Spinnerbait Questions

[WhiteMike1018]

So soon ill be making my own spinnerbaits and had some questions for you guys. Basically im going to start off buying blades and a few other components to modify the baits I already have and then later on down the road possibly buy heads and start from scratch.

 

Questions.

 

1) Lately it seems some of the skirts have been getting mangled after about 300-400 casts, when i say this I mean like the rubber skirt holder breaking or the skirt failling down. How should I combat this?

 

2.) I will be ordering some blades soon from barlows or janns netcraft and I'm wondering whats the difference betwen a hammered (turtle back blades) and a regular one? Because I haven't noticed any. When would you use regular vs hammered?

 

3) What do you think about a very small snap swivel on the end blade for easy swapping vs a split ring? I'f you were making a spinnerbait which would you use? I honestly dont like the looks of the snap in place of the split ring because it seems to make the blade longer from the wire. Maybe it dosen't matter at all, but who knows.

 

Anyway I hope to hear from some of you about these topics.

 

thanks -wm

[smalljaw67]

First of all you need to have a pair of round nose pliers and a wire cutter handy because in order to modify existing baits you will need to undo the swivel loop in order to get the spacers, beads and clevis and blade off and sometimes the wire will get too mangled which means you need to cut the small piece of wire off in order to put your new blades on. To eliminate the skirt from falling down you can use wire and wire tie it which is the best bet as it holds well and is easier than thread if you aren't experienced with it. All you need to do is use 26 gauge wire and make 2 wraps and pull tight using pliers and then make a few twist to make it tight and trim the excess and fold the wire over, just be careful not to over do the twist or you'll cut the skirt off. and once you're done just cut the rubber skirt collar off. I don't ever use a snap on the swivel for spinnerbaits, the reason is I like to use them in all kinds of cover with grass being my favorite, having a snap on the swivel will just end up making a snagging point that will gather junk and foul the blade, a split ring is the way to go. As for the blades turtle back blades are also called, olympic, oklahoma, or mag willow, it does not refer to the finish, a hammered blade is simply a finish, the 2 most common types are smooth and hammered and they could be colorado or willow or even indiana, I don't remember seeing a hammered turtleback,aka oklahoma blade. The difference between hammered and smooth finishes is the light reflection, a smooth finish gives off a large flash while a hammered finish gives off a lot of little flashes in all directions and 99.9% of the time I prefer the smooth finish.

[Jigfishn10]

1. Small tie wrap, thin wire or I use rod builders thread will keep you skirt material on

2. Hammered blades will flash light in multiple directions giving the illusion of multiple baitfish where smooth gives the illusion of one larger fish

3. I always put on a snap for easier blade changes. There are multiple areas on a spinnerbait that collects weeds so I don't mind the trade off. If I think a different blade will work better then I'd rather make a quick change with a snap than use the time to tie a new bait on

Good luck and be sure to post some of your creations!

[pabassr]

On your skirts, I would either redo the skirt using a new collar,or you can repair using wire wrapped ,then twisted to hold the skirt together.

 The  hammered blades give off more flash, as hammered finish displaces the light.

When I`m building my spinnerbaits I always use a snap swivel,so I can change out blades. I`ve built spinnerbaits without the snap swivel, but I prefer to use the snap swivel. One note about snap swivels, don`t buy the least expensive ones because they won`t spin as well.

[WhiteMike1018]

Ok thanks guys these are great replies. If I think of anyhting else ill ask

 

First of all you need to have a pair of round nose pliers and a wire cutter handy because in order to modify existing baits you will need to undo the swivel loop in order to get the spacers, beads and clevis and blade off and sometimes the wire will get too mangled which means you need to cut the small piece of wire off in order to put your new blades on. To eliminate the skirt from falling down you can use wire and wire tie it which is the best bet as it holds well and is easier than thread if you aren't experienced with it. All you need to do is use 26 gauge wire and make 2 wraps and pull tight using pliers and then make a few twist to make it tight and trim the excess and fold the wire over, just be careful not to over do the twist or you'll cut the skirt off. and once you're done just cut the rubber skirt collar off. I don't ever use a snap on the swivel for spinnerbaits, the reason is I like to use them in all kinds of cover with grass being my favorite, having a snap on the swivel will just end up making a snagging point that will gather junk and foul the blade, a split ring is the way to go. As for the blades turtle back blades are also called, olympic, oklahoma, or mag willow, it does not refer to the finish, a hammered blade is simply a finish, the 2 most common types are smooth and hammered and they could be colorado or willow or even indiana, I don't remember seeing a hammered turtleback,aka oklahoma blade. The difference between hammered and smooth finishes is the light reflection, a smooth finish gives off a large flash while a hammered finish gives off a lot of little flashes in all directions and 99.9% of the time I prefer the smooth finish.

 

Do oaklahoma blades give off more vibration than coloroado? they look pretty similar in shape, also not far from an indiana blade

[smalljaw67]

Ok thanks guys these are great replies. If I think of anyhting else ill ask

 

 

Do oaklahoma blades give off more vibration than coloroado? they look pretty similar in shape, also not far from an indiana blade

 

They are close, I like  making a double mag willow or turtle back blade on a 3/8oz spinnerbait with a #4 as the main blade and a #3 as the secondary blade both in smooth nickel finish, it provides a lot of thump and flash, it makes for a great slow rolling bait in 4' to 6' of water.  They do have a significant amount more vibration than an Indiana blade, the reason is the surface area and cup, Indian blades are what I use to make a "muti purpose" spinnerbait, you have heard that they are in between a colorado and a willow and it is true, slightly more vibration than the same size willow but a little more flash than the same size colorado.

[WhiteMike1018]

They are close, I like  making a double mag willow or turtle back blade on a 3/8oz spinnerbait with a #4 as the main blade and a #3 as the secondary blade both in smooth nickel finish, it provides a lot of thump and flash, it makes for a great slow rolling bait in 4' to 6' of water.  They do have a significant amount more vibration than an Indiana blade, the reason is the surface area and cup, Indian blades are what I use to make a "muti purpose" spinnerbait, you have heard that they are in between a colorado and a willow and it is true, slightly more vibration than the same size willow but a little more flash than the same size colorado.

 

Ok roger. So is the secondary blade the one on the back near the split ring or the one on the clevis?

[smalljaw67]

Ok roger. So is the secondary blade the one on the back near the split ring or the one on the clevis?

 

The clevis is the secondary blade, the main blade is on the swivel.