Wires, Blades and Skirts, Oh My By Sean Ostruszka

Fish a Spinnerbait Like Jeremy Lawyer

Jeremy Lawye ® r

B & S W K L I A I R R D E T E S S S ,

dishes on the

nuances of spinnerbaits

Fall 2019

page 24

M

ost anglers are fanatical about something

– crankbaits, hooks, line weight, number of

strands in a jig skirt – something. For FLW Tour pro Jeremy Lawyer, that something is spinnerbaits.

Maybe it’s because it’s the first lure his uncle tied on for

him when he was first getting into fishing. Maybe it’s also

because he grew up in spinnerbait Mecca – aka the Ozark

region of Missouri and Oklahoma. Maybe (or more likely,

probably) it’s both.

Regardless, when it comes to spinnerbaits, Lawyer is

as fanatical as it comes. From wire weight to blade sizes to

head weights to eyes to vibration strength, the Sarcoxie, Mo.

pro tweaks and analyzes every aspect of his blades.

Why?

“Because I have so much confidence in them,” Lawyer

said. “From the shad spawn until winter, they can always be

a player, especially here in the Ozarks.”

So, we picked Lawyer’s brain on what things he truly

looks for in a good spinnerbait, starting with the three

biggest keys.

WIRE

For many guys, the wire is everything, and for good reason. The stiffer/heavier the wire, the less vibration a spinnerbait will put off. For this reason, most anglers try to find the lightest wire to get the most vibration.

But, should they?

“No,” Lawyer said. “There’s no one wire that’s better, because it all depends on the situation.”

As Lawyer explains it, anglers tend to think nothing of having silent, one-knocker and rattling versions of the same crankbait to fit various situations; but they tend to pigeonhole spinnerbaits as a one-size-fits-all deal.

Unfortunately, that’s not the case.

“If I’m throwing spinnerbaits, I’ll always start with three different brands on my deck with three different wire gauges,” Lawyer said. “I may start with a lighter one to get the most vibration, but maybe the water has cleared up and they don’t want all that thump. Then a stiffer wire with less vibration may work better.”

BLADES

Blades are easy, right? Painted Colorado blades for dingy water; nickel, willow blades for clear water. I mean, you’ll catch plenty of fish following that mantra, but it goes deeper than that.

“I carry all different brands of blades,” Lawyer said. “I’d say 80 percent of my blades are Hildebrandt, but I also carry cheaper blades and factory blades, too. The Hildebrandt blades actually have such good vibration, they don’t burn as well as cheaper blades.”

That’s right, the metal quality (and even whether or not the blade is painted) effects how much vibration a spinnerbait will put off in conjunction with the wire strength.

HEAD WEIGHT

Does head shape make a difference? Sure.

But more so, it’s the head’s weight that determines how well it will perform in various situations.

“I’d rather fish a funky head shape and the right weight, because the weight is everything,” Lawyer said. “You need the right weight to keep the lure in the strike zone. It can be the perfect wire-blade combo; but if you have the wrong weight, it’s useless because you can’t keep it in the strike zone.”