spinner

Rare Fishing Lures: Rodents, Reptiles, Crustaceans, and Other Collectible Critter-Shaped Baits

fieldandstream-editor — Tue, 20 Jun 2006 11:00:00 -0400

Collectible Fishing Lures From the Early 20th Century

fieldandstream-editor — Tue, 16 May 2006 12:00:00 -0400

The 50 Greatest Lures of All Time

fieldandstream-editor — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 11:00:00 -0400

Whether you target bass or walleyes, trout or stripers and more, these are lures that actually work. Some selections are lures your granddad fished. Others are so new you might not have seen them yet. In all cases, though, you'll find a lure that catches fish, specified right down to size and color, along with just what to do when you're on the water.

Picking the perfect lure for a given situation is hard work, so I'll confess to a dirty trick. Before returning to a marina dock or my truck, I take the day's hot lures off my rods and put them away. To the same rods, I then attach lures that didn't work. That means the prying eyes of other anglers in the parking lot will be led astray, and I'll keep a secret to myself just a little longer.

Not this time, though. The lures on these slides are, indeed, the ones I use myself-a core collection distilled through 50 years on the water. They'll work for you, too.

Make Your Own Spinners

fieldandstream-editor — Tue, 24 Jan 2006 04:20:00 -0500

Building a spinner takes all of two minutes, and the only tool you need is a pair of needle-nose pliers. You can buy kits that include a range of bodies, blades, and beads (cabelas.com) or order parts individually for more customization (800-638-2723; www.jannsnetcraft.com). Here's how to make one.

Step 1
Thread a treble hook onto an open-eye wire shaft.

Step 2
Pinch the ends of the shaft together and slide a spinner body over the top. Solid brass bodies add heft for deeper-running lures and greater castability. Trim any excess wire and add beads.

Step 3
Thread the blade onto the clevis, and slide the clevis onto the shaft. The blade's concave side should face the body.

Step 4
Using your pliers, grasp the shaft firmly about 3/16 to Â¿Â¿ inch above the clevis or terminal bead. Hold the pliers steady and slowly bend the shaft three-quarters of the way around the nose of the pliers and under the main shaft until you have formed a loop.

Step 5
Wrap the tag end of this loop tightly around the shaft twice, as close to the pliers as possible. Trim the end with wire cutters.

Quick Tip
Before you begin assembling the spinner, add desired details to components, such as paint or flash tape to blades, and squirrel-tail hair or colored tubing to treble hooks.