Give Them a Whirl! Colorado blades have deep cups and take some effort to spin, but the vibe they give off is ideal on many walleye spinners and crawler harnesses. It’s just one of many options for lure making this time of year, and fishing next openwater season. Simonson Photo.
By Nick Simonson
In the wintertime, blades sit aligned on a roll of spinners like ornaments on a Christmas tree. The beauty in their color, shimmer and flash, along with the slight jingle they make as they get packaged for the stockings at their final holiday destination are all part and parcel with the potential energy they espouse during the end-of-year season. In the summer however, those blades are bundles of kinetic energy, and their spin, vibration and flash draw in walleyes and other species for a look, and hopefully, a bite. There’s a lot that goes into tying spinners and fishing them, and knowing the basics of each kind of blade, and the things that make them spin around, goes a long way with any winter project to restock a tackle box or a spinner roll, and a successful summer outing.
The Big Three
Now well established among bait companies and individuals assembling their own offerings, three blade styles comprise the primary selection open to anglers. They are the deep and wide Colorado blade, the slimmer Indiana blade, and the flashy and fluttery willow blade. Conjuring images of the vast and wide mountains of its namesake, the Colorado blade is a deeper-cupped pressing that takes a bit more force to get turning, but when it does, it generates a strong vibration that is easy for fish to pick up. Often employed on those double-bladed in-lines for muskies to catch their attention, smaller versions of the blade work well on walleye spinners as well. In other instances, particularly in the practice of slow rolling a spinner bait, a single Colorado blade can be utilized on bass spinnerbaits as well to kick out some vibration, while not overdoing things with additional blades on the bait.
The Indiana blade is a slightly elongated cousin of the Colorado blade and isn’t nearly as deep in its cupping. It requires less force to turn as a result and makes for an ideal attractor on single blade lures such as in-line spinners for trout and moderately-sized bucktails offerings for smallmouth bass, pike and muskies. While it can be utilized on walleye spinners, it’s an uncommon choice but it remains available when the fish are fussy and require something with a little more subtlety.
Finally, in the mix of the main three blades is the willow blade. Aptly named for its shape matching the long and slender leaves on a willow tree, this blade gives off a subtle flickering action and in silver and gold generates a minnow-like flash. While seen once in a while in other applications, the willow blade features most prominently on bass spinnerbaits as a main blade as well as secondary blades along the lure’s metal arm. Combined in groups of two, three, or four, willow blades on such an offering create the appearance of a school of growing summer minnows and trigger a reaction strike from both largemouth and smallmouth bass on the feed at that time of year.
Other Offerings
The market has long since expanded following the establishment of Colorado, Indiana and willow blades as primary options for anglers, and a number of blades made from various materials in a variety of shapes are now available to anglers looking to tweak their presentations. From smile blades and hatchet blades to discs and wing-shaped models, each new variety has its own quirks and attributes. Plastic blades often turn with less force, while heavier-stamped metal blades require extra speed to spin. Checking the thickness of the material or the metal used will also help determine the nature of the blade and how it could be utilized. Some modern blades simply vibrate while others make the full rotation around the line or the spinner shaft, and others require no clevis at all, and are just threaded onto the lure. Experimenting with each at this time of year will give anglers a good bearing on what works during the active stretch of the season, and an idea as to what bladed lures to purchase or put together next winter.
Get Connected
For those assembling their own baits, or looking to do a little tinkering, a selection of clevises helps connect blades of all sizes to the final product. Three main clevises are available to anglers with the usual caveat that variations on classic models and slightly better mousetraps do exist. However, the three primary clevises are stirrup, folded and quick change. Stirrup clevises are sturdier and often employed on those bigger baits for pike, muskies and bass. They have solid metal construction and often a squared base designed to take more abuse and continue to keep blades spinning, even after seasons of wear, they do require a bit more force to get spinning, but not noticeably so. Folded clevises are a bit more delicate and are designed to be threaded onto monofilament for crawler harnesses and other walleye spinner rigs. Finally, quick change clevises are plastic models which can be threaded onto a monofilament line on walleye rigs but allow anglers to snap a new blade in as desired, or when color is a question for a certain water or weather conditions.
Having access to a variety of blades allows for some fun lure-making experiences in the winter, whether they’re gifts for others at Christmas time or in making a stash for yourself as the winter wears on toward spring. Try a variety of blades in different sizes and colors for different lure options across a multitude of species, and don’t forget the accessory options available to get the best spin out of each offering…in our outdoors.