Spoons for bass?

[snake95]

(Excluding jigging spoons).

 

I read a lot about structure spoons, which from my inexperienced perspective look like large, heavy spoons.  I think they are used primarily for offshore fishing.

 

I know there are also Johnson Silver Minnows, which I think are often fished in vegetation.

 

I am curious about the good old fashioned wobbling spoons, which I associate with fishing for pike and various members of the salmon and trout family.

 

I can see they aren't great around cover and would think that is the main detraction.

 

Anyone fish this type of spoon for bass in shallow water?  When do you like to use them? 

 

[Deleted account]

• Spoons are very effective for most fish including LMB, I think the reason they aren't more popular is twofold, first the whole bass like to live in cover that would make their use difficult most times, and most spoons require specific speed control, and specific rod actions, and thus more angler experience and skill than a lot of other things that will also work in similar conditions and are more mindless.

[WRB]

Spoons like Daredevil IMP 2/5 oz, Acme Little Cleo are very popular bass spoons for decades.

The class of flutter spoons from 3” to 10” are popular today.

Weedless spoons like Johnson Silver Minnow also date back decades for bass.

Spoon popularity comes and goes but those in the know have a spoon ready when bass are feeding on baitfish.

Tom

[Bankc]

I enjoy throwing spoons, but not in shallow water, due to their potential to snag.  I tend to save them for open water situations.  

 

I prefer to jig casting and flutter spoons over rocks on points and casting or dragging them through balls of baitfish.  They can also work on a steady, straight retrieve, or a stop and pop retrieve.  The spoons also work well around floating docks, if you know where the cables are and can avoid them.  

 

They're really common lures for white bass.  Less so for black bass.  But anything that works on white bass will work on black bass.  

[TnRiver46]

I have always used spoons for bass. They work good about any way you fish them. Little cleo is excellent but way over priced so I had to quit buying them. Now I mostly use cotton Cordell on the bottom, I guess that’s a structure spoon? I’ve never learned the difference between casting spoon jigging spoon structure spoon etc. 

 

spoon was a big player in the latest bass elite event on pickwick 

[Dwight Hottle]

5 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

I have always used spoon for bass. They work good about any way you fish them. Little cleo is excellent but way over priced so I had to quit buying them. Now I mostly use cotton Cordell on the bottom, I guess that’s a structure spoon? I’ve never learned the difference between casting spoon jigging spoon structure spoon etc. 

 

spoon was a big player in the latest bass elite event on pickwick 

 

Basically there are only two types of spoons. Regular spoons & flutter spoons. The lightweight flutter spoons look like a regular spoon but are thinner & lighter and have a slow rate of fall. They glide when falling or flutter & are fished on semi-slack line. Regular spoons are made from thicker metal stock & are used for casting & jigging applications. Most spoons sold for jigging purposes are thicker & shorter in length to enhance their drop speed or rate of fall. Regular spoons when long enough mimic a flutter spoons action but fall much more quickly. Most guys fishing deep water structure use a heavy spoon with a fast rate of fall because they don't have the patience to wait for a flutter spoon to get to the bottom. 

[Catt]

While not your traditional "wobble" spoon the Heddon Moss Boss is extremely deadly around shallow cover.

 

DO NOT! Under any circumstance throw one at night on grass mats.

[casts_by_fly]

42 minutes ago, Dwight Hottle said:

 

Basically there are only two types of spoons. Regular spoons & flutter spoons. The lightweight flutter spoons look like a regular spoon but are thinner & lighter and have a slow rate of fall. They glide when falling or flutter & are fished on semi-slack line. Regular spoons are made from thicker metal stock & are used for casting & jigging applications. Most spoons sold for jigging purposes are thicker & shorter in length to enhance their drop speed or rate of fall. Regular spoons when long enough mimic a flutter spoons action but fall much more quickly. Most guys fishing deep water structure use a heavy spoon with a fast rate of fall because they don't have the patience to wait for a flutter spoon to get to the bottom. 

 

And also surface spoons.

 

37 minutes ago, Catt said:

While not your traditional "wobble" spoon the Heddon Moss Boss is extremely deadly around shallow cover.

 

DO NOT! Under any circumstance throw one at night on grass mats.

 

I fish a lot of topwater spoons.  A moss boss is one, a talking spoon another.  My favorite though is a weedwalker which are sadly not made anymore.  Its a spoon with a blade in the middle like a paddlewheel.  It fishes like a buzzbait and leaves that great roostertail of water and bubbles, but you can throw it across the worst grass.  It always lands belly down due to its shape and weighting, and I've never seen a sinking lure come to the surface as fast.  The only downside is that its susceptible to fine grass strands gumming up the blade.  Algae is bad for it and I don't throw it in that.  I have another topwater spoon that I fish, but its still made so I'm not splashing that one all over the internet.

 

 

[Deleted account]

2 hours ago, Dwight Hottle said:

 

Basically there are only two types of spoons. Regular spoons & flutter spoons. The lightweight flutter spoons look like a regular spoon but are thinner & lighter and have a slow rate of fall. They glide when falling or flutter & are fished on semi-slack line. Regular spoons are made from thicker metal stock & are used for casting & jigging applications. Most spoons sold for jigging purposes are thicker & shorter in length to enhance their drop speed or rate of fall. Regular spoons when long enough mimic a flutter spoons action but fall much more quickly. Most guys fishing deep water structure use a heavy spoon with a fast rate of fall because they don't have the patience to wait for a flutter spoon to get to the bottom. 

Yes and no, a spoon is a spoon, you can cast and retrieve or vertical jig (What LMB guys call flutter for some reason), or troll one for that matter. Sure a heavier spoon will have a faster ROF, but you can change or fine tune that with the line diameter.

[Mobasser]

I've been a fan of the Heddon Moss Boss, and Johnson Silver Minnow for a long time. One spoon I don't hear much about now are standard jigging spoons, like the Hopkins style. These were heavier, dropped down to depth, and snapped back up. Good for bass schooled up in deeper water.  My grandpa had several red/white Daredevle spoons In his box. Very popular in his day. I'm sure would still work now. I think I read that the Johnson Silver Minnow was invented in 1921. Some of these spoons have been around for a long time

[casts_by_fly]

25 minutes ago, Mobasser said:

I've been a fan of the Heddon Moss Boss, and Johnson Silver Minnow for a long time. One spoon I don't hear much about now are standard jigging spoons, like the Hopkins style. These were heavier, dropped down to depth, and snapped back up. Good for bass schooled up in deeper water.  My grandpa had several red/white Daredevle spoons In his box. Very popular in his day. I'm sure would still work now. I think I read that the Johnson Silver Minnow was invented in 1921. Some of these spoons have been around for a long time

 

A johnson silver spoon with a white pork trailer (the longer ones, not the frogs) is a dandy big fish bait (and pike lure) throw around lily pads.  We did that for many years.

[RDB]

The only spoons I throw with any regularity are 5, 6 & 8” Lake Fork or Ben Parker flutter spoons.  They can be deadly in the summer and fall months but are not a shallow water technique.

[WRB]

9 hours ago, Deleted account said:

Yes and no, a spoon is a spoon, you can cast and retrieve or vertical jig (What LMB guys call flutter for some reason), or troll one for that matter. Sure a heavier spoon will have a faster ROF, but you can change or fine tune that with the line diameter.

Flutter spoon isn’t my terminology it’s a classification of a type of thin metal spoons that has been around for decades.

Lake Fork “flutter spoons” became popular for bass fish from the success ledge bass anglers were having.

Lake trout anglers in Canada have used flutter spoons for a long time behind 3 way swivel heavy weighted rigs for summer Lake Trout. The original Dr Spoons for example.

Structure spoons are heavy metal spoons for vertical jigging, very different from swimming spoons that can be fished vertically.

Tom

 

[Deleted account]

8 hours ago, WRB said:

Flutter spoon isn’t my terminology it’s a classification of a type of thin metal spoons that has been around for decades.

Lake Fork “flutter spoons” became popular for bass fish from the success ledge bass anglers were having.

Lake trout anglers in Canada have used flutter spoons for a long time behind 3 way swivel heavy weighted rigs for summer Lake Trout. The original Dr Spoons for example.

Structure spoons are heavy metal spoons for vertical jigging, very different from swimming spoons that can be fished vertically.

Tom

 

I wasn't suggesting you coined the term, but as you say, it was LMB guys in TX. I sometimes troll jigging spoons, jig casting spoons, and cast jigging spoons, because they happen to be the right one  for the situation, regardless of the originator's intent. I picked up a bunch of Dr spoons at a flea market recently, probably gonna be making shark bait with them.

[Dogface]

23 hours ago, WRB said:

Spoon popularity comes and goes but those in the know have a spoon ready when bass are feeding on baitfish.

Tom

 

I use them a lot for pike and musky but there are times and places when I use them for bass. I usually have a Johnson Silver Minnow handy because I fish a lot of shallow water and weeds.   

 

Spoons, spinners and grubs were once common but not now. They give me a chance to throw something bass do not see too often today. 

[Bluebasser86]

I've got at least a dozen of these in my boat. When the bass are schooling on shallow flats and tired of seeing traps, swimbaits, and spinnerbaits, these will get them.

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/johnson-original-sprite-spoon?hvarAID=shopping_googleproductextensions&ds_e=GOOGLE&ds_c=BPS|Shopping|Standard|Fishing|General|NAud|TopPerf|NMT&gclid=CjwKCAjw14uVBhBEEiwAaufYx29vfFZ0GD35VgBHtwE__Vf0sNMagyRdBHarYuOpO_1OW4M-op2S7BoCtdQQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

[WRB]

We have several “spoon” threads in the BR forums.

Aug 2021 there is a similar thread to this; why don’t many people use casting spoons? 

Tom

[scaleface]

After Stanley Mitchell won the classic , I bought some of those Luhr Jensen Krocodile Spoon's . Dont think I ever caught a bass on them . 

[rangerjockey]

It's a popular deal around here. I don't fish them out deep much other than when I can see them suspended in tree tops but I love to flip them in docks. They will get into the stalls and lifts and under the walkways once the sun gets up in the summer.

I like the War Eagle 3/4 oz and Dixie jet slab spoons the Dixie jet flutter spoon and the R2S James Watson spoon. The Watson spoon falls away from the flip and makes it great to get back under the boat lifts.

 If the spoon has a swivel I usually cut it off.  You have to cut the line back fairly often because of the line twist but I think the fish like to see it  spin.

 

[WRB]

15 hours ago, scaleface said:

After Stanley Mitchell won the classic , I bought some of those Luhr Jensen Krocodile Spoon's . Dont think I ever caught a bass on them . 

Krocodile spoon is a good casting swimming spoon, doesn’t fall very good so not a jigging spoon imo.

Tom

[Bdnoble84]

Grew up throwing spoons when i was younger. The red eye wiggler was a go to as was the classic red and white. Caught alot of fish on those. Gone away from from alot of those first baits over the years.

[FishTank]

The only spoon I need.....

 

[BassNJake]

Cody Huff recently took 2nd at Pickwick tossing a spoon

The dixie jet talon weighing in at 2 3/4 ounces

 

[Drawdown]

7 hours ago, BassNJake said:

Cody Huff recently took 2nd at Pickwick tossing a spoon

The dixie jet talon weighing in at 2 3/4 ounces

 

What kind of rod is ideal for this? Extra heavy with moderate or mod fast tip?

[RDB]

8 hours ago, BassNJake said:

Cody Huff recently took 2nd at Pickwick tossing a spoon

The dixie jet talon weighing in at 2 3/4 ounces

If I remember right, that’s the lure he stuck in his leg and had to pop it out with braid.  With most flutter spoons except the magnum spoons, you can use one of your MH or H jig rods with a fast tip.  With some of the heavy magnum spoons, I use a heavy swimbait rod.  The rod in the pic looks like a Johnny Morris CarbonLite.  It looks like a pretty big blank, so I would guess it’s a heavy fast.