Wishbone~ Anyone else having this problem...

[Bubba 460]

Spinnerbaits, love/hate relationship. Lost another decent fish yesterday due to a spinnerbait breaking like a wishbone. You get back the blade(s) and the fish get the hook, shirt and trailer. Even quality brands (won't name names) break. I bought a spinner bait by a well known brand, bait was beautiful and all gussied up in a fancy package and it broke on the 3rd schooling 3# bass I caught. In other words it lasted about 10 minutes right out of the package. I did get a replacement from the company, as the price wasn't cheap but it eventually broke too.

 

Yes, spinnerbaits catch fish and I have a spinnerbait box packed full of them but it's just that  I'm ticked that they can't make a wire that last better than that. Anyone have any recommendations on a tough as nails spinnerbait? I've tried commercial and custom makers, all seem to have a short life expectancy.

[Scott F]

I used to have that problem with the titanium Terminator spinner baits. The wire doesn’t get bent out of shape but is brittle and just breaks. It happened to everyone I ever bought. Hasn’t happened as much with the cheap spinners that just get bent out of shape and break after you repeatedly bend them back.  

[Bubba 460]

5 minutes ago, Scott F said:

I used to have that problem with the titanium Terminator spinner baits. The wire doesn’t get bent out of shape but is brittle and just breaks. It happened to everyone I ever bought. Hasn’t happened as much with the cheap spinners that just get bent out of shape and break after you repeatedly bend them back.  

  Yep ~ the Terminator spinner baits... (said I wasn't gonna name names). Had nothing but trouble with them breaking.

[BayouSlide]

Can't remember ever breaking a spinnerbait, including Terminators, knock on wood.

[jimmyjoe]

   Yeah, I've broken a few. Then again, I specialize in cheap spinnerbaits, because I beat them to death. I have NO idea why this is happening to you regularly. If I were you, I'd go for some small-size musky spinnerbaits. J-Mac makes one that's 1.5 oz. total weight; I think it's a 3/4 or 7/8 oz. head.

   And before you ask ........ yes, they catch bass just fine.   ?                        jj

[Reel]

Solution: Pass the line through a small split ring before tying on the spinnerbait.. The split ring will slide down over the R bend and prevent the spinnerbait from opening up when you land a fish.  I wrap the R bend of the spinnebaits I make with thread to do the same thing.  They last double the time compared to those that are not wrapped.  And I catch a lot of pikes, so they are put to the test.

[scaleface]

I had lots of them break . Now I pour my own and after twenty to thirty bass I remove the hardware and put it on a new bait . Melt the old one and recover the hook .   Come to think of it , I need to pour some more .

[TnRiver46]

Since fish never bite mine, I haven’t had this issue.........

[BigAngus752]

I have switched everything in my arsenal of larger spinners to a few War Eagles and a bunch of @Siebert Outdoors.  I abuse them in vegetation and wood all year long.  They get thrown away when I have bent and unbent them so much that they just don't run anymore.  Maybe I'll start mailing the mangled ones to @scaleface...  

 

https://siebertoutdoors.com/products/ols/categories/spinner--blade-baits

[Deleted account]

That looks like a problem with a particular model or production run. A "worn out spinnerbait" will usually break where the wire enters the head, not at the r bend. There are plenty of spinnerbaits with ridiculously thick wire, and they will catch fish, but the ones with thinner wire have a better action. I use Booyah ones quite a bit around snakeheads, and while they will twist them into pretzels, they hold up fairly well. 

[Captain Phil]

1 hour ago, BassWhole! said:

There are plenty of spinnerbaits with ridiculously thick wire, and they will catch fish, but the ones with thinner wire have a better action. 

 

If your spinnerbaits don't catch fish, your lures will last forever.  ?

[Fishingmickey]

Hi Bubba,

     You might try backing off on your drag or fighting technique a bit. The titanium wire I would suspect is brittle as suggested by Scottf.  I've broken my share of the regular spinner baits and some on healthy fish.  But it has always been a "experienced" spinner bait that has been bent and straightened after it has caught several fish. 

     I figured out I was bending my spinners when I was heavy hauling the fish to the boat and also when boat flipping the fish. 

    So some food for thought, try some other quality spinner baits that don't have the titanium wire or back off on the drag a touch if you love the Terminator's.

Good luck and tight lines,

FM

[GreenPig]

They'll always let you know when you should've retired them. Just like a knot that should've been retied after that last fish. 

[TnRiver46]

3 hours ago, Captain Phil said:

 

If your spinnerbaits don't catch fish, your lures will last forever.  ?

Not really they just rust in the tackle box 

[Bubba 460]

8 hours ago, BayouSlide said:

Can't remember ever breaking a spinnerbait, including Terminators, knock on wood.

You are truly a blessed man.

8 hours ago, jimmyjoe said:

   Yeah, I've broken a few. Then again, I specialize in cheap spinnerbaits, because I beat them to death. I have NO idea why this is happening to you regularly. If I were you, I'd go for some small-size musky spinnerbaits. J-Mac makes one that's 1.5 oz. total weight; I think it's a 3/4 or 7/8 oz. head.

   And before you ask ........ yes, they catch bass just fine.   ?                        jj

Good idea ~ "small-size musky spinnerbaits". I'll check then out

7 hours ago, BigAngus752 said:

I have switched everything in my arsenal of larger spinners to a few War Eagles and a bunch of @Siebert Outdoors.  I abuse them in vegetation and wood all year long.  They get thrown away when I have bent and unbent them so much that they just don't run anymore.  Maybe I'll start mailing the mangled ones to @scaleface...  

 

https://siebertoutdoors.com/products/ols/categories/spinner--blade-baits

Thanks ~I'll check them out.

[Bubba 460]

6 hours ago, BassWhole! said:

That looks like a problem with a particular model or production run. A "worn out spinnerbait" will usually break where the wire enters the head, not at the r bend. There are plenty of spinnerbaits with ridiculously thick wire, and they will catch fish, but the ones with thinner wire have a better action. I use Booyah ones quite a bit around snakeheads, and while they will twist them into pretzels, they hold up fairly well. 

I have had some mangled and probably knew it was time to can it but you always think "Just one More cast with it", then you loose a nice fish when it does break.

2 hours ago, GreenPig said:

They'll always let you know when you should've retired them. Just like a knot that should've been retied after that last fish. 

You bet they will ~ and yeah, the knot too... "I knew I should have retied that knot"

[detroit1]

I have fished spinnerbaits for 50 years and never broke 1. Mangled beyond repair, yes, but never broke a wire. I never owned a Terminator though...

[Hammer 4]

In my case, about 35 years, and never had a spinnerbait break. Even some of the lesser expensive ones. Had many skirts fall off, but those are replaceable.

[Bubba 460]

1 minute ago, detroit1 said:

I have fished spinnerbaits for 50 years and never broke 1. Mangled beyond repair, yes, but never broke a wire. I never owned a Terminator though...

I've lost at least a dozen fish do to a spinner bait breaking while bringing in a fish. Terminator's were only a couple. I swear the cheapo Walmart buck fifty last longer then some of the more expensive. I'm gonna try some River2Sea spinner baits next.  

[Hammer 4]

You may want to look into the War Eagle and Siebert spinnerbaits.  

[Jaderose]

Good ol' H&H never break.  I've never understood why more spinnerbait makers don't use free-swinging hooks

[jimmyjoe]

   Just out of curiosity .....  have you ever tried a closed-eye spinnerbait? 

 

   Like these:  

 

         jj

[Bubba 460]

50 minutes ago, jimmyjoe said:

   Just out of curiosity .....  have you ever tried a closed-eye spinnerbait? 

 

   Like these:  

 

         jj

Yes I have and I think they are an improvement over the open eye. I thought I had found an end to my search.  But it's still that blade wire that takes most of the abuse (getting bent) and if flexed to many times it will eventually break. All you have to do to test it is grab that wire and start bending out and back (not continually) and it will break at some point    

[DitchPanda]

I got into a deal on here last year where I said war eagles break more often then other brands. @Bluebasser86 informed me that all spinnerbaits break after enough fish...I said maybe but I never break Booyahs. The next day I broke a Booyah with a 5lb largemouth stealing the head and me getting the blades. After that I decided to not talk crap about spinnerbait brands again! 

That said I've found the Nichols baits to be very durable.

[Bubba 460]

16 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

I got into a deal on here last year where I said war eagles break more often then other brands. @Bluebasser86 informed me that all spinnerbaits break after enough fish...I said maybe but I never break Booyahs. The next day I broke a Booyah with a 5lb largemouth stealing the head and me getting the blades. After that I decided to not talk crap about spinnerbait brands again! 

That said I've found the Nichols baits to be very durable.

Yep ~ I think they all have their limit.