shore angler who is casting to deep water.
A Willowleaf spinner rotates at a slower rate which means that a steady faster retrieve must be maintained in order for this lure to work effectively, and because it doesn't turbulate as much water when it is spinning, the low frequency vibrations given off will be somewhat reduced in comparison to a Colorado.
Among the pro angling fraternity, it has been common practice to use large Willowleaf blades, up to numbers 10 and 12, when fishing dirty water. The idea here is that a large Willowleaf will give off the same amount of low frequency vibrations as, say a number 4 Colorado. The advantage comes with the amount of reflected light. The larger blade will give more flash in the water than a smaller one.
At this time, you may be thinking "Why not use a super large Colorado, and have the best of both worlds?". The problem here is that fish are all creatures of habitual reaction. They are conditioned to reacting to certain sized offerings that give off certain levels of vibrations. Let's say you're casting along a weedline for largemouth bass. The water is dirty meaning the fish are on the "feel" rather than the sight factor. You present an offering that closely imitates the vibrations of a baitfish and the bass will have no reservations in taking a wack at your lure. If that same lure is giving off huge amounts of vibrations, the bass may well mistake your offering for a predator such as a pike which will send "ol' blackback" racing for shelter.
The other spinner that I mentioned was the Indiana blade. It is oval shaped and fits somewhere between the Colorado and the Willowleaf spinner. It offers a medium running depth, for mid-range fishing applications. Basically, it covers what the other two don't.
There are other types of spinners as well which all fall somewhere between the perimeters of the two spinner blades described.
Spinners can also be found on other forms of lures as well. The most popular is the spinner-bait, which consists of leadhead jig dressed with bucktail hair or rubber skirts attached to a wire form resembling an open safety pin. On the other end of the wire is attached any number of the spinners mentioned. These spinner-baits have become basic tackle for bass, pike and musky.
I know this has sounded more like a science lesson than a fishing report but the fact is that the scientific aspects have really come into play with todays modern fisheries.
Never underestimate the power of a spinner when it comes to its fish catching capabilities. Understand how the spinners differ and then use your imagination to apply them.
