Nige Webster has spent lengthy periods talking lures with NSW based lure designer Brian Bochow. Nige recounts an interesting tale that involves a quest for offshore pelagics and flathead using spinnerbaits.
I recently got speaking with some of the crew from a local tackle store in my home town about a contraption they have developed to target mackerel. This contraption includes a set of spinnerbait blades set atop a weighted skirt and gang hooks. A pilchard can be rigged to the gang hooks and the whole rig trolled when targeting mackerel: it works very well. The concept got me thinking about the importance of flash and vibration in many of our sport fishing pursuits. It was about the same time I got chatting with Brian Bochow from BJ Custom Baits. Brian recounted the design philosophy of some of his products and the success some of his pro-staff anglers were having along the NSW coast on a variety of species. He kindly gave me some home-grown product to see if I could emulate some of the success of his angling team. Brian Bochow is a bit of a rough diamond; I don’t think you will find him adorning the cover of a fashion magazine (nor do I believe would he ever want to be put there!) But like so much in life you cant judge a book by its cover and there is a lot more than that which meets the eye when it comes to Brian. He is an extremely proud Aussie, calls a spade-a-spade, is very passionate about his fishing and has a love for bush poetry. And if you think that is a unique combination, we haven’t started talking about his spinnerbaits yet! The BJ Custom baits products include a bunch of spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and jigheads that are original in design: many combine the attributes of flash and fur. My impression when I saw them for the first time is that they are not the most attractive lures I had ever set eyes upon, but in line with this story, there is more to them than first meets the eye. I know that flash and vibration is a big factor when it comes to tempting predatory fish to strike; so too is the natural flowing motion of fur in water. Together, these factors were definitely worth spending some time investigating, as were some of the approaches that Brian had spoken of regards a variety of species including the likes of mackerel and flathead. I took on a challenge of spending a few days casting his lures both offshore and in the estuary to see what action I could muster up.
Benefits of Flash and Fur
Vibration and flash are a huge factor when it comes to encouraging a fish to grab a retrieved hook. A weighted option such as a spinnerbait means you are able to put flash and movement directly in front of fish at all depths of the water column. The snag resistance and aggressive reaction to a spinnerbait mean they are successful the world around. It has been interesting to see anglers experimenting with the application of spinnerbaits in environments not often associated with such a lure type. A good example is the exploits of estuary and offshore anglers tempting a variety of species with the benefits of flash and vibration. I spent a little time casting and retrieving spinnerbaits in these environments myself and then spoke at length with other anglers doing likewise. The results suggest that spinnerbaits fished in saltwater environments will definitely promote interest from local predators. As with producing success when using spinnerbaits in the fresh, there are specific retrieves that promote increased levels of success on saltwater species. Its worth investing some time detailing some of these retrieves here.
Trolling
Spinnerbaits are not often perceived to be a standard choice when it comes to a trolled lure. However, there are several anglers having a lot of success when trolling these lures.
Cairns and Townsville anglers have had great success on winter mackerel when trolling the BJ custom Baits Reef Raiders. It is not a new concept that mackerel just love attacking a flashing lure. It is this understanding that pushed Brian to develop his Reef Raiders. There are few spinnerbaits on the market built large and tough enough to handle the stress of a mackerel bite: the Reef Raider well and truly copes with a savage battering. These lures come equipped with large blades and heavy weights. This makes them ideal for putting into a spread to liven things up. Anglers using this approach have sometimes found that although they haven’t had many bites on the spinnerbait, the surrounding hardbody lures have extra attention from fish coming into the spread after investigating the noise and flash of the spinnerbait. Remove the Reef Raider and the bites gradually taper away. A great approach is to put a more lightly weighted Reef Raider into a trolled spread so that it sits tight below the motor wash. Then use a more heavily weighted spinnerbait, fished further behind the boat to tempt fish feeding more deeply. A popular tactic also includes kicking the boat into neutral during a trolling run and letting the spinnerbaits flutter down to deeper waters before kicking the motor back into gear and pulling the lures back towards surface: this is often a catalyst for a mackerel strike.
Trolling spinnerbaits is not just a handy technique to use offshore. Estuary anglers are adopting slow trolling speeds and using a mixed approach whereby they tow spinnerbaits through shallower water and then randomly drop them towards bottom and jig them by using the momentum of the boat. This retrieve is slightly similar to that employed when barra anglers troll hardbody lures with a jigged motion; the goal when targeting flathead is to attract them with the prop disturbance and flash of the lure before dropping the spinnerbait down to them and letting them have a crack at it.
Jigging
Slow hopping or jigging of a spinnerbait is a popular way to tease flathead in the estuary. NSW anglers have reported some impressively large flathead when bouncing these flashy lures through prime lizard country. This retrieve is ideal when focussing efforts around ledges and sections of deeper water. The key is to cast across current and let the lure sink to bottom so it can be retrieved through ambush territory. This retrieve is all about rod work so it pays to use a blank with good lower end strength to enable you to easily lift your spinnerbait from the bottom. Combining your approach with the benefits of braided lines will help you no end. Braided lines make it easy to establish when the lure has hit bottom as there will be a noticeable slackening of the line. Once the lure has hit the bottom, drop the rod tip, retrieve slack line and then lift the rod tip towards a vertical position. Having lifted the lure from bottom, keep the rod tip high, retrieve any slack line and then let the lure flutter back to bottom. It is at this point that many flathead will belt your spinnerbait. Repeat this process throughout key fish holding areas. The last stages of a run-out tide are a great time to be working this retrieve.
Slow Rolling
Many anglers are familiar with the practice of slowly rolling a spinnerbait. This retrieve works very well in the estuary where you want to fish a section of similar depth water and keep the lure within striking range of fish holding near bottom. Anglers using Brian’s smaller spinnerbaits such as the V-spins have been catching plenty of estuary species using this retrieve across much of the NSW coast of late. This approach works well when you wish to cover a lot of water; an ideal place to use the tactic is when targeting shallow to medium depth channels. Cast the lure across the current and let it sink to bottom. Once the lure is on the bottom, drop the rod tip to a horizontal position and then slowly and consistently retrieve the lure so that it remains as close to bottom as possible. If you are able to hit the bottom sporadically, the act of kicking some sand or mud up often does wonders towards getting bites. A good strategy is to retrieve the lure for 5 to 10 m at a time before pausing and letting the lure sink back to bottom. Fish that have followed the course of the lure may often be tempted to striking at it while it sinks to the bottom.
Burning
Spinnerbaits can be retrieved in a fast fashion when fishing in offshore waters or shallow estuary flats. This process referred to as ‘burning’ the lure often provokes strikes from fish that have zoned in on a spinnerbait. The weight of the lure will dictate how quickly you can retrieve it. In the event that a lure ‘blows out’ of the top of the water, it means that you are retrieving too fast. The key in perfecting this retrieve is to cast across the area holding fish, drop the rod tip towards a horizontal position and then retrieve the lure as fast as possible. This approach often produces fish on those days when nothing else is working!
A Flashy Tackle Box
Spinnerbaits have long been associated with the freshwater environment. The fact that several anglers out there are producing some quality saltwater fish on them shows us that the combination of flash and vibration is a strike catalyst wherever you choose to fish. If you are hitting your saltwater spots in the near future, don’t be shy about throwing a few spinnerbaits into the tacklebox, the addition of flash and fur to your saltwater exploits makes a whole lot of sense!
Nige Webster is northern field editor of Sport Fishing and field editor for Freshwater Fishing magazines. Based at Noosa he fishes the entire east coast in fresh and salt water – offshore – bream – barra – trout.
