More recently, small accessory spinner blades have found their way onto the bends of treble hooks for hardbaits, and onto pins that can be inserted into soft plastics, providing an extra twinkle of flash and whir of sound that can help convince a wary fish to strike. Retrieving these baits over the course of a long day is a real workout, but the results frequently speak for themselves. 10, which produce tremendous flash and a unique vibration pattern in the water that translates into enormous muskies in the net. Not satisfied to burn bucktails equipped with a single rotating blade, custom lurecrafters have engineered massive lures sporting twin Colorado blades in sizes up to No. One of the areas where this is most apparent is in the musky universe, where large in-line spinners-collectively known as bucktails-have been fooling these freshwater apex predators for decades. STRIKE KING TOUR GRADE SPINNERBAITĪngler ingenuity and the desire to show pressured fish something new frequently pushes the boundaries of spinner-based lure design into unique shapes and blade configurations. Catching less water than their Colorado and Indiana counterparts, rotating willowleaf blades emit the highest-frequency vibration pattern, delivering short-range sensory overflow that can result in bone-jarring strikes. With a slender and more pointed profile, willowleaf spinner blades are designed for fast presentations, like burning spinnerbaits for bass at the surface or speed trolling for walleyes. The first lures I ever cast as a young boy for Wisconsin bass and pike were Mepps spinners, and their unique synthesis of elegant simplicity and long-term fish appeal keep them in my essential tackle collection even today. They have been fooling freshwater fish from muskies and bass to trout and walleyes since the 1930s. Many of the famous (and incredibly effective) Mepps in-line spinners incorporate Indiana-style spinner blades.

Slightly more tapered and not as deep, Indiana blades are the workhorses of spinner-containing lures. Because this low-frequency sound travels the longest distance through water, the vibrational signature of Colorado blades has the longest-range appeal to predator fish. It spins effectively at relatively slow retrieve or trolling speeds, and emits the deepest thump as it rotates. The Colorado spinner blade is deep and wide, with a shape that resembles a soup spoon. They differ mainly by shape, which gives each one specific characteristics that anglers can use to their advantage.

Three basic spinner blade designs dominate contemporary lurecraft.

Actual size colorado blade for walleye