Spinner Rigging 101
By Perry Good
Long days, warm nights, ample baitfish, and mud
flats a-calling. Must be spinner rigging time!
Every angler has a signature technique, and
somewhere in my fishing history, I acquired a reputation as a
spinner rigging guru. No doubt about it: From mid June and through
August, I’m pulling a spinner rig about three-quarters of the time
on the Professional Walleye Trail. It’s a great search bait,
especially in low-snag areas like gravel bars or the mud flats of
Mille Lacs where fish scatter this time of year.
Before mid-June, it just seems like walleyes aren’t
ready to chase spinner rigs. If this sounds like a johnny come
lately pitch — given that you’re probably reading this piece in
August or early September— hear me out. This season has been
anything from typical, at least in Minnesota. The cold water of
2004 (not to mention the rivers and reservoir locations for the
PWT this year) has meant that I’m just beginning to use spinner
rigs this open water season. Late summer 2004 should be an
excellent time to work this presentation.
First, let’s break spinner rigging equipment down.
I employ a baitcasting rod with 12-pound-test mono connected to a
11/2- to 3-ounce bottom bouncer, depending on the depth. In less
snaggy water, three-ways with a 2- to 3-ounce weight works well,
too.
I tie all my spinners, though there are many fine
pre-tied spinner rigs on the market, and use a two-hook harness.
Mine usually stretch about four feet behind the three-way or
bottom bouncer. In snaggy water, I’ll shorten it up, however,
sometimes by as much as two feet.
On inland lakes, I use a No. 4 hook, but will bump
it up for Great Lakes fishing, say a No. 2. And if you’re marking
suspended fish, don’t be afraid to throw on a planer board. In
that scenario, when I’m up off the bottom (less snagging), I’ll
use treble hooks to increase my hook-set percentage.
Your blade size and color will depend on a couple
of factors. First, in turbid water, use chartreuse and fire
tiger-colored blades. In clear water, where you can maximize
flash, stick with the silvers and golds. Start with smaller blades
early in the season, then later—when fish become more
aggressive—bump them up in size. That extra blade thump will
attract more inquisitive fish.
When spinner rigging, you’ll almost always find a
crawler on the end of my line. Rarely will I pull leeches, because
they twirl around too much behind a blade. I usually save the
blood suckers for Lindy Rigging. For you hardcore leech users who
want to try spinnering, use a smaller blade (No. 2). That seems to
help minimize the twirl factor.
I’ll throw six or seven beads above the hook for a
little extra attractant. Match the bead color to the blade. Also,
in those semi-snaggy situations, use a small float to stay off the
bottom. Orange chartreuse or green chartreuse floats usually grace
my line.
If perch or panfish keep nipping off your crawler,
tip your rig with a Berkley Gulp or Power Crawler. These new-age
artificials smell almost as good as the real stuff while
navigating the schools of irritating small fish better.
You’ll usually find me front trolling the whole
works up to about one mile per hour. Backtrolling works just fine,
too, but try to keep that line at a 45-degree angler. You’re
moving pretty fast so you’ll never have it straight up and down,
but if you let it get past 45 degrees, then odds are that the
bottom bouncer is lying down – defeating its purpose.
I experiment a lot with my speed, because with
walleyes, no two bites are the same. Last year on Lake of the
Woods, I saw the trollers hammering fish, so I sped up my spinner
rigging. We nailed them, but the next day, it was completely the
opposite – slow, slow, slow. Sometimes, you’ll catch me moving
pretty fast (say three miles per hour), then I’ll stop fast.
Often, that’s when the hit occurs. Like I said, experiment.
When fish “strike” a spinner rig, it usually feels
simply like weight. They’ll hit it and drop it, then come back and
grab it again. Just lower the rod tip, watch the line, and set the
hook. Don’t give them any line when spinning rigging. Generally
speaking, the slower you troll, the more subtle the bite. When
you’re moving fast, you’re more likely to coax an aggressive
reaction bite.
While you’re experimenting, try a Turbo Prop or
Spin and Glow, which you might say combine a blade and a float all
in one. They have been a great transition period set-up for
walleyes the past couple of years for me, in early June. I’ve won
tournaments on them.
Once I locate fish, I may jig or Lindy Rig to stay
on top of them, but when my fishing day begins, I’m usually
searching via spinner rigs. You can cover some water, and walleyes
just can’t resist the combination of flash and live bait. One
final tip, for a full day of fishing, have plenty of pre-tied
spinner rigs. During a tournament early this year in Arkansas, I
went through 20 per day. Come to think of it, that’s another
benefit of spinner rigs: They’re a lot cheaper than crankbaits.
Perry Good, is a professional walleye angler from
Minnesota. He is a Professional Walleye Trail (PWT) Champion and
is the only angler who has qualified for every championship on the
PWT and RCL tours.
