What all bites a Spinner Bait?

[Glenn W]

Went Red Fishing on the Fla. Gulf today---- breeze was 20 kt+, so sight fishing was out. With the wind gusting, I opted for a big ole bass spinner bait.
Not a single Spot Tail, but--- the Spinner Bait did snag-- 1 Sea Robin, 1 Black Grouper, 2 Cobia, 6 Speckled Trout, 3 Sea Bass, 1 Lizard Fish
Roland Martin would be proud

[hotrodmarlin]

Mahi love em too

[JMS-ILM]

Went Red Fishing on the Fla. Gulf today---

come on Glenn...you claim to be a Carolina Boy! Red fishing??? spot tail is borderline acceptable, but stooping so low as to calling your state fish a redfish or a red is downright sacrilege! the horror!

i have also been surprised in years past at what will eat a spinnerbait. surprised you didnt dredge up a flounder or two with it

[Captain Fred Archer]

Spinnerbaits catch 'em all! Back when I did a lot of bass fishing I made my own. I go all the way back to the days when they were a deep, dark secret bait that you could not buy, but had to make or know someone who did to get your hands on one or two. The only "Factory" lures that were like them were the Shannon Twin Spin and an Arbogast lure that I can't remember the name of right now...neither was a true spinnerbait.

I learned how to make them from a fellow named Bill Haddock who was way, way ahead of his time when it came to bass lures. I was in the specialty metal business at the time and developed a wire for making the blades that Bill flipped out over. So, he got wire and I learned how to make spinnerbaits and got lessons from the master on how to use them.

The subject here is what you can catch on what we used to call "Blades". I think one poster said "everything" and I have to agree with him. In salt water I caught blues, bass, weakfish, speckled trout, channel bass, fluke, various west coast bass, dorado, tuna and a bunch of Australian species on them. Regular bass models are fine for fishing shallow water, but I built special ones for the rest of the salt. In a nutshell, they were heavier, one to three ounce models, with one small, single blade, either a willow for high speed retrieves, or a Colorado for slower stuff, like stripers, weaks and fluke. For the latter I used plastic skirts and I Super glued plastic worms on (there were no twister tails back then) and for the pelagics I just used the skirts and I made up some models with bucktail and/or actual feather bodies.

Yeah, they work in the salt...in fact, they work like gangbusters!

[Glenn W]

spot tail is borderline acceptable, but stooping so low as to calling your state fish a redfish or a red is downright sacrilege! the horror!

It's a condition of the 3 day license.--- When in Rome---

[Dink Bait]

Years ago I was Tarpon fishing in Homasassa and stopped in the river on my
way back in from the Gulf. Tied on a double bladed spinner bait with a chopper
blade, skirt and twin tail plastic. I made a long cast beside a stump and caught
the biggest Sheepshead I have ever caught. I was going to make another cast
to the stump when I realized the "stump" was the head of a full grown gator.
The next day I caught gars at the mouth of the river on the same bait.

[clt_capt]

Years ago I was Tarpon fishing in Homasassa and stopped in the river on my
way back in from the Gulf. Tied on a double bladed spinner bait with a chopper
blade, skirt and twin tail plastic. I made a long cast beside a stump and caught
the biggest Sheepshead I have ever caught. I was going to make another cast
to the stump when I realized the "stump" was the head of a full grown gator.
The next day I caught gars at the mouth of the river on the same bait.

I've never caught a gator on a spinner, but they will hit a bobber. Unless the gator is really big, they don't put up too much of a fight. And they don't really taste like chicken

[Dink Bait]

I sampled some gator while there. It was served as part of
"The Redneck Platter". Fried Gator, Turtle and Catfish.


With slaw and hushpuppies of course.

[Glenn W]

I sampled some gator while there. It was served as part of
"The Redneck Platter". Fried Gator, Turtle and Catfish.
With slaw and hushpuppies of course.

What?--- no mud bugs too?. Guess that is more of a Louisianna thing.

[Dink Bait]

If you crave the bugs, check out T&W Oyster bar next time you
are in MHC. Better yet, call me and I will go with you.