Blade weight

[VersatileFuturian]

I'm starting to make bass size inline spinner baits and was wonder about heavy weight colorado blades vs regular colorado blades vs deep cup colorado. I know guys use the heavy weight colorado on safety pin style spinner baits to get more vibration. Would you get that same vibration on an online? Which blade would start spinning the fastest? 

[JD_mudbug]

I personally don’t like the heavy .040 blades on inline spinners unless the lure is a big musky bucktail type lure (size 7 and up blades). The .040 blades are harder to get spinning at the start of a retrieve. The heavy blade is much easier to get spinning on a spinnerbait than an inline spinner. You need the extra thickness of a .040 blade for musky bucktails  because they are far more likely to bend a .025 blade.  The .025 blades are fine for bass inlines and easier to start on the retrieve.

An inline will not get the same vibration as a spinnerbait. On a spinnerbait, a blade is at the end of the wire with body (weight) far away at the opposite end, so the whole wire can vibrate and flex. A single Colorado on a spinnerbait will vibrate more than on an inline spinner.

I think the flatter type Colorado vibrates more than the deep cup. Hildebrandt makes a flat Colorado with just a slight cup that vibrates the most I have felt from a Colorado blade. Both the flatter and deep Colorado can be difficult to get spinning in the smaller sizes 0-3. The small ones tend to just lie against the shaft like a saucer sled. They get easier to start the bigger they get.

With an inline, my top concern is making sure the blade spin easily. It is annoying to have to make a pump or 2 each cast to get the blade spinning. On my bass spinners and smaller trout spinners, blades sizes 0-6, I have had much better luck with French (Mepps style), swing (Roostertail style), and Indiana blades. These 3 types spin easy and fast and give off a great mix of flash and vibration. I think I only have one bass sized Colorado inline (size 5) left in my rotation. The French blade is my favorite for inlines.

Bassdozer's article on blades may be of some use. It mostly pertains to blade use in regards to spinnerbaits, but the general info applies to inlines as well.

http://www.bassdozer.com/articles/spinnerbait-blades.shtml

 

[VersatileFuturian]

Thank you. I have created my own version of a snagless sally type body. Just trying to figure out what blade to put on mine. I want thump and it to start spinning immediately. Mainly going to use a 1/2oz. I'm wanting to use a #5 blade instead of the #4.5 hildebrandt uses. Trying to figure out the best option. Hildebrandt Colorado, Mag Willow/Olympic, Indiana, French, or Royal (seem to be unavailable).

[JD_mudbug]

It's a trade off between how easy it is the to get it to spin right away and thump. The quickest to start will be the French, then Indiana, olympic, then Hildebrant, last would be Royal. I seemed to have difficulty getting the royal to spin on an inline (great on a spinnerbait though). Unfortunately, the least thump follows the same order.

If I had to pick just one for overall fishability, I would still take the French. If you cast right next to a target, the French will start immediately. Other blades may take up to a foot or two to get spinning and be out of the strike zone. If you throw the spinner into weeds, the French will restart quicker if it hits a weed. Even though a French doesn't thump as hard as a Hildebrandt, the French spins faster which throws off alot of water especially in a 5 or 6. I guess it's more like very fast mini thumps as opposed to the slower whomp-whomp thump of a Hildebrandt.

Now, if I had to pick 2, I would take a french spinner and a Hildebrant. The size 5 colorado spinner I keep using is a copper 5 Hildebrant blade with maybe 1/8-1/4 weight on the shaft (.040"). I don't know the body weight. The body came from a spinner I found in a tree. Attached to the shaft by split ring is a 5/0 - 1/4 oz swimbait hook with corkscrew. Painted the keel weight metallic red with nail polish. I usually run a thinner style trailer on it like a Yum pulse paddletail, a 5" grub, or a ribbon tail worm with most of the head section cut off. I like the thinner type baits on this setup for the best chance of hooking-up. The weight on the hook acts as keel and keeps line twist down.

Overall for inlines, I throw french spinners from sz 0-6, 0-3 for trout and 4-6 for bass. I just have had more luck with French blades. The 4-6 will also catch northern pike. I use swing blades from sz 1-4 usually for trout (especially when trolling) but frequently catch smallies on sizes 3&4. I have a couple of Indianas in sz 6 & 7 which are really more like a 4 & 5 because Indiana blades run small for their number. A 7 Indiana is about the size of a 5 Colorado. Indiana blades are sort of splitting the difference between French and Colorado. Plus the one Colorado 5.

If I want to max out vibration for night fishing or muddy water, I just go with a single Colorado blade spinnerbait. The sz 5 Hildebrandt blade as the sole blade on a 1/2 oz spinnerbait gives of a ton of vibration.

[VersatileFuturian]

Thank you. This is awesome information

[mark poulson]

9 hours ago, JD_mudbug said:

It's a trade off between how easy it is the to get it to spin right away and thump. The quickest to start will be the French, then Indiana, olympic, then Hildebrant, last would be Royal. I seemed to have difficulty getting the royal to spin on an inline (great on a spinnerbait though). Unfortunately, the least thump follows the same order.

If I had to pick just one for overall fishability, I would still take the French. If you cast right next to a target, the French will start immediately. Other blades may take up to a foot or two to get spinning and be out of the strike zone. If you throw the spinner into weeds, the French will restart quicker if it hits a weed. Even though a French doesn't thump as hard as a Hildebrandt, the French spins faster which throws off alot of water especially in a 5 or 6. I guess it's more like very fast mini thumps as opposed to the slower whomp-whomp thump of a Hildebrandt.

Now, if I had to pick 2, I would take a french spinner and a Hildebrant. The size 5 colorado spinner I keep using is a copper 5 Hildebrant blade with maybe 1/8-1/4 weight on the shaft (.040"). I don't know the body weight. The body came from a spinner I found in a tree. Attached to the shaft by split ring is a 5/0 - 1/4 oz swimbait hook with corkscrew. Painted the keel weight metallic red with nail polish. I usually run a thinner style trailer on it like a Yum pulse paddletail, a 5" grub, or a ribbon tail worm with most of the head section cut off. I like the thinner type baits on this setup for the best chance of hooking-up. The weight on the hook acts as keel and keeps line twist down.

Overall for inlines, I throw french spinners from sz 0-6, 0-3 for trout and 4-6 for bass. I just have had more luck with French blades. The 4-6 will also catch northern pike. I use swing blades from sz 1-4 usually for trout (especially when trolling) but frequently catch smallies on sizes 3&4. I have a couple of Indianas in sz 6 & 7 which are really more like a 4 & 5 because Indiana blades run small for their number. A 7 Indiana is about the size of a 5 Colorado. Indiana blades are sort of splitting the difference between French and Colorado. Plus the one Colorado 5.

If I want to max out vibration for night fishing or muddy water, I just go with a single Colorado blade spinnerbait. The sz 5 Hildebrandt blade as the sole blade on a 1/2 oz spinnerbait gives of a ton of vibration.

Would a French blade on a bass spinnerbait's clevis catch weeds?

[JD_mudbug]

I have a couple of spinnerbaits with double french blades. I would rate the blades as a bit less likely to catch weeds than an Indiana. They doesn't slip through weeds like willows, but they are not as bad as a Colorado blades. A little wiggle of the rod tip coming through the grass usually allows it to come through without getting clogged up.

On a spinnerbait, the French blades spin with a tighter axis than they do on an inline. That could be do to their being 2 of them in series. The smaller front french blade blocking water from the back blade.

The head is a 3/4 oz hidden weight LPO head.

Edited January 10, 2021 by JD_mudbug
grammar

[mark poulson]

On 1/10/2021 at 10:19 AM, JD_mudbug said:

I have a couple of spinnerbaits with double french blades. I would rate the blades as a bit less likely to catch weeds than an Indiana. They doesn't slip through weeds like willows, but they are not as bad as a Colorado blades. A little wiggle of the rod tip coming through the grass usually allows it to come through without getting clogged up.

On a spinnerbait, the French blades spin with a tighter axis than they do on an inline. That could be do to their being 2 of them in series. The smaller front french blade blocking water from the back blade.

The head is a 3/4 oz hidden weight LPO head.

Thanks.