Spinnerbaits have been around for a long time, but they still continue to produce. Learn how to fish a spinnerbait for the best results.
One of my earliest memories of fishing spinnerbait takes me all the way back to being 8 years old. It was an exciting time as it was also my first experience with smallmouth bass. My dad, his friend Norman, and I went to Flaming Gorge Reservoir in Utah.
The bite was supposed to be amazing and we loaded up with curly-tailed grubs and spinnerbaits.
Like so many hyped-up trips we came after a front and the fish were in a negative mood, but I threw that spinnerbait on my little Zebco 33 for two days straight… I only got one bass, but I was hooked. The acrobatics and fight hooked me on both fishing the spinnerbait and smallmouth bass for life.
Moving forward, I have been fishing a spinnerbait ever since. Now I know more than I knew then and thus my success with the bait has increased by leaps and bounds.
Where to Fish a Spinnerbait
Before I cover how to fish a spinnerbait, I will explain when I pull out the spinnerbait. Looking back, glassy clear water was not the right condition to throw a spinnerbait back when I was eight…
My favorite conditions to throw a spinnerbait are when there is some chop on the water. I have fished too many days where the bite will be on and as soon as the wind dies down, so does the spinnerbait bite.
Another weather pattern that makes for the perfect storm in my mind is some overcast, low-light conditions that add to my success with this bait.
My favorite areas to fish the spinnerbait are around cover. I love fishing the spinnerbait around wood more than anything. Submerged vegetation and grass being and close second if the weed is clean. If there is that slimy moss on the weeds then it will drive you crazy and you will have to fish the outside edge like you might with a crankbait.
The cool thing about the spinnerbait is that they are so weedless. It is amazing what they will come through. They are one of those 4×4 reaction baits kinda like the sqarebill crankbait, but more weedless.
How to Fish a Spinnerbait
There are really three ways that I will fish a spinnerbait that I will cover here.
- My favorite way to fish the spinnerbait is to throw it past the cover and bring it through or by the cover. I will always vary my retrieve and give it a pop right after I come by a critical piece of cover. As I said above, my favorite is wood. Bring it over the top of submerged trees, and give your rod a twitch when you come through it and you can have some amazing reaction bites.
- My next way is to throw a heavy spinnerbait and slow roll it on the bottom. This is where it is ticking the bottom and the blades are just barely spinning. This can work wonders in both the summer and winter when the bass are deep and on humps or ditches. Pay attention for the feeling of the blades as when you feel a tic, or the feeling of the blades change, set the hook hard.
- The third way is to burn the bait almost on the top of the water column. When the fish are active and chasing bait, this can be dynamite. Burning that bait with varied speed retrieves along the retrieve, or pops, will mimic fleeing baitfish and they will strike out of a core feeding response without ever getting a good look at the bait. This gives them a split-second attack window and they either strike, or they don’t.
Which of these three tactics you use depends on the conditions and when and where you are fishing. Tryin these three approaches will allow you to develop confidence and also to see what is working best for the time and day you are fishing.
Remember, to trigger the best responses you want a change. Twitch the rod at key times to pulse that skirt and create a reaction. Vary the speed of retrieve and pay attention to what they like.
Bass fishing is about paying attention to patterns. Let the fish tell you what they want on any given day. That is part of the fun of it all. This is how to fish a spinnerbait and have success with it.
Disclosure: this is not the only way to fish the spinnerbait and there are more methods and ways to do it out there. These are the three core ways that I would start and move on from there.
The Gear to Catch Bass on a Spinnerbait
I always prefer to fish the spinnerbait on casting gear. I like a medium to medium heavy rod that has a little softer tip to allow the bass to get the bait before I set the hook. Too heavy a rod will have you pulling the bait away from the bass and lead to frustration.
One of my favorite spinnerbait rods is the St. Croix Mojo Bass series spinnerbait rod. It is medium-heavy, but has a slower tip and loads deeper than most medium-heavy rods. I also like the Abu Garcia Veritas series in medium power. It is a little stiffer than the St. Croix rods so I downsize to a medium. Both have been amazing and are fairly affordable bass rods.
As for reels, you want something that is smooth. Spinnerbaits can have a lot of resistance. I typically like a 7:1 or 7:3 gear ratio baitcasting reel to fish the spinnerbait. That way I can slow down or speed up, but still have the torque to lessen fatigue.
I typically like a 12 – 17 lb test fluorocarbon line depending on the cover I am fishing and also the spinnerbait. If I am fishing a finesse spinnerbait and fishing the outside of structure, or light structure, I will fish lighter line. That said, my go-to is 15 – 16 lb test.
I could talk about spinnerbaits for hours and hours, but that is not the purpose of this article. I will write more detailed articles and link to them in the future.
If you are looking for spinnerbaits to buy, I would suggest a few of my favorites here.
The War Eagle spinnerbaits are amazing. I have done a lot of damage with that lineup. Another favorite is the Strike King Finesse line of spinnerbaits. If I had to choose just two I would start with these. They can do 90% of the job in most of the situations.
So go pick up some War Eagle and Strike King Finesse spinnerbaits and get out there and catch some bass!
To your spinnerbait fishing success,
Jonathan Burke
Here’s a great video that goes into some detail about spinnerbait fishing.
Here’s another in-depth video about how to choose and fish a spinnerbait.