SPINNERBAITS!
By:Daniel Langton

When choosing a spinnerbait rod and reel, You should look for a high
qaulity graphite rod, and a reel with a high speed 6:3:1 gear ratio. Select a
7' MH rod with a long cork handle, or a trigger rod. The long cork handle
will give you more solid hook sets than if you were fishing with a casting
rod. Most pros wouldn't disagree that a high speed Daiwa TDX reel, and a Daiwa
Davey Hite spinnerbait rod would be the best pick. The 7' length and MH action
will give you the power to make the hookset, feel the spinnerbait's vibration,
and land the biggest of bass.

When selecting a quality line, Most pros go with Stren. Stren Extra Strength.
You can use a heavy line because it is mainly a reaction strike. The bass don’t
have enough time to really examine the spinnerbait or the line. I like to use
Stren Extra Strength in 17lb test. 17lb test will get the fish out of cover, and
resists nicks and cuts when you bump the bait against cover. Using either green
or clear line doesn't seem to matter in most water clarity’s. Using clear line
seems to be a little bit more reasonable because the bass are usually looking up
to the spinner bait, with the surface and the sky as a background. Although this
is not true when you are working the spinnerbait on the bottom.

Companies like Strike King have a good selection when it comes to spinnerbaits.
They have small spinnerbaits like the Rocket Shad, all the way to the larger
pro-elite series made with titanium for extra sensitivity, and a jig/spinnerbait
in one lure. This jig/spinnerbait lure comes with a weedgaurd and a colorado
blade. This is a great bait for stop and go retrieves around lay downs. The
little Rocket Shad is great for when the bass get a "lockjaw" in the fall.

Clear, sunny days are NOT the best days for spinnerbaiting. Of course you could
go for a reaction strike by bumping the spinnerbait up against the cover, but
What you really want is a cloudy day with a little chop on the water. Try
throwing into the wind, and retrieving with the current. You may want to select
a heavier spinnerbait for this situation. On sunny days, the bass will position
themselves right up on or under the cover. For this kind of day, you should
select a neutral color for the skirt. Chartreuse can sometimes be to bright, but
not always. On sunny days, white, alpha shiner, or a translucent skirt will work
good. These are the best conditions for silver or nickel blades. You will have
to slow down your retrieve on these "bluebird" days because the bass will be a
little less active. Cloudy days call for Gold, and holographic blades.
Chartreuse/white,firetiger, and pink skirts work well. Bass will almost cruise
around cover rather than getting under it on cloudy days. Bass may cruise up to
six feet around the cover. Some will stay in ambush points which may be in the
cover. Spinnerbaits are great for throwing around or under docks, around rock
piles, banks lined with rip-rap, Lay downs, around weed lines, and even ledges.
To fish ledges, a heavy 1oz+ spinnerbait is almost a must. You need to keep the
bait in the strike zone as long as possible. Remember that in the depths your
bait will loose its color. There are a few colors that keep their color in the
deeper waters. These include purple,chrome, and a few darker colors. One thing
to keep in mind is to match the forage your bass are feeding on, or "Match the
Hatch" as a fly fisherman say. If the bass are feeding on gizzard, or threadfin
shad, the alpha shiner pattern should produce fish. If the bass are feeding on
crawfish like in the spring, and you want to cover a lot of water quickly, a red,
black, or brown spinnerbait should put out results. You should also try to match
the spinnerbait size with the forage. Gizzard shad don’t get over 4", so a 3/8
ounce spinnerbait should be good. If your fish are feeding on threadfin shad, a
small Strike King Rocket shad should do well. You need to have a good amount of
confidence in your colors. Sometimes your gut instinct will tell you the best
color. Some say, "how do I find out what the bass are feeding on?" Well first you
should check out the banks to check for crawfish holes. Then see if you have
balls or schools of shad on your depth finder. Sometimes you can even visually
spot the schools. Once I was fishing down at Barkley Lake. There were a ton of
boats out that weekend and the waves pushed schools of baitfish into a small cove.
You could see the bass chasing the shad out of the water because the shad would
just jump all around the cove. Because when one changes direction, the others
follow. They sort of work as a team by keeping lookout for one another.

If your fishing around a boat dock, there are many different kinds of forage. You
could have shad, bluegill, and crawfish from the rip-rap bank. When your fishing
an underwater hump, shad will be the main forage. If your fishing a rocky area,
crawfish will most likely be present. Chartreuse, or firetiger is a good color to
represent a bluegill. Brown, black, or purple can stand for a crawfish. Alpha
shiner, white, and white and chartreuse can be for shad.

When your fishing clear water, a willow leaf blade will produce more flash than
vibration, So this will be your best bet. Chartreuse blades have been known to
catch a good amount of smallmouths on northern waters. When fishing stained water,
an Indiana, or Oklahoma blade is a good choice. It will produce an even amount of
flash and vibration. In muddy waters, a single, large Colorado blade works well.
A single blade produces more vibration because it resists water flow over the blade,
so it creates more resistance or vibration. Use black or gold blades in muddy water.
Large Colorado blades are best for slow-rolling a spinnerbait. The large blades
produce more lift than other blades styles.

Most pros like to use titanium spinnerbaits because they always retain their
original form, and always run well, cast after cast. They may be a few bucks more,
but in the long run, they'll last longer. I always tie a uniknot on all of my
spinnerbaits. Make sure you wet your line before you tie this knot. If you fail
to wet the line, it will stretch your line when you pull the knot tight. Most
pros would agree that sharpening your hooks is very important. Most like to use a
3-point technique. You can do this by getting a file and sharpening at 3 different
points at the hook. It would be like a triangle. This triangle point will be very
strong. You only need to make about 3 strokes per side on the hook.

Have you ever thought of adding a trailer to your spinnerbait? There are different
kinds of trailers for spinnerbaits. You can have a trailer hook, or a trailer.The
trailer hook will help you land more bass when they short-strike it. Some like
to add a piece of pork or plastic to their spinnerbaits. I like to put a KidLizard
Huffer on the back of my spinnerbait. It has 2 curly tails that will entice those
bass that prefer a larger meal. Trailers should be used in muddy water, to increase
the size of your bait. This will allow the bass to find it easier. I will put a
little Huffer on if I’m using a smaller spinnerbait.

With these tips you should be able to land a few more bass with spinnerbaits. Apply
these tips on the lake and you should be in for a great day of Bassin', out on your
favorite lake. See-ya at the scales!


Additional information:
Daniel Langton is 15 years old, and lives in Haubstadt, IN. “My favorite pro bass
angler is Denny Brauer. "I have learned so much from him over the years on his shows,
and sets a good example for bass fishing." I started fishing when I was 2, and my
largest bass is 7 1/2 lbs. I fish with Daiwa rods and reels, Stren fishing lines,
Strike King, Kidlizard bait, and fishes from a Ranger Comanche, powered by an
Evinrude. Daniel is looking for other potential sponsors as well.

Daniel Langton
15
Haubstadt, IN
Kidlizard pro-staff member
Anyone can contact me at Bassmaster2006@hotmail.com

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