Reddit mentions: The best fishing spinners & spinnerbaits

It's a broad and general question, so you are likely to get similarly broad advice.

I am assuming you are talking about spin-fishing rather than fly fishing. I'd say:

Get a spinning (not casting) rod, and a spinning (not 'baitcasting') reel. Match your rod to your fish, your reel to your rod, and your line to your reel. The easiest thing to do is buy a combo LIKE THIS because the components are matched already.

If you want to roll-your-own setup:

ROD The rod will say what "weight" it is: ultra-light, Light, ..., heavy). Trout are usually light or ultra-light depending on the size they grow where you are fishing. Unless you know the trout are > 2 lbs. in weight, go with "Light"

REEL The reel should match the rod, look for a 1000 series for Light, or an ultralite for UL. More important though, the spool of the reel will list the how much of which line it can hold in terms of pounds of test. and length. e.g. My ultra-light reel will hold 100 yards of 4 lb. line (still on Imperial measurements here in US). For a Light rod, look for a reel that shows 6 - 8 lb test. About 150 yards of 6 lb is a good target.

LINE Get what is listed on the reel. Monofilament is fine, don't worry about flourocarbon, coated or braided lines.

TIPPET Do get some flourocarbon "tippet" and the smallest barrel swivels you can find. Trout have excellent eyesight, and the tippet is much harder for them to see because it is smaller and flourocarbon is invisible in water. This makes your terminal tackle less 'spooky.' 5x tippet is a good match for 6 lb test. 6x for ultralight. Do this even if you bought the combo above.

RIGGING Generally you will put your main line on the reel's spool and out to a swivel, then a few feet of the lighter, more expensive tippet to your terminal tackle. e.g. My ultralight setup is 4 lb. mono main line to a size 7 swivel and 7x flouro tippet to the terminal tackle. You probably want 6 lb to 5x, and 8 lb. to 5x is totally fine if you buy a combo with 8 lb.

TERMINAL TACKLE For reservoirs you want to use floating bait, tubes/jigs, and lures (inline spinners and/or spoons) from shore. From a boat, same, but more emphasis on spoons. Lures are a blast, but will cost you a LOT of money to acquire a good variety of them. I recommend bait and tubes/jigs if you are just starting out.

Floating Bait If you are shore-fishing, this is going to be your friend. Get some floating bait (real worms, dough, nuggets, etc.) and set up a Carolina Rig. Real worms are the best bait IMO, but they do not float naturally. You have to put air in them with a hypo. If you are just starting out, the artificial baits are fine. Rig it up, throw it in, take the slack out of the line and wait for the lunkers to come get some.

Tubes & Jigs These take more skill, but can produce a lot of fish. If you are fishing snaggy, moving water like rivers I recommend these as the top way to fish (lures are expensive and easy to lose in rivers.) Get a Trout Magnet or Crappie Magnet kit and you have everything you need.

Lures Inline spinners like Panther Martins (esp. the black/yellow dot & yellow/red dot) and Mepps Algias crush Sierra trout, not sure what their Eton comrades prefer. Keep the weight between 1/16 oz. and 1/8 oz. unless the trout are big (match the lure weights that are often listed on your rod) Good spoons here include the Acme Kastmaster, Thomas Bouyant and Super Duper. The rule here that the heavier the lure, the better it casts and the more potentially off-putting it is to a smallish fish like a trout.

Lure Selection The specifics of lure size, color and action can have a big impact on whether you get bites. What works one day may not work the next. This is how you can end up buying a LOT of lures. In general, you want to use light/bright colored lures in clear water and/or bright days and dark lures in turbid water or dimly lit days. THIS THREAD as well as THIS OTHER THREAD has some more detailed info on lure colors, sizes and brands I recommend.

You may also want to check out Fly and Bubble fishing which lets you use a spin rod to cast flies. It's a hoot and pretty effective: Get some adjustable spin floats, some flies and start fly and bubble fishing. Elk Hair Caddis sizes 12 - 18 are good, as are nymphs, and Mayfly imitations. Talk to local fly fishermen to see which bugs are good for your reservoir.

GETTING THE STUFF THAT WORKS Talk to the fishing outfitters near where you fish. They will tell you how the bite is, what the fish like, and where to do your fishing. Invaluable advice to prevent buying the entire world to cover all the bases.

HOW TO FISH This is super situational, but in general trout want to ingest more energy than they expend, i.e. they don't want to die. They like cold water near sources of food (bugs) and cover (rocks, brush, etc.). If you are fishing moving water, take the time to learn to READ THE WATER. Trout use moving water as a conveyor belt that brings them food. In reservoirs, you want to look for spots that are shallow enough to support plants and bugs, with deep water and/or good structure/cover nearby. Trout here will generally be cruising slowly or hanging in the water. Ideally, you will put your bait or lure near enough to entice without spooking them. If the trout are jumping or rising through the surface, they are eating insects from the surface film (emergers or fallen fliers), this would be a great time for the fly and bubble technique mentioned previously.

Generally THERE ARE TONS OF VIDEOS that cover whatever specific scenario you are going to pursue.

The most important technique is getting good at SETTING THE HOOK. It's hard to catch fish if you are bad at this.

FISH HANDLING

Trout are covered in protective slime:

• Wet your hand before touching them to help preserve it
  
• Use a rubber mesh net if you are netting them
  
• NEVER put them on the ground.
  
  Mash the barbs on your hooks if you are doing catch and release.
  
  Hemostats/forceps are the easiest way to remove hooks from fish
  
  Turning the fish upside-down will make them less frantic in their flopping.
  +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
  
  I hope that helps, have fun!

The most basic all around set up I would recommend for fishing in a lake would be to go buy some crankbaits, jerkbaits, a couple topwater lures (I recommend jitterbugs, and poppers), and some softplastic worms and worm hooks (they have the little angled shaft by the eye of the hook). Get some 12lb monofilament fishing line (it's good for mostly everything you'll catch in a lake).
Also, get some hooks and splitshot sinkers.

In terms of color for the baits, try to mimic the types of baitfish that are in the lake you're fishing at. Shad are pretty common in lakes near me, so 2/3 of my tackle box are filled with shad colored crankbaits and jerkbaits. Bluegill colored bait is always good because most lakes are full of bluegill.

That should help you target almost anything you could want to catch in a lake until you start getting more experience. Once you get more experience you can start tweaking things and buying more specialized stuff. But with the stuff I told you to buy, you really just have to locate the fish and you should be able to catch them.

EDIT:

Here's a pretty good assortment of hardbait to get you started. I'm not sure how wonderful the quality is, but they should catch fish for you and give you a foundation to build on until you get some more experience.

these and these are pretty decent rubber lures that will work for a wide variety of fish. Buy these hooks for them and these weights to help get your rubber lures to the bottom of the lake.

A package of bait hooks like these will help you catch stuff like catfish and bluegill using live bait. [Bobbers] (http://www.amazon.com/Eagle-Claw-Floats-Assortment-1-Inch/dp/B0009V5QEA/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1462166419&sr=1-1&keywords=Bobber) are pretty good for catching bluegill as well. Catfish suck food off of the bottom of the lake at night, so skip on the bobber if you're fishing for those and I wouldn't waste time fishing for them in the day time.

And some basic 12 pound fishing line. Stick to the clear stuff.

All that gear should help you get started. There shouldn't be a fish in a lake that you can't catch using that stuff.

I would go for a 2 piece or 4 piece light or ultralight action spinning rod. Amazon is full of suggestions with lots of reviews but for a low cost, relatively lightweight and tough rod an ugly stick is hard to beat. Here is a 6' light action rod which would be a great choice imo. https://www.amazon.com/Ugly-Stik-GX2-Spinning-Rod/dp/B00F0KM43G/ref=sr_1_19_sspa?keywords=shimano%2Bpack%2Brod&qid=1565000672&s=gateway&sr=8-19-spons&th=1 It is a bit more to pack than a 4 piece rod but strapped to the side of your pack should not be too obtrusive. As far as a reel again staying with the bang for the buck for the price I have had great luck with Pflueger President reels like this one. https://www.amazon.com/Pflueger-PRESSP30X-President-Spinning-Fishing/dp/B074WHM4PV/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=2PMKS1QL76NWO&keywords=pflueger%2Bpresident%2Bspinning%2Breel&qid=1565001151&s=gateway&sprefix=pflueder%2Caps%2C153&sr=8-1-spons&th=1 I would spool it up with 4lb test.

Be sure to check the regs of where you are going bait may not be allowed but even if it is I would stick with lures. I would not want to fool with backpacking live bait, nothing stinks as bad as dead worms. LOL

Panther Martin, Roostertail and Joe's flies spinners are my go-to baits for trout. Small minnow baits like rapalas can be super effective as well. I am not going to list links for all but these but panther martin spinners are pretty deadly lures in my experience. https://www.amazon.com/Panther-Martin-UV6-Violet-Assortment/dp/B00AU5WNQO/ref=sr_1_4?crid=3A07BIDNZTDYW&keywords=panther+martin+trout+spinners&qid=1565001635&s=gateway&sprefix=panther+%2Caps%2C150&sr=8-4

Last but not least. Someone else suggested a Tenkara outfit and I have to agree with him. It is a very simple and lightweight system that lends itself well to backpacking. The learning curve is not as steep as you may think and really the only downside is casting range but on remote streams and lakes a lot of the time you don't need to cast as far. Here are a couple of blog posts I wrote about what I use backpacking. I am a fly fisherman but maybe it will give you some ideas.

Backpack fly fishing gear

Tenkara

Disclaimer: I'm not the best trout fisherman in Colorado. Here are a few techniques and lures/bait that I like to go to.

For bait, your safe bet would be a bright color powerbait; I have good luck with the yellow, or the rainbow. Here's a good write up for rigging bait.

When I'm tossing lures, I'll throw on a smaller snap-swivel. It makes changing lures much faster, and allows the lure to keep the action it was designed for. Panther Martins in white, black and rainbow. Kastmaster in silver, gold, and silver/blue. Rooster Tails also work pretty well.

If they are hitting top water, and assuming you don't have a fly rod, a bubble and fly is a fun way to catch trout. This guy has a great video on the tackle and technique. Which fliesshould work best at which time of year.

Hope that helps get you started.

thanks for your input. i've added the line you recommended and removed the sebile swimbait as well as the truscend.

one setup will be for bass and one for pike. i've upgraded the pike setup to support up to 1oz lures as it's getting too pricey with everything adding up to go any bigger. does this look ok for that?

Abu Garcia 1430485 Veritas Casting 1Piece Rod, 6'10" Length, 12-20 lb Line Rate 1/4-1 oz Lure Rate, Medium/Heavy Power

Abu Garcia Pmax3-c

Also I was looking at the swimbait you recommended and I see they're going to be heavier than what I'll be able to handle. Any other recommendations 1oz or under? Are these good?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003CTU2Y0/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003CTO2L4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_27?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

These are what I have for lures picked out so far. Any input greatly appreciated

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001445MZE/ref=ox_sc_act_title_10?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001J9SU30/ref=ox_sc_act_title_11?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003FKJTP4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_15?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003CURA7Q/ref=ox_sc_act_title_21?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GU6MRF8/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HJ4DN4O/ref=ox_sc_act_title_8?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1


This would be for bass I guess? Would like to get some smaller swimbait for bass as well, something that would work for pike and bass could be nice I suppose.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005OSZ0TY/ref=ox_sc_act_title_12?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1


Here is a compiled picture if it helps. https://i.imgur.com/a6PEjID.jpg

I've done some trout fishing but am certainly not a trout expert and don't know anything about PA fishing (I've only trout fished in WI/IA or the rockies). My first step would be to find a good local fishing store (always the #1 fishing resource) and ask what's working or google fishing reports for where you'll be (either like DNR reports or online forums).

On my spinning reel I usually use a 4 lb fluorocarbon leader that's 2-4 feet long, and am either using powerbait trout bait (either yellow/tan or orange) on a small hook or using little spinners (like mepps or panther martin, with black and gold or silver/white patterns being my staples).

I suck at flyfishing but sometimes flies are hard to beat. There are a couple ways to use flies without a full flyfishing setup:

• On a spinning reel, by tying a fly onto a long fluorocarbon or tippet leader. You'll need a clear casting bobber to add weight/help cast.
  
• Using a tenkara rod (you can sometimes find good deals on tenkara kits for less than $100) or a rod like this - tenkara rod are pretty much just long flyfishing poles with no reel (and thus a limited cast distance), but are much less expensive and more easy to use.
  
  Waders are personal preference - you can also usually fish from the bank, or depending on water temp just stand in the water with swim trunks and keens. And you can keep fish on a stringer, in a creel bag, or even just toss it on the bank if you're going to clean it soon.

Yea ice should be out by that time but im still going to be expecting a chillyer trip then past years. Ice was out this time last year and there is still 2+ft of ice near me(northern Wisconsin) if you don't mind sharing abouts you guys heading? One of my personal favorite is the mepps dressed Aglia line up (size 3 or 5) if you dont have any i suggest the basser kit for the size 3 or the piker kit for the size 5. It has a nice variety of colors and the purple tail has works wonders for me ! I've picked off plenty of bass, pike and a fair amount of walleyes with these.

I ended up getting:

• http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030FXDSS/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
• http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ZKNFW0/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
• http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EYW8MK/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
• http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NXC8S0/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i04?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
  I'm heading to the bait shop tomorrow to pickup nightcrawlers, bobbers, and anything else the guy there suggests.
  
  Thanks for all the help!

Check out Amazon (and I'm sure Ebay as well) for deals on lots of lures.

I bought these and they're really nice for the money.

I'm headed out for a two week bike tour through southern Wisconsin and plan on hitting a few creeks, rivers, and ponds along the way. From the DNR site it looks like mostly Brown, Brook, and Rainbow are in these areas.

• Reel and Rod combo - Okuma VS-605-20 - I need the rod to break down as small as possible
  
• Line - Trilene XL 6lbs test - Seems like an obvious choice
  
• Tippet - Rio Flouroflex Plus Tippet 5x - Matches the line test
  
• Swivels - Riptail Rolling Barrel Swivels Size #7 30lbs - Small, light swivels
  
• Panther Martin lures:
  
  • 1/32 Silver/Blue - Holographic Trout
    
  • 1/16 Silver/Blue - Holographic Trout
    
  • 1/16 Yellow Body/Red Dots
    
  • 1/16 Black Body/Yellow Dots
    
• Leatherman Juice S2

I would just look up fishing lures on amazon, they have tons of variety ,usually in sets of around 4, for pretty cheap. They do have some plastics but you can usually get ok and cheap ones from Walmart.

Example: LotFancy 30 PCS Fishing Lures Crankbaits with Treble Hook Topwater Baits, Bass Minnow Popper Walleye Baits, Length From 1.57 to 3.66 Inches https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JB14M7Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_yc3UBbH4DG3HW
Goture Fishing Lure Set Soft and Hard Lure Including Spinner Baits Minnow Frog Popper Spoon Jigs Jointed Swimbaits for Freshwater Saltwater (Pack of 33) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075B63MHX/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fJ3UBb8N4TS7Y

Do you mean like this only sold without the jighead or swimbait attached? Or maybe these?

So, I bought an Audio-Technica LP60 USB and my speakers dont have RCA inputs (I belive thats what it is I need), is there any cable/adaptor I can buy to make my speakers work with my turntable? Or will I have to get new speakers? If so, what ones should I get? (I would quite like to buy very cheap speakers if possible)

I've done well with Little Cleo's:

https://www.amazon.com/acme-C230NNB-Acme-Little-Spoon/dp/B0000AUUX9?th=1

And rooster tails.

https://www.amazon.com/Yakima-Bait-Wordens-Original-Rooster/dp/B071G94RSK/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=rooster+tail&qid=1568659352&s=sporting-goods&sr=1-5

Jon B did a video about a similar one.

https://youtu.be/SQhiGcAR2PA

He also links to the product on Amazon in the video.

Savage Gear 3D Bluegill Line Thru 5" Slow Sink Soft Bait- BSS-125-LG, Light Gill https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DV4J8PY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_KNnLzbYFAJ5KR

This one has way better reviews.


Blue Gill Sun Fish Panfish Talipia for Bass Fishing Lure (Blue Gill) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RC9A65Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_oOnLzbE868XRN

I considered a fishing backpack but they just seem too bulky. For just a few stowaways I think they would be a bit overkill

Edit: Thoughts on this bait?

See if they have these. Got my largest brown on one.

Not really BM related