Walleye anglers speak with a forked tongue. When a walleye fanatic comments that he's catching fish using spinners, most anglers conjure up images of lures with a French-style blade, machined weight, and treble hook mounted on a short length of stiff wire.
The famous French spinner isn't exactly the ideal walleye lure. Before the letter bombs start arriving, let me point out that in-line spinners are designed to be cast into position and are popular among trout and bass anglers. Most walleye anglers prefer to use their boat to troll or drift lures into position.
Walleye angler use a different kind of spinner known as a snelled spinner. Simply an elongated nightcrawler harness, a walleye spinner incorporates a spinner blade attached to a clevis and threaded onto a length of monofilament line. Two or more hooks are snell knotted onto the line and half a dozen plastic beads added to prevent the spinner blade from hitting the crawler and not spinning properly.
Walleye spinners have changed considerably in recent years. Traditionally most crawler harnesses (spinners) were tied on 12-, 18-, or 24-inch leaders of 17- to 30-pound-test monofilament. The modern trend is towards longer leaders and lighter leader material. Using longer and lighter leaders increases the natural undulating action of spinner rigs and produces a few more strikes.
A spinner rig tied using 10- to 14-pound-test leader material and measuring 48 to 60 inches long is the best all-round walleye producer.
Despite the current trend towards longer spinner rigs, a slightly shorter leader length can be an advantage in certain situations. Long spinner rigs occasionally drag bottom and snag more often than shorter spinners.
Most professional walleye anglers start fishing with long spinner rigs and shorten them as necessary in snag-filled waters. A few 24- to 36-inch spinner rigs can come in handy for fishing bottom real estate littered with rocks, sunken logs, or other snags.
The types and sizes of hooks used in walleye spinners have also seen considerable change in recent years. Knowledgeable anglers are demanding lures that feature large hooks with plenty of gap or bite.
The traditional No. 6 or 8 baitholder-style hooks featured on many spinner rigs do a poor job of penetrating the bone and hard tissue in a walleye's mouth. Larger hooks like the No. 4 or 2 hook and hold much better. Because of their larger diameter, bigger hooks must be kept razor sharp to penetrate effectively.
A salmon-egg-style hook with a turned-up eye is the ideal hook for a walleye spinner rig. The turned-up eye makes it easy to snell knot the hooks in place and helps keep the hooks positioned in-line with the leader material.
Spinner rigs are available with one, two, or three hooks. A two-hook rig with the hooks spaced three to six inches apart is the best all-round producer.
Spinner blade styles also vary. The Colorado-style blade is the workhorse of the spinner world. The rounded shape of this blade spins easily at slow speeds and produces the maximum flash and fish-attracting vibration.
The Indiana and willow-leaf-style blades also have their place in a walleye spinner collection. These longer and narrower blade styles spin at a more acute angle to the leader and must be pulled slightly faster to keep the blade rotating properly.
Astute anglers try different style, size, and color blades until a productive combination is achieved.
Blade sizes range from the No. 0 that's roughly the size of a pinky fingernail to half-dollar-sized No. 6 blades. Most anglers use the very small and very large blades reluctantly.
It's considerably more difficult to keep a small spinner blade rotating than a larger size. Small blades must be pulled at a fairly brisk rate to maintain a steady rotation.
In comparison, large blades don't receive the use they deserve. Most anglers are afraid to use large blades for fear they will catch fewer small "eating-sized" walleyes. Large spinner blades like the No. 5 and 6 do attract trophy-sized walleyes, but smaller fish also strike these blades with reckless abandon.
Every angler has seen a small fish attack and become hooked by a crankbait or other lure nearly half the fish's length. Large baits are simply easier for fish to see and attack.
Large spinner blades produce extra flash and vibration, and can be seen from greater distances.
Veteran spinner fishermen use large blades when fishing in dirty or off-colored water. Large blades are also an advantage in clear water when walleyes are widely scattered and must be lured in from a considerable distance.
Tiny and large blades have a place in walleye spinner fishing, but the No. 1, 2, 3 and 4 blades are the workhorses of the walleye angler. Of these blade sizes, the No. 2 and 3 are the most popular.
Blade Color
Where colors are concerned, the limit is endless. Many manufacturers feature blades with two-tone paint jobs, scale shading, hammered surfaces, and even glow-in-the-dark dressings. A good selection of different colors will enable you to experiment until you find a productive choice.
Silver, brass, hammered silver and brass, chartreuse, green, orange, white, blue, and various combinations of these color patterns are among the most popular walleye colors. Blades that feature small chunks of flash tape are also excellent choices. Anglers can purchase blades with flash tape already in place or buy sheets of pre-cut tape and design custom blades as needed.
Die-cut flash tape made especially for spinner blades is available in many color patterns from Cabela's, Inc., 812 - 13th Ave., Sidney, NE 69160 or Netcraft Fishing Tackle, 2800 Tremainsville Rd., Toledo, OH 43613.
Getting Down
The fact that spinners can be used to cover lots of water quickly is their biggest advantage. Whether power trolling, drifting, or pulling spinners behind in-line planer boards, spinner rigs are the ideal live-bait delivery system.
Bottom bouncers, bait walkers, walking-type sinkers, and three-way swivels with a lead dropper weight are the most popular weight systems used to keep spinner rigs near bottom.
Of all the weight options available, the bottom bouncer is the most popular. Nothing more than a "L" shaped piece of wire with a lead weight attached midway along the long arm and a snap swivel that accepts various leaders on the short arm, the bottom bouncer is simple yet functional.
This uncomplicated live-bait system has been producing walleyes for years in the Dakotas, Kansas, Nebraska, and beyond. It has only been the last few years that bottom bouncers and spinner combinations have made their way east.
Tomorrow, Part Two of Mark Romanack's article on fishing spinners for walleyes.
Copyright (c) 1996 Mark Romanack. All rights reserved.
Home | Library | Fishing | Freshwater Fishing