Rigging a spinner

[Hookem]

I just got a blue fox spinner and am curious as to how I should rig this up for bank fishing steelhead. Do I need 3 way swivels or what? Thanks for the help. If you have pictures that'd be awesome but not a must at all since beggars can't be choosers.

 

[DrTheopolis]

I tie them directly to my mainline, which at present is Spiderwire Supermono 8# (which is a little light for springers, but with the low water conditions, isn't unreasonable).

I'm a firm believer in K.I.S.S.

 

[Modest_Man]

I use a duolock on the mainline so I can easily swap out spinners or spoons. I'm also not targeting line shy fish with a spinner or spoon so I don't go lighter than a 12lb buffer on my braid. I hooked a springer on a spinner last week with 25lb test mono buffer and 50lb mainline...

 

[coyo7e]

Depends on the mainline, if I'm using high-vis I put a clear leader on and then add a swivel. I don't like tying them directly to the line.

With my spoons I'll often put a swivel through the front eye of most of my spoons, and another on my line so I can just hook directly to one and swap out in a moment. Handy, and it keeps the spoons from spinning as often.

 

[Bouncinbottom]

Ha Ha! I see your posts/ questions and love it! Your education is just beginning, and will never end. The thirst is unquenchable.

That being said, you'll need a few spinners buddy. If you are committed to putting your spinner where the fish are. Those fish you seek are in the bottom 12 to 18 inches of the water column. You will soon know that losing another spinner snagged on the bottom is actually a complement. It means yer put yer gear where the fish are. I love buds spinners ($1.89 ea.). I prefer to attach to my mainline with a simple snap swivel. When you do it right, you are drift fishing a spinner. I learned my hardware technique reading this forum, and practicing in the field. Keep reading. Keep feeling rocks.

 

[hvacr1]

I tie my own and integrate a rosco size 7 barrel swivel into the shaft. If I am fishing a store bought spinner I put a barrel swivel inline and fluoro leader because I only use braid for everything (power pro). Also are you planning on fishing spinners with a spinning reel or casting reel. I think if you are gonna fish spinning reels with spinners the line twist potential is greater and in that case I would say a barrel swivel would be a very good idea. Also to shorten your learning curve don't overwork the spinner, make quartering casts and let the water work the spinner not your reel. You will soon identify what is good spinner water and what is not.

 

[rippin fish lips]

tie directly and make sure your using mono line when spin fishing. Learn to cope with the line twist. For that reason you need a good strong/limper line with less memory. There is no reason to go below 10lb test when fishing hardware. Tying dirctly to your main line with no swivel will give your spinner a more flashy appearance and will "roll" a lot better

 

[adamg]

Whats the idea behind the mono buffer? Is it to reduce the visibility that hiviz braid would have? I've only ever tied directly to mainline braid. I've caught fish but wonder if the mono buffer would improve? As I understood it, a fish that hits a spinner is hitting out of aggression and what the spinner is tied to doesn't really make a difference.

 

[Modest_Man]

I use a buffer so when I snag up I don't leave 50 yards of braid in the water.

 

[BamaDan]

Hookem, if you stick with it you'll find spinners and spoons to be one of the most fun and effective ways of steelhead fishing, especially for summer fish when covering water is vital to success. You're going to lose a lot of tackle initially, but you'll eventually learn to just feel the bottom instead of getting hung up. It's very common advice, but I'll repeat what many others told me when I started. Go get a copy of Jed Davis' Spinner Fishing for Steelhead, Salmon, and Trout. It never really clicked for me until I read that book a couple times.

Whats the idea behind the mono buffer? Is it to reduce the visibility that hiviz braid would have? I've only ever tied directly to mainline braid. I've caught fish but wonder if the mono buffer would improve? As I understood it, a fish that hits a spinner is hitting out of aggression and what the spinner is tied to doesn't really make a difference.

I like the buffer because a swivel up the line reduces twist and my experience with twisted braid has not been good. Also when you do snag up you can break off without leaving a bunch of braid in the river. I'm not surprised that fish will hit even when tied directly to braid but when the water is as low and clear as it has been I'm not taking any additional chance of spooking a wary fish.

 

[coyo7e]

I don't trust a spinner tied directly to the mainline, feels to me like it'll get twisted more as I bounce it along the bottom.

I've been using 6# hi-vis and a 10# clear mono buffer around the town run lately. Caught a lot of mussels however, I've yet to lose a lure doing it this year.

I use a buffer so when I snag up I don't leave 50 yards of braid in the water.

This. It's disgusting to show up at a good hole and see 30-60 feet of 50# braid laying around on the shore. I pulled a 30+ foot piece of 30# mono out of a hole a couple weeks ago... I lost my leader and corkie, put another one on, snagged in exact same spot, and then pulled out my previous rig, and someone else's rig complete with weights and stuff. Is it really that hard to pull yrouself out of a snag correctly? These people are using lie that 2-3 times as heavy as the biggest I'm packing unles I break out my salt spinning reel.. :blushing: