The depth of water where you’re bass fishing often determines how you should work a spinner bait. The spinner bait is one of the most versatile lures in all the world of bassing. This bait can be fished in many different depths of water with numerous retrieves under a multitude of weather and water conditions.
So, the first thing I want to know before I cast out a spinner bait is how deep the water is. If I’m fishing in one foot of water on a flat, a long point or down the bank, I want to wake that spinner bait to leave a trail on the surface of the water that bass can key into, follow that bait and then attack it. If that tactic doesn’t produce a strike, I may lower my rod tip and reel the spinner bait just under the surface, so it doesn’t leave a wake on the water. You can’t slow-roll a spinner bait in that shallow water like you can in deeper water. Here are some other spinner bait tactics.
Follow the Bottom:
If you’re fishing a sloping bank or a point that runs from shallow to deep water, you may want to reel that bait and wake it at first. Then follow the contour of the bottom out to deep water, while keeping the spinner bait a foot to 1/2-foot off the bottom. If you’re fishing in 6-8 feet of water, you may want to run that spinner bait in mid-water, or you may want to try waking it on the surface, retrieving it in mid-water and then slow-rolling it over the bottom. Whatever depth you get a bite in indicates the depth of water where you should fish the spinner bait, at least for the next hour or so.
Know the Speed of the Spinner Bait:
The speed with which you retrieve a spinner bait also can impact how many bites you get. I believe the spinner bait for me is more of a reaction bait. The bass sees it moving through the water, doesn’t know exactly what that spinner bait is, but decides to eat it anyway.
Another time the speed of the spinner bait is important is when you want the spinner bait to free-fall, so that it helicopters down to the bottom. You may use this technique at the end of a log, at the side of a brushtop or at the end of a pier. You want to fish the spinner bait in a variety of places and depths and let the bass tell you how they want to see the spinner bait and in what depth of water they’re holding where they’ll take the bait.
Realize the Spinner Bait Helps You Learn Information about the Bass:
The spinner bait is one of the most effective tools the angler has to gain information on where bass are holding, what depth of water they’re concentrating in, what type of cover they prefer, and what kind of retrieve the bass want. The spinner bait is one of the quickest ways to determine a pattern to locate bass. What you learn from the spinner bait, you should be able to duplicate that pattern in that same depth of water, using that same type of retrieve to catch more bass in other sections of the lake.
Use a Slow-Rolling Tactic:
I’m often asked when I slow-roll a spinner bait. My experience has taught me that as the weather becomes colder, and the bass are less active, the fish generally prefer a slow-moving spinner bait reeled closer to the bottom than the bass do at other times of the year. Or, if you’re fishing very deep water in the hot summer or the cold winter, if you try to reel that spinner bait fast, it will move up and away from the bass that are holding near the bottom at those times. But by being able to feel the thump of the spinner bait’s blades as it moves slowly across the bottom, you can catch bass in those extreme kinds of weather – both hot and cold.
Consider These Two Factors When Fishing Spinner Baits:
The speed of the current and the weight of the spinner bait are two other factors to consider when fishing the spinner bait. I use a lightweight spinner bait when I’m fishing in water 6-foot deep or less. In shallow water, I prefer to fish a 3/8-ounce spinner bait. In deeper water, I like the 1/2-ounce spinner bait, because I want that spinner bait to follow the contour of the bottom from the shallow water all the way out to the deep water.
Catch Suspended Bass on a Spinner Bait:
If you see that the bass are suspended in a water column deeper than 6-8 feet, you may want to use a 1/2-ounce spinner bait or even a 3/4-ounce spinner bait. If you’re fishing in water that’s 30- foot deep or more, you may want to fish a 1-ounce to possibly a 2-ounce spinner bait. So, always remember the size of a spinner bait to fish in many depths of water, using different kinds of retrieves.
