Spinners & Spinnerbaits by Mick Brown

The great thing about Spinners and Spinnerbaits is like spoons they are very easy to use, effective at any time of the year and in any depth of water. With a little thought they will catch fish, wherever you fish.

Spinnerbaits look like nothing on earth to us yet they trigger predators into action. Straight retrieves are usually all that's needed but there's several little tricks to tempt more difficult fish. Try short jerks and pauses to make the skirt pulsate temptingly or let the spinnerbait fall right to the bottom and leave it for a while before retrieving, this tactic has caught some huge fish on the trout reservoirs. The single upturned hook makes them almost weedless and snag free. Additional hooks known as 'stingers' or 'trailers' can be added for extra hooking, while soft plastic grubs on  'stingers' add another attraction, when fish are coming short.

Spinners, once only available in quite small sizes they are now available in amazing ranges to suit all predators. They can normally be worked slower than spoons and have the benefit of a flashing blade. In particular let me draw your attention to a spinner I have used with great success over very weedy water.

The Rooster Tail Lite with its unique buoyant body and oversized blade can be worked extremely slowly and efficiently, the lure remains quite shallow avoiding catching up on weed. When the water temperature falls and its necessary to fish slower and deeper the addition of swan shot (SSG) to the wire trace enables the Rooster Tail 'Lite' to fish deeper while still retaining its ability to be fished slowly, in a stop and go manner. 

With a little imagination a selection of spinners and spinnerbaits will see you catching predators all season long. 


Mick Brown.