Spinner question

Hey guys, I'm fairly new to Walley fishing and have been reading a lot of articles lately. A lot of the guys talk about trolling with a spinner behind a bottom bouncer. Are they talking about spinners like Erie Dearies that can be tipped with live bait? Also, are bottom bouncers the rigs with a large lead wieght on the end of a heavy wire?

Thanks for the advice. This is a great message board.

Trout

[Walleye Express]

Trout.
No, they are talking about the spinner/spinners used in conjunction with a crawler harness behind the bottom bouncer. And actually the spinner blades on the harness itself is where the word spinners comes into play. And there are quit a few ways, lengths, weights and sizes of these spinner/harness rigs, that suits certain fishing situations.

And all that will/might vary in response to boat speed, rather your trolling or drifting. And then all this plays into the fish's temperment during that particular time, or on certain bodies of water. And all this usually dictates the size/length of the whole rig, spinners, bead size, bead color, line type, length of line leader, test of line, mono or braide and finally spinner balde size itself. Oh, did I mention that the size, shape and weight of the Bottom bouncer itself plays into this equation also? Sounds pretty easy huh? :-).

You can read a lot of articles and get a general idea of the basics. But until you've seen all this in action on the water, you'll understand what they mean by that (Gray Area). Never quit reading, but open your mind the most, when actually fishing and using these techniques on the water.

Hey Troutbeck, don't let Cap'n Dan scare you. ;-) The info you need is already here, right at your fingertips.

First, the "spinner" is most often a crawler harness, usually a 2-hook snell rig fronted by beads and a spinner blade, that you would troll on a 4-5 foot leader behind the bottom bouncer (the weight with a wire). The bouncer provides the weight and depth control, while the spinners and beads (and maybe even colored hooks) create the attraction for the juicy crawler running behind. Many folks tie their own spinner rigs, but you can buy them premade at most any tackle shop in walleye country.

It's a neat and very productive system, and if you want to conquer walleye fishing, you'll definitely want to add this technique to your bag of tricks. There's been a ton of discussion here on this topic. When you have some time, search the archives for "bottom bouncers" or "spinners" and you should learn more than you'll ever need to know--there are some real experts on this board.

Dan's right--there are lots of things to consider once you get into it. All part of the fun. :) And as he suggests, learn all you can, but do try to get out there with someone who's got this down. You'll just be amazed at how efficient (and fun) this system can be. Good luck!

Mike

Hey, thanks guys for the advice. I'll difinately try it out this year. I'm familiar with crawler harnesses. I've used them trolling for Bass at night on a local lake. Actually, I got a Walley by mistake a few years ago. I've never used the bouncers, though.

I'll check out the archives, as well.

Trout