Ohio Valley Outdoors Magazine

Spinner Rigs for Walleye

By Chris DePaola

Have you ever had one of those fishing trips you dream about? Last month I experienced such an excursion on Lake Erie. This trip was planned for several weeks and according to fishing reports conditions couldn’t have been better. I was fishing with Mike Nickel and Paul Thayer, multi species anglers who specialize in big walleye. That day Mike’s spinner rigs accounted for every walleye caught. Sometimes anglers make fishing more complicated than it needs to be. This article will explain how to build your own walleye spinner rigs.

Mike likes to tie his spinner rig with 6’ of 17# test fluorocarbon line by first attaching the rear hook with a palomar knot. Initially he tied this rig with a #2 straight eye baitholder hook. Recently he switched to a #4 red treble
hook. His hooking and landing percentages have increased since changing to the red treble hook. For the front hook use the #2 baitholder with the turned eye. This is attached about 3-1/4” from eye to eye ahead of the treble hook using a snell knot. The small snell knot keeps the line straight, which keeps the hook point properly aligned for maximum penetration.

Next he threads on a red bead or two followed by whatever colors suit his taste that day. In his arsenal there are several in gold, silver, white, a mixture of red, green, and chartreuse. On that particular day gold was hard to beat. He has a red bead closest to the front hook of the rig. Mike said that predators associate the color red with blood and vulnerability. The length of the beads should total about 1-1/4 to 1-1/2” in length. The beads work as an attractor and keep the nightcrawler from interfering with the spinner blade. The beads are followed by a plastic quick change clevis and then the #7 barrel swivel is attached with a Palomar knot. When finished, the rig should be about 5’ in length.

Next he ties a stinger treble hook and a small snap so he can quickly change rigs. Using the same 17# fluorocarbon, cut a small section about 10” long. Tie a #6 bronze treble hook to the line using a palomar knot. Mike likes to use a bronze colored hook instead of red for the stinger. He believes it blends in with the nightcrawler and draws the fish’s attention to the red hooks. Tie a #1 duo-lock snap to the stinger line using the palomar knot again so the line portion of the rig totals about 3”.

You will have to make the remaining decisions when you hit the water. Such as how fast to troll? How much weight to add to the rig? What color blade? How much line behind the planer board? All of these will vary from day to day and even from hour to hour. You’ll need to experiment to find out what the walleyes want on any given day. I hope this helps put a few more walleye in your boat this year.